Chapter 008

I woke up to a knock on my door.

It wasn’t soft. It wasn’t polite. It was the kind of knock that assumed I would answer immediately.

I opened my eyes slowly and stared at the ceiling for a second. My shoulder still hurt from yesterday. My body felt heavy, but my mind was clear.

The knock came again.

“I’m awake,” I said flatly.

I got out of bed, wrapped my robe around me, and walked to the door. When I opened it, Kate was standing there, already dressed like she was about to leave the house. Her makeup was perfect. Her expression wasn’t.

“What do you want?” I asked.

She didn’t bother greeting me. “I need ten million.”

I stared at her for a second.

Then I laughed.

“For what?”

Her eyes narrowed instantly. “You don’t need to question me.”

I leaned against the doorframe and folded my arms. “Then you don’t need my money.”

Her jaw tightened. “Transfer it.”

“No.”

The word came out calm and simple.

“You froze the accounts,” she said sharply. “The card was declined this morning. I have something important to pay for.”

“And?” I asked.

“And I need ten million.”

“For what?” I repeated.

“Stop asking me that.”

“Stop avoiding it.”

Her composure slipped slightly. “It’s none of your business.”

“It became my business when you knocked on my door asking for ten million.”

Before she could respond, I heard my father’s voice from down the hall.

“What’s going on?”

Of course. He was already awake.

He walked toward us with his walking stick, my stepmother right behind him. They both looked annoyed, like I had already done something wrong.

Kate immediately changed her tone. “Dad, she’s refusing to transfer money to me.”

“How much?” he asked.

“Ten million.”

He looked at me. “Transfer it.”

I didn’t move. “For what?”

His face hardened. “Since when do you demand explanations?”

“Since I became the only one with access,” I replied evenly.

My stepmother scoffed. “You’re acting ridiculous.”

“I’m being responsible.”

Kate rolled her eyes. “I don’t have time for this. I need it today.”

“Why?” I asked again.

“It’s for something important.”

“What something?”

She exhaled sharply. “An investment.”

“With who?”

“That’s not your concern.”

I smiled slightly. “Then it’s not getting approved.”

“You can’t deny me,” she snapped.

“I just did.”

My father hit the floor lightly with his stick. Not hard. Just enough to remind me he was there.

“Evian,” he said in a low voice, “transfer the money.”

“No.”

The silence that followed was thick.

“You’re being defiant,” my stepmother said.

“I’m asking for a reason.”

“It’s for a business opportunity,” Kate insisted.

“Show me the documents.”

She stared at me. “What?”

“Contracts. Agreements. Anything. If it’s legitimate, you shouldn’t have a problem showing it.”

Her face changed for half a second.

That was enough.

“There are no documents yet,” she said quickly. “It’s a private deal.”

“Then it’s denied.”

She stepped closer to me. “You think you’re powerful now?”

“No,” I said. “I think I’m cautious.”

My father’s voice grew colder. “You’re embarrassing this family.”

“How?” I asked.

“By acting like this. By questioning your sister.”

“If she wants ten million, she can answer a simple question.”

Kate’s voice rose. “You’re doing this because you want control!”

“Yes.”

I didn’t even try to deny it.

That irritated all of them.

“You’re tearing this family apart over money,” my stepmother said.

“This family was comfortable spending money that wasn’t theirs,” I replied calmly.

“It is ours,” Kate shot back.

“No. It’s my mother’s.”

The hallway went quiet.

My father stepped closer to me. “You’re still living in this house.”

“And you’re still using her inheritance.”

His grip tightened on the stick. I saw the anger building, but he didn’t hit me this time.

“Last chance,” he said.

“No.”

Kate let out a frustrated breath. “Fine. Keep it. But don’t come crying when things collapse.”

“Things have already collapsed,” I said.

Her eyes flashed. “You don’t even know what you’re interfering with.”

“Then enlighten me.”

She didn’t.

Instead, she turned to our father. “You see? She’s impossible.”

He looked at me with pure frustration. “You’ve changed.”

“Yes.”

“For the worse.”

“That depends.”

My stepmother shook her head. “This attitude won’t end well for you.”

I shrugged slightly. “That’s fine.”

Kate stared at me like she wanted to say more, but she didn’t. She just looked angry. Not embarrassed. Not offended.

Desperate.

That was what caught my attention.

Ten million urgently. No explanation. No paperwork. No details.

That wasn’t normal.

“You’re hiding something,” I said quietly.

She froze for a second, then forced a laugh. “Don’t flatter yourself.”

“If it’s so urgent, explain it.”

“I don’t owe you that.”

“Then you don’t get the money.”

My father sighed heavily, like he was tired of this conversation. “We’ll discuss this later.”

Kate shot me one last look before walking away. My stepmother followed her immediately, whispering something I couldn’t hear.

My father stayed for a moment.

“You think this makes you strong,” he said quietly.

“No,” I replied. “It makes me careful.”

He looked at me for a long second, then turned and walked away too.

I closed my bedroom door slowly.

Ten million.

Not for shopping. Not for a car. Not for something small.

She needed it urgently.

And she couldn’t explain why.

I walked back to my bed and picked up my phone.

If Kate thought I would just transfer that kind of money blindly, she didn’t know me at all.

Whatever she was planning, I was going to find out.

And this time, I wasn’t going to be the last one to know.