60: Zara Sad Experience
The lady gulped down nervously. "Umm... actually, we have a special treatnt in our branch. Once there’s a VIP custor, we use royal titles to address them so that they feel more comfortable," she quickly fabricated.
Zaiyila sighed in relief. "That scared ," she thought, then smiled awkwardly. "It’s... it’s okay," she responded.
"Replying to your earlier question, we have a total of twelve floors, and the VIP section starts from the sixth floor. If Her Royal Highness is interested, I can take you there for a look."
Zaiyila nodded, and the lady led the way.
...
A few minutes passed. Most of the clothes Zaiyila picked were for Everett. Everything was now packed, and she was heading outside—not because she had finished shopping or grown tired of exploring the company, but because she wanted to drop the bags in the car. On her way out, she noticed a young lady seemingly arguing with a security guard.
At first, she wanted to ignore it, but curiosity steered her feet in their direction. As she closed the distance, just a few ters away now, her eyes widened in surprise.
"Zara," she murmured, stunned. "She isn’t dead," she thought, furrowing her brows.
"Sister!" the lady Zaiyila recognized as Zara cried out, rushing toward her and hugging her tightly, as though she’d found her long-lost treasure. "I knew I couldn’t be mistaken. I knew it was you!" she wept.
Zaiyila stood frozen, about to speak, when a terrible odor reached her nose, making her frown. She looked Zara over, her brows knitting even tighter.
Zara’s hair was unkempt and reeked. She looked miserable, her dress in disarray. She resembled nothing short of a beggar, and this confused Zaiyila even more.
Zara pulled away, her face glowing with happiness as she looked at Zaiyila again and again. "You’re even more beautiful, Aiyi. If I hadn’t seen your stunning appearance before, I might not have recognized you," she admired, her gaze full of affection.
Zaiyila frowned, confused. "What does she an by that? I’ve never hidden my face before," she thought, her brows tightening further. "That’s right—at the banquet Eve prepared for , Soya ca but didn’t even recognize . Was she embarrassed or... have I really changed so much? Or is sothing off?" she pondered, staring at Zara without blinking.
Zara’s joy slowly faded as she noted Zaiyila’s unreadable expression. "I know I hurt you in the past. It was never my intention. I really didn’t want to treat you that way," she confessed, two tears sliding down her cheeks.
Zaiyila blinked. "First of all, why are you like this?" she inquired.
Zara gave a bitter smile. "I survived the death and relocated to the city. Once that mother-and-daughter pair found out I tried to release you, they started acting strange, treating nothing less like a slave. I thought it was just anger and decided to endure it... but it got worse. The more I endured, the worse it beca. Now I can feel the pain you’ve endured all these years, and I wished for death. I was even ready to commit suicide. But sohow, I got lucky. I recently found out I’m not her biological daughter—just as you aren’t, either," she revealed.
Zaiyila’s eyes widened in shock, though her confusion deepened. "No... it’s not possible that you’re not her biological daughter. That’s definitely not possible," she countered.
Zara chuckled sadly. "Who treats their own child the way she treated ? Well, maybe so do... but she’s worse. The only thing she seed to be in a hurry to do was to seal my fate in an unwanted marriage. I had to run away. But outside, I t worse. I was raped, and now I’m pregnant. Even though the pregnancy is humiliating, I don’t want to abort it. But then again... if I give birth, who will take care of him for ? He’ll suffer with and maybe even curse for being his mother. I don’t want him to experience what I did, so I decided to abort. But the fee is another problem. That’s why I started begging for money. I was nearby when I saw your car from a distance. At first, I saw a man and thought, soone who shops here won’t value money; maybe if he sees , he’ll throw money at in disgust. I was prepared for the humiliation. But then I saw you. I couldn’t believe my eyes—it was really you. Sister, you can’t imagine how happy I was. I tried to run to you, but you dragged the man into the company so fast that I couldn’t catch up. So, I waited here," she explained.
Zaiyila raised a brow. "So why were you arguing with the guard?" she questioned.
Zara lowered her head, embarrassed. "Look at . I’m standing in front of an upscale company looking like this. Of course, he thought I was up to no good. He tried to drive away, but I wasn’t ready to leave until I confird it was really you."
Zaiyila nodded and glanced at Zara again. "You don’t look well. Wait here—I’ll be right back," she instructed, heading to the car. She placed all the bags inside and shut the door, then turned to the bodyguard standing nearby.
"In case my husband cos back before I return, tell him everything you saw. I’m going to a nearby restaurant to speak with her," she inford.
The guard bowed respectfully. "Yes, Young Mada," he acknowledged.
Zaiyila nodded and turned back to Zara. "You must be hungry. Let take you to get sothing to eat," she offered.
"Ah... can I go like this? I an, I look so rough. I don’t want people speaking ill of you because of ," Zara hesitated.
Zaiyila thought for a mont. "Co inside first. Let’s see if soone can help," she replied, leading Zara inside the building—leaving her utterly stunned.
Zaiyila might not have noticed it at first, but she eventually realized—how could she walk so freely through such a grand company without being stopped? Even bringing Zara inside... no one dared question her. Not even the guard at the entrance, who now looked at her with a fearful expression.
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