Chapter 3 The Return of Mia

Five years had passed.

From the girl everyone mocked, Mia Smith had become a woman the world could not look away from. Her curves now held elegance. Her face-once plain, now breathtaking-graced the covers of magazines and turned heads in every room she entered. But beneath all the beauty was a mother. A mother carrying the scars of a stolen child and the fire of a woman who had risen from hell.

In one arm, she held her daughter-Amira, with her long lashes and quiet strength. On the other, her son-Zayen, mischievous and sharp-eyed. Her twins were her soul. But she had never forgotten the one taken from her. Her firstborn.

The boy she had never held.

The night she gave birth was chaos. She remembered the screaming. The blood. The confusion. Her aunt-her father's elder sister-had arrived too late to stop it. One of the babies had already been taken. No records. No explanation. Just silence and threats. Her aunt had taken her away from that toxic city, from those wolves in silk suits, and raised her in London.

Until yesterday.

Her father called.

His voice was hoarse, unfamiliar. "Come home," he had said. "I'll tell you where he is. Where your son is."

---

Now, the wheels of the private jet touched down on the runway of Eldergate International Airport. The sun gleamed off the tarmac as Mia stepped out, dressed in a tailored cream coat, heels clicking confidently.

By her side, the twins clung to her hands, staring wide-eyed at the crowd beyond the gate.

Waiting at the VIP terminal were two people Mia hadn't seen since the day her life fell apart.

Kelvin Richard... and Tasha.

Hand in hand.

Mia's lips curled into a cold smile. Of course.

Kelvin's eyes widened as he saw her-he barely recognized the woman walking toward him. This wasn't the timid, awkward girl he had once screamed at. This was a goddess. And she looked *untouchable*.

Tasha's eyes narrowed, her grip on Kelvin's hand tightening.

Mia didn't stop.

She walked right past them with her chin held high, her twins at her side like royal heirs.

But just before she vanished into the waiting black car, she turned slightly and said, with a voice calm as ice:

"Tell my father I'm here. And I want the truth."