ead

Chapter 3

The elegant and dignified Myra Walsh hugged Felicia tightly, tears streaming down her face as she called out to her daughter. For a moment, the entire square seemed to hold its breath. Especially Lance and his lackeys, who had arrived a little too late. They all stood there in shock. Rumors had been circulating for a while that the Fuller family, the wealthiest in Khogend, had sent out people to find their long-lost daughter. Apparently, that daughter was Felicia. The lackeys gasped. One of them turned toward Lance and asked, “What do we do now, Mr. Thompson? Do we still grab her?” Of course, they couldn’t capture her anymore. Lance sneered coldly, but his leering gaze lingered on Felicia. “Let’s see how this plays out. If she’s really the Fuller family’s daughter, this just got even more interesting. I don’t care who she is—if I want her, she’s mine.” With one last sneer, he said, “Let’s go.” Quietly and unnoticed, Lance and his gang of lackeys slipped away. Meanwhile, Myra continued to cry in the square, her eyes red and swollen. Despite being nearly 50, her face still appeared youthful, though now streaked with tears. She reached out, wanting to gently touch Felicia’s face, but Felicia subtly avoided her. In stark contrast to Myra’s emotional outburst of heartache and joy, Felicia remained unnervingly calm. From start to finish, her face stayed blank, as if she were a bystander to the whole situation. Myra’s hand froze in midair, but she quickly reminded herself that Felicia still didn’t know the full story. Wiping her tears, she hastily explained everything. “Licia, I’m your mother, your real mother. I only recently found out that the daughter I fought so hard to bring into this world was switched at birth. The moment I learned the truth, I’ve been searching everywhere for you. And now, I’ve finally found you.” Myra’s tears flowed again as she spoke, her red eyes filled with heartache and guilt. It was her true emotions as a mother. Felicia didn’t doubt the sincerity of Myra’s feelings at that moment of time in her past life, and she didn’t doubt it in her current life, either. At that moment, Myra was genuinely her mother. Her heartache was real, and so was her guilt. However, Myra’s favoritism and disdain that came later were real too. Every time Myra had to choose between Felicia and Kayla, it was always Felicia who was cast aside. That happened very single time. For example, in her previous life, after Kayla had faked her death by jumping into the sea, Myra had slapped her hard and said, “Felicia, the biggest regret of my life is bringing you back!” Felicia closed her eyes briefly, her body trembling uncontrollably. Despite her vivid memories, she couldn’t express her pain and grievances. She slowly disentangled herself from Myra’s embrace, her movements gentle but firm. “You’ve got the wrong person, lady.” “Licia…” Myra’s face was filled with sorrow, but she quickly pulled herself together, forcing a smile through her tears. “It’s okay, sweetheart. I understand you can’t accept this right now. Blood is thicker than water, and I believe one day you’ll recognize me.” Felicia stayed silent. Myra, trying her best to appease her, said softly, “Licia, it’s so late. Why don’t you come home with me tonight? I’d feel much better knowing you weren’t out here alone.” Ever since learning that her biological daughter had been switched at birth, Myra had immediately sent her men to gather all information about Felicia’s whereabouts. Hence, she knew quite a bit about Felicia’s adoptive family and their background. Her adoptive mother was unemployed, spending most of her time arguing with the neighbors. Her adoptive father was a petty criminal, constantly involved in scams. Meanwhile, her brother was a gambler, always neck-deep in debt. Myra couldn’t bring herself to respect such a family. She was also worried that Felicia would pick up their habits as she grew up in such a terrible environment. Since her real daughter was in front of her, there was no way she would allow her to go back to that awful place. After all, this was her biological daughter, her flesh and blood. “Licia, please come home with me.” Despite Myra’s genuine pleading and careful attention, Felicia didn’t respond. Her gaze, however, shifted toward Shawn, who was still frozen on the ground in shock. Shawn was stunned, unable to believe that Felicia was really the rich Fuller family’s daughter. That was good news to him as it meant he could blackmail the Fuller family for money. His gambling debts of tens of thousands would be cleared within minutes. After all, his family had raised Felicia all these years. Wasn’t it fair to ask for compensation? A few million, maybe tens of millions, wasn’t unreasonable, right? Upon having figured it out, Shawn’s eyes gleamed with a greedy and cunning light. Felicia, of course, would never return with Shawn. It wasn’t a place she would call home; it was suffocating, worse than an abyss. Besides, neither Shawn nor Lance would forgive her so easily. The best way to escape these lowlifes was to follow Myra back to the Fuller residence. With that thought, Felicia’s expression softened slightly as she looked at Myra. She seemed like a child yearning for love, with a hint of hope and longing in her eyes. The sight of it melted Myra’s heart, and she started crying again. “Let’s go, Licia. Let’s go home.” Felicia allowed herself to be led into the car by Myra, not resisting the affection. As she sat in the back seat, Felicia’s eyes dropped, and all traces of warmth and softness vanished, replaced by cold indifference and mockery. It was time to meet Kayla again. The fleet of luxury cars started up and headed toward the Fuller residence. Still sprawled on the ground, Shawn stared at the cars as they drove away, watching as Felicia flashed him a thumbs-up before drawing her thumb across her throat in a menacing gesture. Shawn snapped out of his daze, his face flushing with anger. That little brat! So what if she just became the daughter of a rich family? How dare she threaten him like that? He scrambled to his feet and immediately called his parents, shouting, “Dad! Mom! Felicia was just taken by the Fuller family. We need to go over there right now to demand justice. We shouldn’t have raised their daughter for free for 18 years! “Oh, and one more thing.” Shawn suddenly recalled what Myra had said about her daughter being switched at birth. His eyes lit up with realization. Since Felicia was the Fuller family’s real daughter, that meant Kayla, the current Fuller family’s heiress, was actually his