Chapter 2 No Interest In The Warren Family's Inheritance

Half an hour earlier, Katherine had gone downstairs for a glass of water when a sudden, piercing cry shattered the stillness of the house. It was Lilah's voice-sharp, panicked, unmistakably calling for help.

Within moments, the entire Warren family was thrown into chaos.

No one asked Katherine questions. No one sought proof. Without hesitation, every accusation landed squarely on Katherine's shoulders, each word sharper than the last, each insult delivered with practiced certainty.

Katherine stood there in silence, her fingers curling slowly at her side. If she was destined to leave this house, then she would leave-but she would not allow her name to be dragged through the mud on her way out.

Roger's brow furrowed as irritation crept in.

Before he could speak, Ariella's voice cut through the room, cold and indignant. "That's enough. Are you truly shameless enough to twist the truth now? Are you seriously implying that Lilah would throw herself down the stairs just to frame you?"

Lilah buried her face deeper into Ariella's embrace, her shoulders shaking as she sobbed. "I may not have grown up with the finest education like you," she said weakly, her voice trembling, "but I still have my dignity... and my limits. Please stop humiliating me, Katherine."

As she cried, she cast Katherine a fleeting sideways glance-one filled not with pain, but with unmistakable provocation. In Lilah's mind, the outcome was already sealed. No one would believe Katherine now.

Yet Katherine's expression remained eerily calm. There was no panic. No anger. Only a faint trace of mockery lingering in her eyes, as though every step of this farce had unfolded exactly as she had anticipated.

That subtle composure sent a ripple of unease through Lilah's heart.

Just then, she perceived a sound. The unmistakable thud of someone moving down the stairs.

And then, Lilah heard her own voice echoing through the room. "Dad-Mom-help me! My leg..."

Her breath hitched. She snapped her head up.

At some point, unnoticed by anyone, the projector in the living room had been switched on. The massive screen on the wall flickered to life, displaying footage from the hallway's security camera. Lilah appeared on the stairs, walking normally. Then she paused before lying down, clutching her leg and crying out in exaggerated agony.

The color drained from Lilah's face.

She froze, her pupils shrinking in disbelief. There was surveillance in the house? And no one had told her?

Roger and Ariella stared at the screen, utterly stunned.

The truth was undeniable. Lilah's fall had been nothing more than a meticulously staged performance.

From the moment Lilah's cry rang out, Katherine had already foreseen how this would unfold. That was why she had prepared in advance. She knew all too well what kind of person Lilah was-someone who would never stop until she had pushed others into a corner with no escape.

So Katherine had chosen to strike once... and strike decisively.

Faced with irrefutable evidence, Lilah swallowed the surge of panic clawing at her chest. Her fingers tightened as she forced her voice to tremble. "I'm sorry, Mom... Dad..." she whispered. "I was just afraid. Afraid you'd only love Katherine because she's been with you for so many years. I just... I wanted to test you."

Roger's stern expression wavered. When he thought of all the hardships his biological daughter had endured over the years, a trace of pity softened his gaze. "Why would you do something like this?" he sighed. "Luckily, Katherine is generous enough not to hold it against you."

"I'm not." Katherine's voice cut through the air, cold and unyielding. The faint smile on her lips carried no warmth.

Any patience she had once possessed had long since been exhausted.

Resentment flickered in Lilah's eyes. She straightened, slipping out of Ariella's arms, her expression shifting seamlessly into one of wounded resolve.

"I've wronged Katherine," she said firmly. "I'll pack my things and leave the Warren Estate immediately. Mom, Dad-you won't ever have to worry about me again. I only hope Katherine can forgive me. That's all that matters."

Those words ignited Ariella's fury. She turned sharply toward Katherine, eyes blazing. "Do you really have to be so unforgiving just because you're in the right? If you hadn't stolen Lilah's place in this family, would she ever have been so anxious as to go to such extremes?"

Katherine felt nothing but exhaustion. She had seen this play too many times.

A cold sneer curved her lips. "I said I'm leaving-and I meant it. You don't need to keep up this performance or shove everything onto me. I have no interest in the Warren family's inheritance... or in fighting over the worthless relics you call a legacy."

With that, she turned and walked upstairs. The room fell into a suffocating silence.

Lilah's, Ariella's, and Roger's expressions darkened simultaneously.

Lilah clenched her teeth, fury burning behind her eyes.

She couldn't believe it. Katherine dared to act so aloof-so superior-here of all places. In her mind, this fake daughter should have been kneeling, crying, begging for forgiveness... pleading to be allowed to stay.

Moments later, Katherine returned. In her hand was a small, plain canvas bag. Nothing more.

Roger and Ariella were visibly taken aback.

That was all she had? So little? They exchanged glances, convinced she was merely putting on a show-waiting for them to stop her, to ask her to stay. But they would never tolerate such arrogance from someone who wasn't even their biological child.

So they watched in cold silence.

As Katherine walked toward the door, Lilah felt a wave of indescribable satisfaction bloom in her chest.

Still, she didn't believe for a second that Katherine would leave so easily. Surely... there had to be something significant hidden inside that bag.