Colin's face fell the second I finished my first sentence.

Mila looked even sourer. She'd spent the last month trying to please us by cooking and doing laundry. I bet she was regretting it now.

Mila and Colin exchanged a look before Colin stood up and asked, "Mom, Dad, are you serious? Are these IOUs and the rental agreement real?"

Indeed, they were. Actually, the apartment Grant and I were living in had been sold to settle some debts. It just so happened that the investor who bought it had no intention of living here and rented it back to us.

Grant nodded. To convince Colin, Grant pulled out the original contract and the payment records and showed them to Colin.

The more Colin read, the angrier he seemed to get.

Finally, he snapped. He threw the IOUs and rental agreement at us. "So, you knew you were broke and you still made us wait on you hand and foot?"

Grant and I feigned deep hurt. "Colin, how can you say that? We may not be related by blood, but we raised you all these years. We've had a tough time these last five years and never meant to bother you. If you hadn't come to us, we wouldn't have asked for anything."

Mila sneered, "You're barely getting by and yet you kept us in the dark. If you really cared about Colin and Jasper, you should have come clean about your finances from the get-go."

I chuckled awkwardly, pretending to be embarrassed. "Weren't you the one who was kneeling outside, saying you came back to take care of us?"

Colin gave me a scornful look. "Come on, you're an adult. Use your brains. You're not my biological parents. Why should I have to support you?"

Grant dramatically clutched his chest, feigning hurt. "Then why did you come back?"

Mila, holding Jasper, headed straight to the bedroom. It looked like she was packing up to leave.

Colin looked down at Grant and me, saying, ""We want you to transfer this apartment to me, sell it, and buy a place in a good school district. Otherwise, Jasper will start at a disadvantage."

I pointed at Colin, my hand trembling slightly. "So, you came back just to get the apartment from us? Not because you missed us?"

Mila came out with her bags packed. "Seriously? You actually believed that? If we really wanted to take care of you, would we have waited this long? If I'd known you were broke, I wouldn't have come. I've spent quite a bit on groceries and fruits these past few days. Pay me back now."

I shook my head repeatedly. "How could you lie to us, Colin? Your dad and I are old and have no income. We're going to court to demand support from you."

Colin gripped my arm tightly, glaring. "I knew you two old fools were no good. Fine, let's go to court now and disown each other."

Grant and I hadn't expected to get what we wanted easily. But seeing the hesitation in Colin's eyes, I guessed he still had doubts and was testing us. So, I refused to go to court.

Finally, Colin lost his temper and slapped Grant to the ground. Crying, I agreed to go to court to dissolve our family ties.

Colin even took the little cash and few pieces of jewelry left in my room. Then, he dragged Grant and me to court, where we officially ended our parent-child relationship.

Once we got the paperwork, Grant and I couldn't help but laugh.

Colin stared at us, puzzled. "Have you two lost your minds?"

We ignored him and walked to a luxury car parked nearby. The driver immediately opened the doors for us. It was then that Colin realized he'd been duped.

He rushed over, trying to stop us. "You were lying to me, weren't you? You do have some money, right?"

Grant chuckled. "It's not just some money, Colin. We're sitting on 200 million dollars. But thanks to you insisting on severing ties, we don't have to share a dime with you."

Colin and Mila were stunned. They tried to approach us, but several bodyguards quickly stepped in and blocked them.