Chapter 110

Evelyn's palms grew damp with nervous perspiration. Cassandra glided past Liam, flashing him a knowing smile that promised everything would be fine.

With gentle insistence, Cassandra took Evelyn's trembling hand. "Come now, Evelyn. Let's perform a birthday melody for her."

"I can't, Cassandra," Evelyn murmured, her voice barely above a whisper.

Leaning closer, Cassandra's breath tickled Evelyn's ear. "No need to fret. The piano's automated system has the song programmed. Just place your hands on the keys - I'll handle the rest." Her grip tightened slightly. "You mustn't let Beatrice believe you're incapable."

Before Evelyn could protest, she found herself being guided toward the grand piano. Her desperate glance toward Liam went unanswered; he remained seated on the velvet sofa, observing the scene with quiet confidence in Cassandra's plan.

For the first time in three years of memory loss, Evelyn's fingertips brushed against the ivory keys. A strange familiarity coursed through her, as if her hands remembered what her mind had forgotten.

Cassandra discreetly activated the piano's pre-recorded function. "See? Even if you don't press properly, the music will play automatically," she whispered.

Just then, Isabella rose abruptly from her chair. "Wait a moment!"

All eyes turned as Isabella strode purposefully toward the piano.

With deliberate motion, Isabella removed a thick volume of sheet music from the piano rack. "Select any composition from this collection," she commanded, "but not the birthday song." Having spoken, she casually disabled the recording feature with a practiced flick of her wrist.

Cassandra's expression darkened. "Isabella, must you be so cruel? What has Evelyn ever done to deserve such treatment?"

Isabella arched a perfectly sculpted brow. "Cruel? I'm merely asking her to play something elementary - even 'Twinkle Twinkle Little Star' would suffice."

"You're deliberately humiliating her!"

"Think what you will."

As their argument escalated, Evelyn had already begun leafing through the music sheets. To her astonishment, the notes made perfect sense - her fingers instinctively knew their corresponding positions on the keyboard.

Selecting the final piece in the collection, she positioned her hands. Though her mind remained blank, muscle memory took over.

The room filled with a hauntingly beautiful melody. Cassandra and Isabella's quarrel ceased mid-sentence, both women turning toward the piano in shock.

A profound silence enveloped the grand hall as every guest stared in disbelief. Evelyn's slender fingers moved with impossible grace across the keys, the tempo building with passionate intensity while her posture remained flawlessly composed.

Isabella rushed to examine the sheet music, her face paling when she recognized it - the most technically challenging piano piece in the world. Even her own mother, a concert pianist, struggled with this composition. Yet Evelyn played it with effortless mastery.

Genevieve's cheeks burned with humiliation. She lowered her head, the stark contrast between Evelyn's current performance and her earlier struggles painfully obvious.

As the final notes faded, thunderous applause erupted. Evelyn stared at her own trembling hands in wonder, unable to comprehend how her body remembered what her mind had forgotten.

When she turned, Richard and Eleanor beamed with unrestrained pride, their hands red from vigorous clapping.

But it was Liam's reaction that mattered most. His intense gaze held depths of emotion she couldn't decipher, yet the admiration shining through was unmistakable.

Cassandra approached with undisguised amazement. "Evelyn! You've been hiding this incredible talent? That was the most difficult piano piece in existence!" She shook her head in disbelief. "All my worry for nothing - you're absolutely brilliant!"

Beatrice's sour expression darkened further. "Hardly impressive," she muttered bitterly, unable to mask her jealousy.