3

The moment the two men led me into the Henson mansion, the warm gold light of the crystal chandelier over the living room was so bright I couldn't keep my eyes open.

Once they adjusted, I saw a well-preserved middle-aged couple sitting on a leather sofa not far off, and a girl in a cream-colored dress with red-rimmed eyes.

The moment she saw me come in, she shrank back behind Mrs. Henson and called out timidly, "Sister."

I guessed who she was right away.

She had to be Karen Henson, the fake heiress who'd been swapped at birth all those years ago.

But before I could get a word out, Mrs. Henson grabbed my hand and burst into tears.

She kept saying I'd suffered all these years, then turned and told the housekeeper to clear out the south-facing room on the second floor for me, and pressed a black card into my hand, telling me to go buy a couple of outfits I liked.

I was so touched I could hardly stand it. Blood really is blood, I thought.

I thanked her and followed the maid up to the room.

Thinking, at last I could live the good life, eating well and doing nothing.

As for scheming against the fake heiress?

Honestly, I'd never once considered it.

My dream was to be a dead fish, after all. As long as I had endless money to enjoy, I was happy.

Running a company or anything like that? I'd genuinely never thought about it.

With the script of a rich heiress already in my hand, only an idiot would sign up to be a workhorse.

But I didn't expect that, come dinnertime, my new father would teach me a lesson.

That was when I finally understood...

Why Connor Gilbert had worn that amused little smile when he heard I was the Henson heiress...

4

At dinner, I'd just picked up my chopsticks to reach for the tuna not far off.

My new father cleared his throat and said, "Bernice, you've just come back, so there's probably a lot you don't understand. Karen has been raised at our side for twenty-three years, and the Henson Group shares were transferred into her name long ago. She's familiar with the company's affairs too... so..."

The chopsticks froze in my hand, and my head buzzed.

So the fake heiress was the one running this house now?

Then how was I supposed to be a dead fish?

I lifted my eyes to him right away. "So?"

"So you don't need to get involved with the company. But your mom and I won't shortchange you." My mother jumped in, fishing a car key out of her bag and pushing it in front of me.

"There's a big apartment downtown and this Porsche, both in your name now. Every month we'll also deposit a hundred thousand in spending money for you. You just live comfortably, and when the chance comes we'll find you a good family to marry into. How does that sound?"

I paused.

A hundred thousand in spending money sounded like a lot, but this was Ravenhill, where every inch of land was gold.

And if one day they weren't happy with me, they could cut off the card, take back the house and the car, and I'd be right back in some pigeon-coop apartment.

So I raised my eyes and asked with a smile, "So now that the real heiress is back, all I'm worth is a house, a car, and a hundred thousand in spending money? And I'm supposed to hand the shares and the company over to the fake heiress like a good girl, then wait for you to find a family to sell me off to?"

Hearing that, my new father frowned on the spot and put on the airs of an elder. "Bernice, that's not how it works. Isn't this for your own good? You grew up on the outside, you never studied business management, and if you rushed into the company you'd only be laughed at. Karen is different. She's studied all this with us since she was little... Handing the company to her is the safest move right now..."

"For my own good?" I set down my chopsticks and wiped my mouth.

"When I was out there scraping by on scraps, you were doting on Karen. Now that you've claimed me back, you say it's for my own good and hand everything that should be mine to an outsider? So this is what your good treatment looks like?"

Karen immediately set down her chopsticks and stood, her eyes red enough to drip. "Sister, if you want the shares, I'll give them all to you. It's all my fault, I took your place for so many years... If you're really resentful, you can even hit me a few times... just please don't blame Mom and Dad, okay..."

"Heh. If you really want to give them up..." I looked at Karen with a cold smile.

I was about to fire off a few lines at her, but before I could finish, my mother slammed the table in anger.

"Bernice! Enough! Karen's already said all that, what more do you want? We've already given you a house and money, how can you still be this greedy!"

Greedy?

I laughed.

So the real daughter comes home, gets tossed a few scraps, is about to be sold off in a marriage deal, and the moment I talk back I'm the greedy one?

I couldn't be bothered to act out a family melodrama with them.

I'd rather spend that time going back to being a corporate drone.

At least as a drone I got to decide my own life.

Anything was better than sitting here waiting for them to sell me off.

I stood, picked up the black card and the car key, and looked coldly at my new parents. "Fine. I'll take the house and the money, call it compensation for twenty-three years of raising costs. As for the shares and the company... since you've all decided to give them to Karen, I respect your choice. Just don't come to regret it. Goodbye!" And with that I turned and walked out.

My father called after me, but I didn't stop.

Because I knew...

Staying would only mean swallowing more humiliation.

Better to leave now than wait to be sold off later.

At least this way I'd walked out with a big apartment and a Porsche, right...

04

5

The moment I stepped out through the Henson gate, I climbed into that brand-new Porsche.

I ran my hand over the wheel and let out a sigh.

"Well. Dream come true for barely half a day, and now it's back to being someone's workhorse." Then I put the car in gear and headed for my rental.

Halfway there, my phone rang. It was HR.

They said Connor wanted me in his office first thing tomorrow to go over the handover for my resignation.

I stared at the dashboard screen for three whole seconds, then couldn't help cursing under my breath.

This awful man. He really wouldn't let up. I'd already walked out, and he still wasn't done with me.

A few hours ago, I'd have hung up and called him a bastard for good measure.

But now my heiress dream was in pieces. I had a house and a lump of money, sure, but sitting around burning through it was no long-term plan. I still needed proof I'd resigned, or my whole working future was cut off.

So I gritted my teeth and said, "Fine. Understood. I'll be there on time tomorrow."

I hung up, switched the phone to silent, tossed it onto the back seat, and stamped down hard on the gas.

The night wind poured in through the window and blew my hair all over my face.

Out of nowhere, the hurt welled up in me.

It wasn't like I'd had my heart set on that sliver of Henson shares. All I'd ever wanted was to coast along, take it easy.

The problem was the way they'd brushed me off, like tossing scraps to a beggar. That was what made me furious.

And Karen had taken twenty-three years of my life. My own birth parents didn't just fail to stand up for me. They helped her push me down instead?

This plot?

These people?

Too far-fetched for even a novel to try.

Who the hell could keep swallowing this...

But so what if I couldn't?

Right now I was on my own, with no connections, no resources, nothing.

Going up against Karen, who was already dug deep into the Henson family, would be like throwing an egg at a rock.

So...

The thought of revenge surfaced in my head for all of three seconds before I shoved it straight to the back of my mind.

I sighed, helpless, and drove on toward the shoebox unit I rented in the old part of town.