Chapter 2
807 Words
After Holly's identity got confirmed, I waited every single day.
I hoped Holly's family would turn up soon and take me, this fake, away with them.
I did my homework. Old Madam Bennett's lost her marbles, my birth dad's a spineless wimp, my birth mother cries at everything, and my kid brother? Total deadbeat.
This whole family sounded right up my alley! That was exactly where I belonged.
One morning, I sat beside the garden plucking flower petals when the front gate creaked. I shot to my feet and bolted toward the doorway. I only made it to the entrance of the living room before Ethan blocked my path.
He leaned lazily against the doorframe, did not even lift his eyes, and let out a quiet huff through his nose. I awkwardly pulled my foot back.
Half an hour later, the gate rang again. I trotted over eagerly, only to find Leo this time. He had just come back from the fighting arena, boxing gloves hanging in one hand. The corner of his mouth tugged upward. "Waiting for someone? Do a squat, and keep waiting."
I had nothing to say.
When the gate rang for the third time, I stayed put. Soon I saw Mom and Dad walk inside, and Holly approached at the same moment. Dad walked past me and glanced over. "Good job."
'Yeah, right. Shaking like a leaf here. What's so good about that?'
Mom pulled out a tissue to wipe sweat off my forehead, and Holly Bennett spoke in a sour tone. "Mom dotes on her so much. Too bad some people can never be won over. She daydreams nonstop about heading back to that spineless man's house."
I kept quiet and said nothing. Mom gently pressed the tissue against my forehead and shot back, "Even if she wants to leave, she has never spoken a single malicious word about us."
Holly's face stiffened. Her expression shifted several times. She bit her lower lip and turned to Dad with a docile look. "Dad, now that I am your real daughter, shouldn't all the things that once belonged to her come back to me? The position of heiress ought to—"
My eyes lit up, and I nodded frantically. Yeah, yeah, yeah! Give everything to her!
Ethan looked down at me with a cold gaze. "Have you gone through the financial reports?"
I fell silent.
Leo cut in. "Did you finish enough squats?"
I fell silent again.
Mom folded the tissue away. "We should take her to tour the company. Let her Grandfather get a good look at her."
I stood up obediently and was about to follow them out when Dad shot me a mournful glance.
Inside the car heading to the group headquarters, Holly held her chin slightly raised. She stole glances at me out of the corner of her eye, as if victory was already in her grasp.
I huddled in the corner and daydreamed happily. Once they stripped me of the heiress status, I could head to the Bennett family and enjoy my lazy, useless days! Just thinking about it felt amazing.
We reached the top floor of the headquarters building. Grandfather waved at me from far away. "Shirley! Come here."
Right after I greeted him, he pinched my cheek. "You've lost weight. Are your parents starving you?"
Dad tugged at the corner of his mouth. Grandmother also took my hand and smiled warmly. "I just ordered some desserts. Grab a box before you leave."
Holly stood at the back, wearing an incredibly complicated expression. She bit her lip, stepped forward two paces, and bowed. "Hello, Grandpa. My name is Holly Bennett."
Grandfather glanced at her and nodded, yet he did not utter a word.
Holly's face paled another shade, but she forced herself to continue speaking. "I thought, since I am the genuine heiress, shouldn't the right to inherit—"
Before she could finish her sentence, Grandfather frowned. "What inheritance right? I made Shirley the heiress myself. I announced this to all shareholders. There is no going back on that."
Dad stayed silent. Holly's complexion grew even paler.
Grandma patted my hand and joked softly. "Honey, how about this. If they don't want Shirley anymore, we can bring her back to live with us. She's so sweet."
Grandfather's eyes lit up. "That's a brilliant idea."
Holly choked on her words and toppled straight backward.
Silence swept across the top-floor office for a heartbeat. Grandfather stared down at unconscious Holly and furrowed his brows.
"Call 911. Kid's this young and already this weak?" He paused, then turned toward me and added another comment. "Still not as sturdy as Shirley, though. Last time, Shirley chased a robber for eight hundred meters and ran him until he threw up."
The smile on my face froze, and my mouth twitched uncontrollably.
- Writer
