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CHAPTER SEVENTEEN — THE PRODIGAL SISTER
Huling Na-update:
2026-02-24 17:03:00Aria's POV.
The weekend passed in a blur of heavy security and oppressive silence. Lucien had effectively moved his entire office into the penthouse, and the air between us remained a mix of unspoken questions and raw, possessive tension. He didn't ask me why I had tried to reach him that day, and I didn't ask him how many people he had broken to find me. We were both waiting for Monday, for the collision with Helena that felt like an appointment with destiny.
But on Sunday evening, the storm didn't come from the Matriarch. It arrived in a flurry of designer luggage and a high-pitched squeal that echoed through the marble floor.
"Lucien! Tell me the rumors aren't true! Tell me you haven't actually turned the estate into a garrison!"
I stood at the top of the stairs, my hand gripping the railing. Standing in the foyer was a young woman who looked like a miniature, a sun-kissed version of the Blackwood lineage. She had the same sharp cheekbones and height, but her eyes weren't the stormy grey color of Lucien’s, they were bright with an hazel color. This was Seraphina Blackwood, Lucien’s younger sister who recently returned from her "spiritual sabbatical" in Paris and Milan.
Beside her stood a woman who looked like she had stepped out of a high-fashion editorial. She was draped in a cream silk jumpsuit that screamed old money and effortless grace. Her hair was a perfect honey-blonde, falling in waves that looked like they had been sculpted by an artist.
"Jennifer?" Lucien’s voice came from the study door, cool and cautious.
"She caught me at the airport, Lu!" Seraphina chirped, tossing her Chanel bag to a panicked-looking Chen. "She told me everything. Or at least, she told me that your 'wife' has finally succeeded in driving a wedge between you and Maman. I couldn't believe it!"
"Oh no," Chen whispered, struggling with the mountain of luggage. "The little princess is back. We are definitely, definitely... well, you know."
"Hmmm," Marcus sighed, appearing from the kitchen with his arm still in a sling. "The drama just doubled. I’m going to need a raise because I definitely didn't sign up for this."
Seraphina ignored them, her eyes snapping upward to where I stood. Her expression shifted instantly from bubbly excitement to a look of profound, shallow distaste.
"And there she is," Seraphina said, her voice dropping an octave. "The woman who’s making my brother look like a common thug on the news. Honestly, Aria, I thought you’d have the decency to at least look remorseful after almost getting my brother’s head of security killed."
"Sera, enough," Lucien commanded, stepping into the foyer.
Jennifer, who had been silent until now, stepped forward with a soft, graceful smile. She walked toward Lucien with the familiarity of someone who had spent years by his side. "Don't be too hard on her, Lucien. Seraphina is just worried. We all are. After what happened at the overpass... it's clear that the current situation isn't sustainable."
Jennifer’s voice was like velvet, smooth, calm, and utterly manipulative. She reached out and placed a hand on Lucien’s arm. He didn't pull away, but he didn't lean in either. He just remained indifferent.
"Aria," Jennifer said, looking up at me with eyes that were expertly masked. "I’m Jennifer. I’ve known Lucien since our first year at Oxford. It’s... interesting to finally meet the woman who has caused so much stir."
I walked down the stairs, maintaining as much dignity as my healing bruises would allow. I could feel Seraphina’s judgmental gaze and Jennifer’s predatory assessment. In my previous life, I had never met them. They were new variables in a game that was already rigged against me.
"Interesting is one word for it," I replied, standing a few feet away from the group. "I’m sure Seraphina has plenty of others."
"I have a whole dictionary of them," Seraphina snapped, crossing her arms. She turned back to Lucien, her lower lip trembling in a way that looked practiced. "Lu, why are you doing this? Jennifer has been helping Maman coordinate the legal defense for the board. She’s been loyal! Unlike some people who spend their time running into the arms of some Ethan dude."
"Seraphina, you don't know what you’re talking about," Lucien said, his voice tightening.
"I know what Jennifer told me!" Seraphina insisted, her voice rising in a bratty, high-pitched pitch. "She told me Aria was the one who leaked the garage codes to bait Ethan! She said Aria is trying to play both sides to get a bigger settlement!"
My heart hammered against my ribs. Jennifer was good. She wasn't an explosive threat like Helena, she was like a whisper in the ear, a slow-acting poison. She had clearly spent the flight from Europe molding Seraphina’s shallow and innocent mind into a weapon.
"Is that what you told her, Jennifer?" I asked, my voice steady.
Jennifer tilted her head as she assumed an innocent expression . "I only shared the facts that were available, Aria. The codes came from a terminal. You were the only one with access to the private suite that morning. It’s a logical deduction."
"It’s a lie," I said, looking directly at Lucien.
Lucien’s gaze flicked between me and Jennifer. The possessive darkness was still there, but now it was clouded by the presence of the two women who represented his past and his family.
"Jennifer is staying in the guest wing tonight," Seraphina announced, lifting her chin. "Maman thinks it’s best if she’s here to help Lucien prepare for the Monday meeting. She knows the bylaws better than anyone."
"She is not staying," Lucien said firmly.
"Oh, Lu, don't be a boor!" Seraphina whined, grabbing his hand and swinging it like a child. "She’s already had her bags sent up. Besides, the mansion is like a tomb right now with you and Maman at each other's throats. I can't stay there alone!"
I watched Jennifer. She didn't argue, she didn't plead. She simply stood there, radiating elegance and "rightness." She was the woman Helena wanted for Lucien, the one who would protect the legacy without the "mess" of love. Seraphina was just the herald, a sweet, manipulated girl used to wedge the door open.
"Fine," Lucien finally rasped, looking exhausted by the sudden influx of family drama. "One night. But Jennifer, you stay out of the study."
Jennifer bowed her head slightly. "Of course, Lucien. I’m only here to help."
As the group moved toward the living area, Seraphina deliberately brushed past me, her shoulder hitting mine. "You're just a temporary glitch, Aria," she whispered with an innocent yet cruel voice. "Jennifer is the forever kind of girl. Just wait until Monday. You’ll see where the Blackwood loyalty actually lies."
I stood in the foyer, watching them. Lucien was flanked by the sister who adored him and the woman who wanted to replace me. He looked back at me once, his expression unreadable, before Seraphina pulled him away to look at some "essential" gift she’d brought from Paris.
I felt like the kitten again, but this time, the room was full of silent, graceful wolves.
I walked back to my room, but before I could close the door, Jennifer appeared in the hallway. The "graceful" mask was gone, replaced by a cold, calculating brilliance.
Pinakabagong kabanata
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Aria's POVI stood outside the glass doors of the private medical suite, watching the rhythmic rise and fall of Lucien’s chest. He looked fragile, pinned to the bed by plastic tubes and glowing wires. The high-tech hum of the monitors felt like a countdown I couldn't stop.Marcus stood by the door, his arms crossed over his chest. His suit jacket was off, his shirtsleeves were rolled up, and his eyes were bloodshot. He looked like a man who had been at war for forty-eight hours straight."He’s stable," Marcus said, though his voice lacked its usual iron. "But the doctors say the next few hours are critical. The strain on his heart was too much."I turned to him, the wooden box with the silver compasses still heavy in my pocket. "Marcus, talk to me. What really happened? You said it was the mission, but I saw the scars. That wasn't just shrapnel. That looked like a lifetime of trauma."Marcus tightened his jaw. He looked at
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Aria's POVThe library was too cold. The air felt thin and clinical, like everything else in the high-tech prison Lucien called a home. I stood against the mahogany shelves, my fingers tightening around the small wooden box. Inside, the silver compasses clinked. The sound was soft, but in the dead silence, it sounded like a warning.I turned the bent compass over and I felt the tiny, jagged engraving on the back.J & A.The letters were old and faded. A was for Aria. That was me. But the J was like a hole in my life. My mind searched for a name, a face, or a voice but I found nothing. The amnesia was a solid wall, cold and unyielding.Lucien had told me I was alone. When I woke up in that hospital bed, he was the only thing I had. He told me my parents were dead. He said I had no siblings. He said he was the only anchor I had left in a dangerous world.Liar.The thought didn't come from my brain. It came from my
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Aria's POVThe silence following my question was more than just an absence of sound, it was a physical weight. Lucien’s hand, usually an immovable anchor of strength, was trembling against my waist. The "Dark Lord" who had just dismantled a boardroom full of predators looked like he was staring at his own executioner."Lucien," I repeated, my voice dropping to a whisper as I searched his face. "Who is Vane? Why are you reacting like this?"He didn't answer. He couldn't. He looked at Marcus, a silent command passing between them that I couldn't decipher. Without a word, Lucien hauled me toward the private elevator, his stride frantic and disjointed.As the doors hissed shut, plunging us into the high-speed descent, Lucien finally turned to me. His eyes were no longer silver, they had darkened to something terrifyingly black."Vane is a ghost I thought I had buried, Aria," he rasped, his voice sounding like grinding stones. "
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