After breakfast, Eira hopped into the car with a few bodyguards, listening quietly as the driver gave her a rundown of what had gone on at the old house these past few years.

The Johnson estate was a traditional-style manor, with several buildings spread across the grounds-it was practically a self-contained world where you didn't have to step outside for anything.

Back then, after giving birth to Eira, her mom's health took a hit, so her dad had this whole place built just to keep her company at home. Even the backyard had a vegetable garden to give her a little taste of peaceful retirement life.

Eira used to think that simple, happy life would last. But then, right before everything went down...

Screech-

The sudden brake jolted her forward, caught off guard. She frowned, raising her brow. "What's going on?"

The driver was sweating, quick to explain. "Security said we can't go in."

Not allowed in?

Eira slowly rolled down the window, her flawless face coming into view. She threw the guard a cool glance. "So now you don't even recognize the owner of the house?"

The guard's eyes widened in shock, stumbling back a few steps. "You-you're..."

Eira's face stayed calm, lips pressed into a straight line. She ignored his dramatic reaction. "Open the gate."

The guard fumbled to unlock it, still stealing glances at the license plate in disbelief.

It really was her old car. She really was back. Alive.

The car stopped outside the main villa. Eira pulled off her sunglasses and tilted her head up, eyes landing on the familiar building. A tightness crept into her chest as emotion stung her nose.

She should've come back sooner.

Over the past two years, her uncle's family had taken over the estate, flipped the entire layout, and worst of all, destroyed her mother's favorite garden. In its place now stood a fancy fountain.

The once-elegant garden had been turned into some over-the-top foreign mess.

Her gaze grew colder. The crisp click of her heels echoed louder as she strode toward the door.

"Who is it? Some random woman again? You've got the wrong place-"

A maid poked her head out from the side entrance, grumbling-until she caught sight of the figure at the door.

The cloth in her hand dropped with a thud. Her voice trembled. "M-Miss Eira?"

She'd heard the whispers in the company-something about the eldest miss coming back from the dead-but seeing her in the flesh was a whole different shock.

Eira's expression stayed unreadable as she slowly walked toward the entrance, voice laced with sarcasm. "What, now I need permission to walk into my own home?"

The maid stiffened, hiding her hands behind her back as she discreetly made a gesture-telling someone to go alert the lady of the house.

But even that subtle move didn't slip past Eira's eyes.

So even the staff here had all been replaced by her uncle's people.

Her steps quickened. Then with no warning, she kicked the door wide open.

Inside, a pair of startled eyes turned toward her. That mother-daughter duo didn't even try to hide their shock.

Eira brushed some dust off her shoulder, her smile icy. "Well, Laura, you sure know how to treat yourself. Sweets first thing in the morning?"

Her eyes flicked to the expensive silverware and those customized pastries laid out neatly on the table. With a slight nod of her chin, she added, "Not sure you're even worthy of eating that stuff though."Laura Smith's hands trembled, the pastries she was holding slipped and hit the floor.

"Wh-What are you doing here?!"

Just a few days ago, William had already gone off on her a couple of times because of the whole scene Eira made at the company. But this estate? Eira never dared to step foot in it before. And now? She walks right in like she owns the place!

Watching the shock on Laura's face, Eira almost burst out laughing. She raised a brow and said with no rush, "Well, if I didn't show up, how would I know my dear aunt's still alive and kicking?"

"You bitch, what did you just say?!"

The young woman sitting across from her, Grace Johnson, stood up angrily and grabbed a nearby wine glass. But before she could even swing it, Eira caught her wrist midair, twisted it around effortlessly, and the wine splashed all over Grace's clothes.

With a loud screech, Grace froze under Eira's steely gaze.

"Watch your mouth when you're talking in my house," Eira snapped coldly.

Laura quickly jumped to her feet, terrified Eira might take it further. She hurriedly gestured to a maid to bring towels for Grace.

The fake smile on Laura's face was hanging by a thread, but she forced herself not to lose it entirely. Trying to play nice, she lowered her voice and said, "We've been looking everywhere for you. It's great that you're back, no need to argue with Grace."

"Maybe we could all just sit and chat calmly?"

"Looking for me?" Eira pulled her hand away with disgust, her eyes frosty. "So you failed to find me, and decided to move into my house, destroy the garden my mom loved most, and act like you belong here?"

Laura's smile stiffened. "Come on now, if we hadn't taken care of this place after your accident, it'd be a ruin by now."

Eira let out a laugh-angry, not amused. She glanced around the unfamiliar setup of the first floor, barely able to match it to the living room she remembered.

She stepped over shards of glass and made a slow circle around the room in front of the two women. "Oh, so I should be grateful, huh? Really got it all figured out, didn't you?"

Grace had finally wiped the sticky wine off her clothes. Seeing Eira so self-assured and cocky, she couldn't hold it in. "You've got some nerve. My mom is still your aunt," she snapped. Then, muttered under her breath, "What a brat."

Eira's heel nudged some glass pieces right at Grace's foot, making her retreat in panic, the insult stuck on her face as she didn't dare say more.

Eira's voice was low and ice-cold, "Being an elder doesn't mean a thing if I don't acknowledge it."

"Now that I'm back, the two of you-get out. ASAP."

At that, Laura's forced smile cracked. Gritting her teeth, she hissed, "We've been living here for years. And no one else was using it anyway."

She took a long breath. "If you want to come back, that's fine. We're here, we can keep you company. Your room's still exactly like you left it. You're always welcome."

The nerve of her nearly made Eira laugh. Arms folded, she looked Laura up and down. "You just moved in like it was your own, huh?"

She let a slow smile creep onto her lips, sharp as a blade. Every word enunciated crystal clear. "You want this estate? Fine."

"Hand over two billion in cash, and it's yours. Deal?"

"You... you've lost your mind?!"

Laura's face froze like she'd just been slapped out of nowhere. She stammered for a while before she finally squeezed out one sentence.

Eira stared at them coldly, her lips curving as she dropped a few words, sharp as knives. "If you can't produce it, then get out."

The fake kindness on Laura's face completely collapsed. Her fingers trembled as she pointed at Eira. "Eira, since when did you become so money-obsessed that you'd even scam your own relatives?!"

Money-obsessed?

She was just taking back what was rightfully hers, and that made her greedy?

Eira let out a mocking laugh. She raised her hand, signaling the few bodyguards outside to come in. Then, she pointed at several items in the living room that didn't belong there and ordered, "Toss all that junk out."

"If Auntie doesn't want to move on her own, then I'll have to make the effort for you."

The bodyguards moved quickly, ignoring the protests from the two women, and got rid of the eyesores without hesitation.

Grace ran around in a frenzy trying to block them from moving things.

Laura's face turned grim. "What the hell are you doing?! Trying to make our family the joke of Oceanvein?!"

Eira leaned against the wall, arms crossed. "I'm helping you move out. What, now suddenly I'm the clown?"

With that, she gave Laura a firm pat on the shoulder, lowering her voice. "You really think no one laughed when you took over the estate back then?"

Laura's body stiffened. When she looked up at Eira again, the girl felt like a stranger - that chill in her eyes was bone-deep.

Eira had always been a bit spoiled, but she never had this kind of commanding presence.

What happened to her in those years she was gone?

Things were spinning out of control fast. The bodyguards looked like they were about to gut the whole first floor. Laura finally gave in and shut her eyes tightly. "Tell them to stop! I'll move it myself!"

Eira raised her hand to halt the bodyguards right away. Her voice was calm but cutting. "You've got thirty minutes. If it's not done by then, I'll let them handle the rest."

She plopped down on the sofa and watched the two women scramble around, calling a few maids to help carry stuff down from upstairs.

Even though the Johnson name had declined, her uncle's family didn't seem to be living any less lavishly than before.

Eira's gaze dimmed. As she scanned the chaos, a butler she didn't recognize came up beside her with a fake smile, leaning down and speaking in a low voice. "Miss Johnson, should we stop the maids from helping them?"

She glanced at the man - definitely someone her uncle's family hired after her parents passed.

Her lip twitched. "No need."

If she remembered right, after her parents were gone, she'd specifically asked Mr. Calvert to stay on to manage the place.

Turns out, these two had moved faster than she'd thought. In less than fifteen minutes, the whole building was nearly emptied out.

As Eira skimmed the items they'd taken, her eyes narrowed - Grace had the nerve to raid her personal closet and snatch some of her things.

She pointed at a couple of custom gowns and accessories on the floor. "Make sure those get brought back inside."

Seeing this, Grace flipped out and blocked the doorway. "Why are you stealing my stuff?!"

But the bodyguard didn't answer. He just picked her up like a sack and dropped her outside.

Laura rushed to steady her daughter. Her well-preserved face twisted in anger. "I'm still your aunt and Grace is your cousin! How dare you-"

Bang-Before they could get another word in, Eira waved to the bodyguard, and with a heavy thud, the door was slammed shut, cutting off the angry shouting from the mother and daughter duo outside.

She turned around without blinking. "Get them out of here. Also, swap out the entire security system-replace it with the one from Yanis Group."

A few trembling housemaids were still lingering inside the villa.

Catching Eira's look, the butler immediately barked at the maids, "Do you girls not know who really owns this place? And you were actually helping those two?"

"Enough," Eira said coolly, casting a brief glance his way. "Where's Mr. Calvert?"

The butler froze for a second, eyes shifting. "You mean the old housekeeper? I heard he was let go before I got here. Something about sticky fingers."

He quickly added, trying to cover himself, "I just started working here. Hardly know those women, honestly."

Eira pressed her lips together.

Stealing?

Her parents had paid Mr. Calvert generously. The man had been old enough to retire but still came back immediately when she needed him-even from a different city. He'd lived here for over twenty years, had seen all kinds of valuables. Laura's stuff? Not even worth his time.

Without hesitation, Eira pulled out her phone and dialed.

"Mr. Calvert, it's me. I'm back."

There was a pause on the other end-a sharp intake of breath, then a voice that practically quivered. "Miss Johnson?! Is that really you?!"

Her expression softened slightly. "Are you available now? I'd like you to come back and manage the estate."

"I'll be there anytime you call!"

Mr. Calvert's immediate response came with the faint sound of hurried footsteps in the background.

Eira gently reminded him to take it easy and said someone would pick him up before hanging up.

Just like the luggage from earlier, the rest of the staff-including the butler-were all cleared out of the house.

Finally, some quiet.

Eira let out a long breath and made her way upstairs, walking the familiar path to her parents' room.

She hadn't put much hope in what she'd find-but the sight of William and Laura's photo still hung high above the bed made something inside her twist.

She yanked the frame down and threw it off the balcony without a second thought. Then she slid down by the side of the bed, lips trembling, her chest rising and falling rapidly like she was trying hard to stay in control.

After a moment of that tight grip on herself, Eira squeezed her eyes shut, covered her face with her hands, and slowly sank to the floor, refusing to let any tears fall.

But something flashed through her mind suddenly-she shot to her feet and rushed to the attic on the top floor, which had been locked away all this time.

Please let it be untouched.

Her fingers were shaking so much that it took several tries just to punch in the code and unlock the door.

Right in front of her, hanging at eye level, was a photo of her parents leaning close, smiling.

She couldn't hold it in any longer. The floodgates broke.

Eira stepped slowly into the attic. Tears streamed silently down her face, landing on the dusty floor.

She reached out and placed her hand on the frame, trying to feel some warmth, but all she got was a cold chill.

They were still smiling in the picture. And in her ears, the memory of that day-their voices, their laughter-echoed clearly.

But she couldn't see them anymore.

"Dad... Mom..."

The attic lock was a custom piece Eira had asked John to design back in the day-nearly unpickable unless you were one of them. That's the only reason everything inside was still intact.

Her mom used to love this place. It wasn't just a quiet corner. It doubled as her art studio. A lot of her paintings were still here. Right in the center of the room sat a photo Eira had snapped secretly, catching her mom sketching her dad. At the time, it felt normal. Just another cozy moment.

Then came two years ago. Her dad vanished during a business trip abroad-ambushed and robbed by criminals. No matter how hard they searched, there was no sign of him. Eventually, the only thing found was his remains.

When her mom heard the news, her health nosedived overnight. Laura had come to "help out" for a bit, but somehow Mom's mental state just kept getting worse until she passed, heartbroken and frail.

After burying both parents, Eira had spent years digging for answers, nearly losing her life in the process. Too many coincidences piled up-it was hard not to believe there was someone pulling strings behind the scenes.

Her mom had never been weak. After her father's disappearance, it was Mom who ran around tirelessly, following every possible lead. She even handled all the arrangements for her husband's funeral. That wasn't someone who'd just give up.

Thinking back, Eira's gaze dropped. What if something happened when Laura was taking care of her mom-something she didn't know? If William's family hadn't acted so outrageously these past couple of years, she might never have suspected them at all.

She wiped a tear from the corner of her eye and ran her thumb softly across her parents' smiles in the photo. "I'll make this right for you," she whispered.

She straightened the photo when a sliver of another picture caught her eye. Pulling it from beneath the table, she saw three young men laughing, arms around each other. That's right-she wasn't alone. She still had three brothers.

The issue was, they were always scattered across different countries-busy, sometimes even unreachable. Her oldest brother's job involved some sort of confidentiality agreement, which made staying in touch almost impossible. There was a good chance they didn't even know what had happened to their family.

Eira took a deep breath, pressing the photo to her chest and closing her eyes. She had to find a way to contact them.

She stayed in the attic all afternoon, waiting for her emotions to settle. Just as she was about to call for the driver, her phone lit up with a call from John.

As soon as she answered, his voice blared out, hyped up like he was watching a drama unfold. "Yo, boss! Did you see the news? Someone caught Alexander hugging a girl in the hospital!"

At the sound of his name, Eira's smile vanished. "What happened?"

John sounded even more worked up. "The photo's blown up-it's all over the trending topics. The chick's face is blurred out, but I ran a quick image fix and guess what..."

"Sophia."

John paused, totally thrown that she got it right so fast. "Wait-don't tell me you edited it too?"He suddenly paused, then quickly asked, "Wait, you already know what's going on with them?"

Eira's phone buzzed a couple of times. She opened the message and saw the trending photo. It was taken from such a sneaky angle, clearly someone from inside the hospital.

But Alexander' face was shown crystal clear, while Sophia was buried in his chest-only a faint outline was visible, and even that was blurred.

Given what Eira knew about Sophia, this was definitely something she staged herself, just to push her way into the Brooks family faster.

Besides, Alexander literally said just last night that they couldn't let his grandma find out about the divorce. And now the photo goes viral today? Doesn't seem like his doing.

Still, Sophia probably underestimated how much that grandma meant to Alexander. Maybe this little show would backfire. Eira scoffed, "So eager, huh?"

John lit up, chuckling, "Want me to leak the unedited pic?"

"Don't get involved in their drama. As long as they don't come bothering me, I don't care."

Eira had no intention of wasting time on Alexander's nonsense, so she switched gears. "By the way, I need a favor."

"Whatever you need, boss!"

She glanced at the photo of her brothers, her lips curling slightly. "Help me get in touch with them."

The line went quiet. After a long pause, John finally said, "Me? For real?"

"You can't even reach them yourself, how am I supposed to?"

Eira pressed her lips into a thin line. "My older brother's still stuck at the space program, so that's tough. But the second and third? If we get creative online, we could probably get through."

"You're better at this kind of thing, so I came to you."

Compared to her oldest brother, the other two were definitely more within reach.

One was a world-touring rockstar currently halfway through an extreme adventure, the other a pro esports player locked in training for a major global tournament.

Since it was rare for Eira to ask anything of him, John didn't hesitate. He agreed immediately and just asked for some time.

*****

The photo was blowing up all over the internet. Daniel couldn't tell what his boss really wanted. Was Mr. Brooks planning to let the gossip fly or shut it down?

He carefully opened the office door. "Sir, there's a situation... the pics from your hospital visit with Miss Clark leaked online."

Alexander looked up, eyes locking on Daniel's phone screen.

The woman in the photo was intentionally blurred, while his own face was perfectly clear, basically spotlighting him. Totally done on purpose to stir things up.

He frowned, bones cracking slightly in his fingers. His tone dropped cold. "Any idea who leaked it?"

Daniel shook his head slightly, trying not to provoke his temper any further. "We've got people on it. Should know soon."

Alexander looked back down at the photo of them clinging to each other, the sight making his mood worse by the second. "Bury it. No matter what, Grandma can't see this."

Daniel quickly nodded and turned to leave-but just as he reached the door, Alexander added, "How's the background check on Eira coming along?"