Chapter 3

"See for yourselves!” Blake waved the report overhead. “My DNA test with Sierra proves we're siblings!”

He paused, his gaze deliberately finding me before he drove the point home. “The evidence is right here. Sierra is the real Maxwell heiress. Avery...she has no blood tie to this family at all"

He was shouting now, as if I were standing across a field.

My parents stood frozen, their eyes wide with shock and disbelief.

Dad's brow furrowed. "This report... Blake and Sierra are truly siblings?!"

Mom's voice trembled. "How can this be...?"

The room erupted. The whispers now were louder than before.

"The results are in! Avery really is the fake!"

"The Maxwells must be sick. Their own daughter suffered for eighteen years while they spoiled a stranger."

"Did you see how high and mighty Avery was acting? Talk about karma."

"Exactly. Prancing around in a stolen life. Let's see her talk her way out of this."

...

I went from being the pampered heiress of a wealthy family to a fake heiress everyone could scorn.

Blake lifted his chin smugly and gave me my marching orders. "Avery, nothing to say now, huh? Get out, quickly!"

Sierra tugged on Blake's sleeve, timidly saying, "Blake, maybe... maybe we should just let it go. After all, Mom and Dad did raise Avery for eighteen years."

Her 'kind and magnanimous' act only made me seem like a monstrous villain.

I watched their little performance quietly, with no intention of leaving. "Blake, the Maxwell family isn't yours to command!"

Blake scowled, then directly signaled the bodyguards to drag me out.

"You're out of line, Avery Maxwell! Today, I'm going to make you realize who the true owner of this family is! A common nobody doesn't deserve designer clothes-strip her of that dress and throw her out!"

Several bodyguards moved to grab me, but before their hands could even touch me, Dad's cold voice stopped them.

"Stop! Who dares lay a hand on my daughter?!"

Dad's voice carried an unquestionable authority, and Mom quickly stepped forward, shielding me.

The bodyguards froze instantly, exchanging nervous glances, not daring to advance.

Seeing this, Blake's eyes turned red. He couldn't believe that even with the DNA report right in front of them, Mom and Dad were still protecting me, an outsider.

He lost control, roaring at Mom and Dad.

"Dad! Mom! Have you gone senile?!"

"Sierra and I are the real Maxwells! How can you ignore your own flesh and blood and pour your hearts out to Avery, this imposter?!"

Mom and Dad's expressions were complex. After a long moment, they simply said, "Avery is a Maxwell."

Their voices weren't loud, but they carried an unshakeable resolve.

In that moment, a warmth spread through my chest.

No matter what happened, Mom and Dad would always be my shield.