Part 3The True Heiress Refuses to Return

The next day, while the other girls from the orphanage were being organized by the director to have their blood drawn, I was on a bus with my new mother, heading back to her hometown.

The Daltons provided housing for their staff, so logically, I should have moved into the servants' quarters with her. But I told my mother I was scared and wanted to wait a little longer.

Meanwhile, the Daltons, ever suspicious after losing their daughter to a rival's scheme, grew wary. After discovering the imposter, they feared it was a trap. They didn't question anyone else at the orphanage, focusing solely on Anna. Anna insisted the locket had been hers since birth. In the end, the Daltons passed her off to a distant branch of the family to be raised, and the trail to their real daughter went cold.

By the time I set foot in the Dalton house in this lifetime, two months had passed. The dust had settled.

The day my mother and I moved in, a young Sophie was curled up on the living room sofa, crying in Elias’s arms.

"Elias, are you sure Mom and Dad won't send me away? Can I really stay?"

Elias looked awkward but patted her back rhythmically. "What are you talking about? Even if she comes back, they won't kick you out."

He scoffed. "You've been spoiled rotten your whole life. How would you survive out there on your own? Mom and Dad would worry themselves to death."

Sophie peeked up at him. "And you, Elias? Wouldn't you worry about me?"

He paused, then a smile broke across his face. "Alright, alright. I'd worry the most, okay?"

It was a picture of perfect family harmony.

I smiled, too.

Then I turned and slipped into the servant's room.