Chloe lifted her chin smugly. "Jessica, you just got back. Let me handle the arrangements for you. Someone, go prepare a room for her!" Her tone was like she was ordering a maid around.
Jessica narrowed her eyes, her voice cold. "You all work for the Southern family. If you don't take orders from me, then get out now! You're fired!"
The servants glanced uncertainly at Chloe.
Chloe tossed her hair carelessly. "Jessica, you don't need to take it out on the staff just because you're mad at me. They're officially hired. Fire them without cause, and you'll have to pay double compensation. Got that much cash lying around? Plus, there's a whole crew here-you think you can replace them all overnight?"
Jessica clenched her fist so tight her nails dug into her palm. She was the legitimate daughter of the Southern family, yet she had no say, no wealth. In the four years she'd been "dead," Chloe had taken over everything.
She looked up and caught Chloe's mocking gaze, and next to her, Alan's unreadable eyes. They were both just waiting for her to trip, to make a fool of herself. She suddenly felt just as powerless as the day she'd faced that bomb. This situation was a mess-without Alan's support, and with her brother gone, coming back with a name wasn't enough to change anything.
She'd already gone to the law firm to reinstate her identity, but that would take a few days. Until then, everything that was hers was still out of reach. Rushing things would only make them worse.
Suddenly, noise erupted outside-sounds of scuffling, shouts. A group barged in: sharply dressed men in black, followed by women in crisp maid uniforms.
Chloe's bodyguards stumbled in, bruised and clearly overpowered. "Ms. Southern, we don't know who those people are. We couldn't stop them!"
Chloe instinctively backed into Alan's arms, eyes wide with panic. What the hell was going on?
Even Alan looked briefly surprised-clearly, this wasn't part of his plan.
A composed, efficient-looking woman walked straight over to Jessica. "Miss Bennett, I'm Grace Wright, your new housekeeper. These are your personal bodyguards and household staff. From now on, whatever you need, we're here to handle it."
Jessica blinked. "Wait, I didn't hire you guys..."
"That's right," Grace replied with a professional smile. "The Count arranged everything a month ago. We were instructed to report to you today, Miss Bennett."
Jessica's lips curved up slightly-so that was his gift. It hit her that he was kind of like a genie from a magic lamp, always showing up with exactly what she needed when she was in a bind.
Alan stood off to the side, face dark as storm clouds, a chill flashing through his eyes.
"And these documents-everything's been handled by the lawyers. Miss Southern, your legal identity has been fully restored. As per your parents' will, all properties under the Southern family's name in Halden, along with 40% of Southern Group's shares, are now officially in your hands. Chloe was only granted temporary rights in the event of your presumed death. That's now void," one of the lawyers announced.
Taking the documents, Jessica blinked her big, bright eyes. "Then let's cut a check and fire every single servant hired by Chloe. Not one stays."
"Understood." Grace gave a nod and soon had all the servants cleared out. Of course, they were paid to the last cent-nothing shady.
Everything happened so efficiently Jessica couldn't help but feel a rush of satisfaction.
"Grace, my cousin's an adult. Southern family has no obligation to keep supporting her. Cancel all her bank cards. From today onward, not a dime more from us!"
Chloe's face turned pale at those words. She'd never had a real job in her life. Without the Southern money pipeline, she was flat-out broke.
"You've got no right, Jessica! I was adopted by your aunt!" she shouted, panic slipping through her voice. How was she supposed to keep up her high-maintenance lifestyle without the funding?
"Chloe, let's get this straight-adoption is for minors. Unless I'm wrong, you're four years older than me. You're 24 now. Exactly why would the Southern family still need to support you?" Jessica tapped the rolled-up papers against the sofa arm with a rhythm, every gesture calm but intentional. Yeah, this was exactly the reaction she'd planned on.
She was gonna make Chloe pay back every bit of the past.
Clinging to Alan's arm now, Chloe's voice had cooled down. "You're not seriously kicking me out, right, Jessica?"
The earlier panic seemed to have faded-she wasn't so worried anymore. Even though the wedding didn't happen yesterday, she still thought of herself as Alan's future wife.
He had come over last night and told her that as soon as the deal with Sultan blew over, they would rearrange the wedding. And this very morning, he'd returned to be with her-not even asking her any questions about the past. She didn't know whether Alan doubted Jessica out of revenge, or simply trusted her more. But what she did know was-he loved her.
And if Jessica ended up tossing her out, wouldn't that just give her a reason to finally move into Alan's place? The thought flashed through her mind. After all this time dating, he'd never invited her to stay over. Not even once.
