Another voice echoed faintly in the background of the call.

It belonged to Ethan.

"Sera, who are you talking to on the phone?"

Seraphina covered the mouthpiece, leaving only a few muffled phrases filtering through.

I caught a stray phrase Ethan murmured.

Then Seraphina brought the phone back to her ear.

"Ethan is here, Alaina. I have to hang up now."

"Oh, right. There's one more thing I forgot to mention."

"Mom told me that she didn't leave you behind because she couldn't take you with her back then."

"It was because you looked far too much like your biological father. Looking at your face made her feel utterly nauseous."

"That's why she only took me."

"Goodnight, Alaina."

The call disconnected.

I stood completely frozen in the living room of that apartment, surrounded by walls covered in framed photographs of Ethan and Seraphina.

Yet, in the brief gap where Seraphina had been speaking to Ethan just moments ago, I had clearly overheard a single phrase.

It hadn't been spoken by Seraphina.

It was Ethan.

He had said, “Close your eyes, honey. You don't have to look. I'll shield you from it.”

He had given that exact sentence to her.

Chapter 11

I stood in that apartment for ten minutes.

Then, I slipped the file envelope into my bag and walked out.

When the night wind rushed down my collar, it actually cleared my head.

They thought this file was a knife.

That if they stabbed me with it, I would be rolling on the ground in agony.

But they forgot one thing.

I am someone who was raised by knives.

Once in the car, I dialed a number.

"Felix, did you get your equipment back?"

"I got it back, Alaina."

"Do something for me."

"Pull up the shareholder register for that company under my name and send it to me."

Felix fell silent for two seconds.

"Alaina, are you sure you want to make a move on that side?"

"I'm sure."

After hanging up the phone, I leaned back against the rear seat and closed my eyes.

Nobody knew that during these five years Ethan had been basking in the spotlight, I was the one backing half of his capital chain.

Years ago, when he went from a construction worker to a contractor and secured his very first small project, he was short three million dollars in startup capital.

I was the one who provided that three million.

How did I do it?

I mortgaged the old house my mother left behind to borrow one million, and then borrowed another two million from contacts.

He didn't know.

He thought I had borrowed that money from relatives.

Later, as his business grew larger and larger, I slowly turned that three million into an investment firm.

I didn't use the name Alaina.

I used a different identity.

Morgan.

In the New York investment circle, Morgan was a name that was highly low-profile but carried immense weight.

No one had ever seen Morgan in person.

They only knew that Morgan held shares in seven companies, three of which were core links in Ethan's supply chain.

Morgan was me.

I had never intended to use this card.

I had even thought about never using it in this lifetime.

But now, my mother was back.

She was back with her other daughter.

Not to reunite with me.

But to rob me.

In that case, there was no table I couldn't flip.

When I got home, I didn't go upstairs.

I sat in the study all night.

At dawn, Felix sent the shareholder register over.

I read through it line by line.

On the third page, a name leaped out at me.

Madeline.

My mother.

She was actually a shadow shareholder in the real estate conglomerate under Ethan.

Her shareholding wasn't high, just three percent.

But this three percent was added two years ago.

The introducer column read: Ethan.

So not only was he with Seraphina.

He had even let my mother buy into his business.

This chessboard had never been as simple as a mere mistress.

My mother was the player, Seraphina was the pawn.

And Ethan was their backer.

I snapped the register shut.

I pulled out my phone.

I sent a message to one person.

Grandma Helen, I want to see you.

Five minutes later, a reply came.

Lana, I’ve been waiting for you for a long time. 2:00 PM, the old estate.

Chapter 12

The old estate was located in the western suburbs of Washington.

Grandma Helen lived here alone.

While there were plenty of maids and a butler, the rest of the family rarely visited.

Ever since Ethan was released from prison, the center of gravity for the family had shifted from the old estate into his hands.

When I arrived, Grandma Helen was in the courtyard trimming flower branches.

An eighty-year-old woman, yet her hands were perfectly steady.

Seeing me, she set down her shears.

"You're here. Have a seat."

Arthur brought over two chairs and poured the tea.

I didn't beat around the bush.

"Grandma, Seraphina is my half-sister."

Grandma Helen held her teacup and nodded.

"You found out."

"You knew all along?"

"Two years ago when Ethan brought her to see me, I had someone look into her."

"Then why didn't you tell me?"

The elderly woman set down her teacup.

"Because Ethan begged me not to say anything."

"He said he would handle it himself."

I gripped my cup tightly.

"And his way of handling it was hiding it from me while staying with her?"

"Lana." Grandma Helen looked at me. "Let me finish first."

"The relationship between Ethan and that girl isn't as simple as you think."

"Do you think he is with her because he loves her?"

"Is he not?"

The elderly woman shook her head.

"Two years ago, Madeline tracked Ethan down."

"She had something in her hands."

"What was it?"

"Back when Ethan was in prison, in order to get his sentence reduced, he pulled some strings to get things done. Those things weren't entirely legal."

"Madeline somehow got her hands on that leverage."

"She offered Ethan a condition: let Seraphina stay by his side, or she would hand those materials over."

"Ethan agreed."

My hand froze in midair.

"You're saying he was forced?"

"In the beginning, yes." The elderly woman sighed. "But later on, I can't say for sure."

"That girl is very manipulative."

"She looks like your mother did when she was young. She lavished Ethan with constant care and absolute devotion."

"You know what Ethan is like—he was starved of affection since childhood. His mother passed away early, and his father ignored him."

"Madeline was very good to him back then, treating him like her own son."

"So when Seraphina approached him using the exact same methods, he failed to block her out."

"As for the children..."

The elderly woman paused for a moment.

"The first child was an accident; he truly didn't want it."

"After you dealt with it, he actually felt a sense of relief."

"But the second one..."

"The second one was orchestrated by Madeline. She tampered with Seraphina's birth control pills."

I felt as though I were sitting right in the center of a massive spiderweb.

Every single thread led straight back to my mother.

"Grandma, I have one more question."

"Madeline bought into Ethan's shares. Did you know about this?"

The elderly woman's expression instantly changed.

"What?"

"Three percent. Bought in two years ago."

The elderly woman slammed her teacup heavily onto the table.

This was the very first time I had ever seen her lose her temper.

"This, I did not know."

"He is growing far too bold."

She stood up and called Arthur over.

"Tell Ethan to come to the old estate tomorrow."

"Say that his grandmother wants to see him. If he doesn't show, I will take back that plot of land under his name in the western suburbs."

Arthur nodded and walked away.

The elderly woman turned back to face me.

"Lana, when do you plan to reveal your company?"

I was startled.

"You know?"

"Did you think Ethan is the only one surrounded by smart people?" Grandma Helen looked at me. "The name Morgan first began to surface in the New York investment circle two years ago. Right around the time Ethan ran into trouble."

"I sent people to investigate, but the trail went cold halfway through."

"Later, I thought about it carefully. The only person capable of meticulously laying out a trap within Ethan's supply chain—besides himself—was you."

I looked at this eighty-year-old woman.

She was smiling.

"Lana, you are far sharper than Ethan."

"When it's time to show your cards, don't hesitate."

Chapter 13

On the way back from the old estate, I received a phone call.

It was from a prominent socialite in the Washington elite circle. Her husband had business dealings with Ethan, and our families occasionally socialized.

"Lana, are you busy lately? A few of us ladies are having an afternoon tea party the day after tomorrow. Would you like to come?"