The mont Grant said those words, the whole room froze.
It was like the music had stopped again, even though we were already off stage. People didn’t even know how to breathe properly. Their faces stayed stuck in shock, mouths half-open, eyes wide.
Yenick looked like his mind had gone blank. He stared at Lincy as if the floor had shifted under him. Their families had known each other for years, so if Lincy wasn’t Grant’s daughter... then who was she?
The crowd turned in waves.
And then, all at once, their eyes swung to .
Sothing clicked loudly in the room like a lock snapping open.
"So Riley is the real heiress!"
"Oh my God, Riley is the real one!"
"No wonder she always begs for milk tea," soone blurted, half angry, half embarrassed. "I used to think, how can an heiress be this broke?"
Another voice cut in fast. "She borrowed twenty thousand from a few days ago!"
"I lent her fifty thousand," soone said, louder. "She told her card was maxed out and promised she’d pay next month!"
"I lent her one hundred," another person yelled, furious. "What a fraud!"
The words started piling up, coming from every corner. It wasn’t even about truth anymore. It was anger and humiliation and people realizing they’d been played.
Lincy stood there, stiff, the spotlight still on her.
Even with all her pride, even with her thick skin, she couldn’t hold her face up under that kind of public bite. She covered her face with both hands and ran, her gown swishing behind her like she was trying to escape her own shadow.
I didn’t chase her.
I didn’t need to.
I held the dal and flowers the host handed , then walked up to Grant. My hands didn’t shake, but my heart did. I placed the dal around his neck carefully.
"Dad," I said softly. "Thank you."
Grant’s arms ca around . It wasn’t a warm hug, not like Lewis’s, but it was real. For a man like Grant, that was everything.
We took a photo together.
As the cara flashed, I lifted my gaze toward the bright sky outside the building’s glass doors.
Riley... can you see this?
This was the mont she always wanted. Grant’s recognition. The world finally seeing who she truly was. A daughter standing beside her father, not in the shadows.
And now it was done.
Tomorrow’s headline would be about Grant and .
Lincy would be exposed for what she was.
After the event ended, the crowd spilled outside, buzzing like a hive. I spotted Lincy in the parking lot, cornered by Yenick. She hadn’t even changed out of her gown. Her hair looked ssy, and her face was tight with panic.
"Let go of !" she hissed.
Yenick grabbed her wrist hard enough to turn it red. "Explain yourself," he demanded. "If you’re not his daughter, then who’s your real father?"
"What does it matter to you?" Lincy snapped, trying to pull free. "I’m your girlfriend. Don’t tell you want to ditch now!"
Yenick’s face twisted. "What happened with the Ashbournes? I invested so much in you. If you don’t explain, I won’t let you leave."
I stepped closer with Lewis beside , and my voice cut clean through their argunt.
"About her biological father," I said calmly, "you already know him. Zack Harrison."
Yenick froze.
I let the words land fully before I continued. "The one on the verge of bankruptcy. Does that clear it up?"
His face went pale as the pieces finally lined up in his head.
"So... your mom had an affair with him?" Yenick’s voice shook. "Lincy... are you a "
Lincy’s eyes flared with rage. "Who are you calling that?"
But Yenick wasn’t even focused on the insult. He was stuck on the loss, the money, the humiliation. He turned desperately toward Grant like a drowning man looking for a rope.
"Grant," he pleaded, "tell this isn’t true. Lincy is your daughter, right?"
Grant looked at him with a cold smirk. "Do you really think she is?"
Yenick’s breath ca fast. "I spent so much money on her. I bought her a house and a car because of your na!"
I understood it clearly now.
Yenick thought he was investing. He believed Grant would repay him once he beca "family." He thought he could use Lincy to climb higher.
He thought he could control her.
But Lincy had played him first.
Everything was in her na.
Every single thing.
Grant’s eyes stayed hard, almost satisfied. "So my reputation is that cheap?" he asked mockingly. "Anyone can use it?"
His gaze sharpened. "When you abandoned Riley... did you ever imagine this would be your reward?"
Yenick’s face crumpled like the world had collapsed around him.
He looked at then, lips parting as if he wanted to say sothing maybe an apology, maybe a lie, maybe a plea.
But Lewis gave him one cold look.
And Yenick swallowed his words instantly.
I smiled, small and sharp. "Yenick, you should download the national anti-fraud app next ti."
He blinked, stunned.
"Don’t let soone sell you out," I added softly, "and still have you counting your money for them."
Yenick had nothing to say.
Lincy tried to bolt in that mont, but Yenick was already boiling over. He grabbed the back of her neck and slapped her so hard she hit the ground.
"B*tch!" he shouted. "I spent so much on you and you still want to run?"
Lincy’s hair fell loose. Blood streaked down the side of her face. She crawled a little, looking wild, desperate.
"Yenick," she cried, voice breaking, "didn’t you say you loved ? Didn’t you say you’d do anything for ?"
"Do anything for you?" Yenick spat. "If you aren’t Grant’s daughter, who would even look at you?"
His voice dropped into sothing ugly. "Pay back with interest, or I’ll sell you to nightclubs to settle your debt."
Lincy shook, then turned toward Grant like a last resort, dragging herself forward.
"Dad... I’m begging you. Help again. I know I was wrong."
Grant’s face turned colder.
"Stop calling that," he snapped. "I don’t have a disgusting daughter like you. Every ti I think about what you did to Riley, I want to tear you apart."
When Riley’s na was ntioned, Lincy’s eyes flicked to . Fast. Calculating.
Then she changed tactics instantly, voice turning sweet like sugar over rot.
"Riley... Mrs. Hale," she sobbed. "You’re kind. You’re beautiful. We’re sisters, after all. I know I wronged you. Please help ."
I stared at her.
"Help you?" I said, my voice flat. "You were slandering at school not long ago. How do you still have the mouth to beg ?"
She kept groveling, crying louder, performing for anyone watching.
And people were watching.
So classmates nearby had gathered, seeing everything clearly now. Their faces twisted with disgust.
"Oh my God. Is Lincy really this shaless?"
"Lincy, give my money back!"
More voices joined in, angry and loud. They rushed toward her, pushing closer.
Lincy’s eyes went wide.
In the end, she didn’t care about dignity anymore. She scrambled up and ran, not looking back once. She nearly got hit by a car crossing the street. The driver leaned out and cursed at her as she stumbled away.
Yenick jumped into his car, furious, ready to chase. "You can hide now," he shouted, "but you can’t run from forever!"
But Lincy was already gone.
The students standing nearby turned to then, finally understanding. Their eyes flicked to Lewis.
They recognized him.
They realized it was Lewis who donated the building. Even with his injury, his presence was heavy. The kind of strength people felt in their bones.
No one dared look down on him.
"Riley, I’m sorry," soone said quickly. "We misunderstood you because we listened to Lincy."
"I even cursed you with her," another added, rushing their words. "I’m really sorry."
Their apologies weren’t pure. I could sll fear in them fear I’d retaliate later, fear I’d rember.
I didn’t care.
"It’s fine," I said calmly. "I never held a grudge."
Whether they praised or insulted , it didn’t matter. I had no interest in being friends with people who changed colors the second the wind shifted. After graduation, they would disappear from my life anyway.
I turned to Lewis. "Let’s go."
"Mm," he replied.
I didn’t look back at those classmates again.
As the car door slowly closed, I caught sight of them.
The Blackwell brothers stood not far away, watching.
One wore a bright, dazzling grin.
The other smiled too but his smile felt sharp, like sothing hiding teeth.
Both of them sent a chill through , the kind that slid under the skin and didn’t leave.
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