Clara stumbled back into the empty mansion and collapsed onto the couch, the tears she had been holding back finally spilling over.
Grievance, humiliation, and betrayal tangled together inside her, suffocating her.
Her phone suddenly rang. The screen lit up with a single word, "Mom." Clara stared at it, and despite everything, a faint flicker of hope rose in her chest.
She took a deep breath, wiped away her tears, and answered the call.
"Clara, there's a family dinner tonight. You should come." Margaret's voice carried no warmth at all, only impatience.
Clara's heart sank. Her voice came out hoarse. "I'm not part of the Sterling family anymore. Why do you still want me there?"
Margaret sounded even more irritated. "Your sister invited you. Just come."
Her sister?
Clara froze for a moment before realizing that Margaret was referring to the real daughter of the Sterling family.
After a brief silence, she finally nodded. "I understand."
By the time she arrived at the Sterling residence, the dinner had already begun.
The moment she pushed the door open, every eye turned toward her. Whispers erupted, sharp and unpleasant.
Each word felt like a blade stabbing into her heart. Clara clenched her fists.
Julian walked over and cast a cold glance at those whispering. They fell silent immediately.
Just like the day she had fallen for him, this was how Julian used to protect her.
A sharp pain tore through Clara's chest. Julian noticed her ashen face and frowned.
She had seemed off these past few days.
"You okay?" he asked quietly.
At that moment, Victor and Margaret stepped forward. The hall fell silent.
Victor spoke, "We've gathered everyone here today to announce something important. After confirmation, Vivian is our biological daughter."
It felt like something exploded in Clara's mind.
Vivian… was the real heiress?
She looked at Vivian in disbelief.
At the announcement, Vivian's face turned deathly ashen.
She shot to her feet, anger flashing in her voice. "You promised me you wouldn't say this in front of Clara!"
The entire room fell silent.
The next second, all eyes were on the newly acknowledged heiress as she hurried to Clara, her voice low and apologetic. "Clara… I'm sorry. I didn't know they would do this."
Clara stared at her, her chest rising and falling rapidly.
Suddenly, Clara laughed, tears slipping down her face. "Vivian… what else do you want to take from me? Just take it all. My husband, my family, love, friendship… take everything. Just don't hurt me anymore."
Vivian froze, all the color draining from her face.
"Clara, what are you saying? If you're upset about them announcing this, I can ask them to adopt you as their goddaughter, okay? We can still be family. We can still be sisters."
Clara felt something close to absurdity wash over her.
She slowly lifted her head and looked at Vivian, her gaze calm. "How long are you going to keep pretending, Vivian?"
Vivian's face went pale in an instant. "Clara, I really am doing this for you… I don't want to lose you, and I don't want you to have nowhere to go…"
"Doing this for me?" Clara let out a faint, bitter smile. "If that were true, you wouldn't be taking my money for your tuition, living in a place I arranged for you… while sleeping with my husband."
Tears burst from Vivian's eyes as she instinctively looked at Julian. "Julian, I never meant to hurt her…"
Julian frowned deeply, about to speak, but Margaret had already reached her limit.
"Clara!" Margaret snapped sharply. "Do you have any manners left? Vivian was kind enough to let you stay, and this is how you act? Who do you think you are?"
Before she finished, she raised her hand, about to slap Clara across the face.
In a split second, a figure rushed forward and threw herself in front of Clara.
A sharp crack echoed through the room.
The sound of the slap rang clear.
It didn't land on Clara's face, but struck Vivian hard across her left cheek.
Clara froze, her pupils shrinking in shock.
She watched as Vivian's tender cheek flushed red almost instantly, a trace of blood appearing at the corner of her lips. Clara's heart clenched.
"Vivian…" Clara reached out instinctively, her voice trembling. "Are you… hurt?"
The next second, Julian yanked her away with enough force to make her stumble.
He rushed to Vivian, gently cupping her face, his voice tight with urgency. "Where are you hurt? Are you dizzy? Do you need to go to the hospital?"
Vivian shook her head, though her tears kept falling.
She didn't look at Julian. Instead, she turned and spread her arms again, shielding Clara. Her voice was thick with tears, yet unwavering. "Mom! You're not laying a hand on Clara again!"
Margaret stood there, stunned, her hand still frozen midair. "Vivian? You… you took that for her?"
Vivian bit her lip and met Margaret's gaze. "She's the person I care about most."
Margaret's face turned livid as she pointed at Clara. "Look what you've turned her into! No respect, no sense of boundaries!"
"Enough!" Vivian practically shouted. "You keep saying you've taken me back, but do you even know me? You have no idea how good Clara has been to me! All you care about is your image, your reputation. You can't even give her basic respect!"
Standing behind her, Clara listened to it all and suddenly let out a quiet laugh.
She stepped forward, standing beside Vivian, and looked calmly at Margaret. "Mrs. Sterling, you're right. I do lack manners. After all, growing up, all I ever got from you was punishment and scolding. You never once had the patience to actually teach me any."
Margaret's face went deathly ashen.
Julian looked up sharply, staring at Clara in shock. Was this really the same quiet, obedient Clara?
Vivian froze as well, her eyes filled with pain.
Clara didn't look at anyone again. She turned and walked away.
