LOGINJulian looked to be in a very good mood.Sydney assumed he was joking, so she played along. "Right, right. James is about to hand the CEO's seat over to me, isn't he?"Julian let out a low laugh and pinched her cheek, still warm from the shower. "If you asked, they might actually give it to you."Even he had been surprised when the Huttons handed over 5% of the shares. The fact that they valued Sydney this much made him happy for her.Sydney shot him a look and dropped the teasing. "Hurry up and dry my hair."Julian had been so attentive lately that she had grown used to being taken care of. She had not dried her own hair in quite a while.His gaze softened. "Yes, ma'am."He guided her onto the sofa, picked up the hair dryer, and began drying her hair with practiced ease.After that, Sydney brought up the special drug project again. She had not been able to visit the institute much lately, but she and Marcus had continued adjusting the plan.She made the decisions. Marcus hand
Not a word of that was false. All these years, no one in the Hutton family had ever given up on finding Vee. Not even Theodore.As for Albus, his repeated hesitation over the shares came down to one thing. He feared the four siblings might one day grow distant because of them.Since they had all thought it through, Elizabeth glanced at him, then addressed the siblings. "You're not the only ones who feel they owe Vee. Your grandfather and I made plans long ago. If we ever found her, every hotel under my name would go to her."The hotels she referred to were part of the estate she had inherited from her parents. No matter how profitable they had become, they remained her personal assets.Florence could sense the elders' sincerity in wanting to make it up to Vee.Even so, she thought of the other three children. "What do you all think? Sydney isn't someone who cares about money. If she chooses to come back, it will only be because she wants family."If all of this causes unhappiness
The Hutton Group's shares were divided as follows. A portion was held under Elizabeth's name. Theodore, James, and Raymond each held 10%. Florence held 30%, though 20% of that was held in trust for Diana and Vee.Albus frowned. "You don't need to worry about Vee's shares. What belongs to her is already under your mother's name. It can be transferred to her later."He clearly did not want to upset the balance of either the company or the family.No matter what Theodore had done, he was still his son. In any family, people did not fear having too little as much as they feared not being treated equally.That was why the Huttons had always handled inheritance matters openly, with strict fairness.But Raymond pretended not to understand. He smiled and said, "Grandpa, since when do you pretend not to see something this obvious? What's under Mom's name already belongs to Vee. All four of us have the same thing. If it's identical, how does that count as compensation?"'That brat,' Albus
Not for a single moment did Sydney forget that those two carried the blood of her loved ones on their hands.Julian's gaze shifted from the file in her hands to the redness in her eyes."They will," he answered without hesitation.He had already sent Elliot to search for evidence of what Eloise had done back then. The police could not use certain methods, but Elliot handled them with ease.Nonetheless, it would only take time.Sydney drew a quiet breath and slid the papers back into the folder exactly as they had been. "Mm. I think so too."Even a bird left traces when it flew past. A murder left far more.At Seraph Villa…The moment Diana hung up, she felt the weight of everyone's eyes on her.Florence, James, Raymond, and even Albus and Elizabeth looked at her expectantly. They clearly wanted to know how Sydney had reacted. Everyone understood that if this was handled poorly, bringing Sydney back would become much harder.To outsiders, the Huttons stood at the height of pow
Sydney's voice was soft and sincere.Just like that, the strain in Diana's exhausted nerves eased. "Then I should thank you too."What had she done to deserve that kind of trust?After the call ended, the silence around them deepened. Only faint sounds drifted in now and then from the living room, too slight to matter.The setting sun softened Sydney's features even more. Then, as if something had suddenly clicked, she turned sharply to Julian and pointed at him."Did you already know this might connect back to the Huttons?" Her tone was light. She did not sound angry.A faint smile touched Julian's lips. "Settling scores after the fact?""I'm just curious, okay?"Julian nodded and told her the truth. "Mr. Tarrant, the one Diana just mentioned, was Brimcrest's top officer back then. He was also Albus' former comrade."Sydney understood at once. Julian had already found out. He had simply not told her.When she fell briefly quiet, he looked at her. "Are you upset?""No."The
At this hour, a call like that could only mean one thing. There was an answer.Julian no longer intended to keep anything from Sydney. Good or bad, she had the right to know.The moment Sydney saw Diana's name, her body tensed. Julian had not said a word, but she could already guess why Diana was calling.At her side, Yoyo seemed to sense her tension. It rubbed its head lightly against her leg, offering silent comfort.Sydney pulled her gaze from the phone and looked at Julian. She did not hesitate. "Answer it."Julian saw that she had steadied herself. He guided her to a seat nearby, then put the call on speaker. "Hello, Diana.""Is Sydney with you?"On the other end, Diana's voice remained steady and cool, though a trace of fatigue lay beneath it.That only confirmed Sydney's guess.Before Julian could respond, she spoke. "Diana, I'm with him. Go ahead."A brief pause followed.Diana and Florence had already agreed to tell Sydney everything about this matter from beginning
The alcohol had not hit yet, and Sydney remained perfectly sober. Whether she had thought everything through no longer mattered.She tapped her can lightly against Tiffany's. "Tiff, this isn't something I actually get to choose."Unless she was willing to forget how her parents had died and let th
Sydney paused. She had heard before that the Hutton family often funded public welfare projects. Yet after so many years with the Sterlings, she had grown used to thinking such efforts were only aristocratic window dressing.She had not expected the Huttons to be different. They were not posing or
Otherwise, Sydney would never have let Julian manhandle her like this."What about the office?" Julian was reckless. His lips left hers only to scatter light kisses across her brows and eyes. "Sydney, if you dare remarry Caleb, I won't stop at kissing you here at work. I'll kiss you at your wedding
Just as Caleb opened his mouth, the elevator doors slid open. The conversation cut off abruptly, and the air inside felt stifling and heavy.Sydney silently lowered her gaze. Julian's expression mirrored hers. Caleb, unsure which of them to address, chose silence.When the elevator reached his flo







