Chapter 10 The fake sister

Brandon’s pov ;

I stood outside the grand garden of William’s mansion. The Williams Group’s sudden withdrawal had sent shockwaves through the business world in London, and our company was now on the brink of collapse.

I didn’t know how we had offended Dominic Williams, but it was serious—serious enough to cripple us.

Stepping inside, I couldn’t help but feel anxiety and frustration. Dominic’s family had been our strongest ally for years, and now they had turned against us without warning. I was greeted by the sight of Madam, seated gracefully under a pavilion, sipping tea calmly.

I approached her respectfully. "Madam, our family has cooperated with the Williams Group for many years. We've always done our part, never stepping out of line. Why has the investment been withdrawn so suddenly?"

She didn’t answer right away, her gaze lingering on the teacup in her hands. "I stopped managing the company’s affairs a long time ago. You should ask Dominic about these matters.”

I forced a tight smile, even though my stomach churned. "We’ve tried to contact Mr. Williams, but you know how it is..."

Even our family, with all its influence, wouldn’t dare approach Dominic directly. One wrong move, and it could mean even more disaster for us.

I continued, hoping to appeal to her sense of loyalty. "Madam, the Carpenter family has invested so much over the years, especially in trying to find my sister. If not for the your family’s support, we would’ve fallen behind long ago. We’ve never done anything that would go against the interests of your family."

I could hear the desperation in my own voice, but I had no choice. Without their family’s backing, we were finished. I had taken over much of the business in recent years, with my parents too consumed by the search for my lost sister, but I couldn't handle everything on my own.

She studied me for a moment before sighing. There was a hint of sympathy in her eyes. "You’ve been busy searching for your sister," she said softly, "but don’t forget to check on the ‘sister’ you have at home."

My heart skipped a beat. The sister at home…Rey. I kept my expression neutral, but inside, I felt a wave of disgust. That scheming bitch!

From the moment my parents brought her in, pretending she was family, I knew she was trouble. She had taken advantage of her slight resemblance to my real sister, imitating her in every way, and had wormed her way into our parents’ hearts.

I had warned them from the start, but they refused to listen. Now, it seemed, my worst fears were being realized.

I bowed my head slightly, concealing my thoughts. "Thank you, Madam. I will look into it as soon as I return."

“Wait,” She looked at me suddenly as if she was observing my face. She shrinked her eyes and said. “There's a girl who resemble some similarities with you.”

My eyes widened and heart raced. “Who? Do you know her, how old is she?”

But then she shook her head as if she was confused herself. “But I think I remembered it wrong.”

I sighed helplessly. “It's alright. Thank you for having me. I'll take my leave now.”

Leaving behind the expensive gifts I had brought as a peace offering, I walked out of the garden. This whole situation was getting out of control, and it all seemed to point back to Rey. What had she done this time?

When I got back, I didn’t waste any time. I immediately had someone look into Rey's recent actions. Sure enough, it didn’t take long to find evidence. A few clues were all I needed to confirm my worst suspicions. And soon, my secretary get back with the CCTV footage of her car from that day.

“You stupid bitch!” Fury surged through me as I stormed toward Rey’s room. Without hesitation, I kicked the door open, the loud thud echoing through the house as it slammed against the wall and bounced back violently. “How dare you hit Dominic’s grandma?! Are you trying to get us all killed?! Is your dumbass even aware how dangerously powerful that man is?! He could destroy us in seconds!”

She looked up startled. She had clearly been hoping to avoid being discovered. What a fool—she had severely underestimated the reach and influence of a wealthy family.

She tried to smile, her voice dripping with fake sweetness. "Brother, things aren’t what they seem. I made a mistake, but it wasn’t on purpose…"

I looked her over—standing there in a white dress, her room annoyingly adorned in pink. Disgust welled up inside me.

This woman, who bore a resemblance to my real sister, made my skin crawl. “I’m not your brother,” I yelled coldly. “Not on purpose? Do you really think I’d believe that? If it wasn’t intentional, why were you there at that exact time?”

I threw a stack of surveillance photos onto the coffee table.

She picked up the photos, flipping through them in fright.

Her smile faltered, and she quickly tried to recover. “Brother,” she purred, trying to act coy. “I did this for our family. We’re in decline, and if I can get close to President Dominic, it’ll benefit us all. Imagine if I could win his favor, our family could reach heights we never dreamed of…”

I stared at her, the sarcasm in my eyes barely concealed. “You idiot! Do you really think Dominic is someone you can toy with? You’re delusional if you believe he’d ever look your way. Youre nothing but an ugly whore!”

This pathetic woman actually thought she could manipulate someone like Dominic. I could barely contain my disgust. My parents really needed to see what kind of disaster they had adopted. Many aristocratic women—far more worthy than her—had tried to worm their way into Dominic’s life. None had succeeded, and each one who tried ended up worse off for it.

Did she honestly think she, a fake princess with no real claim to the Carpenter name could do better?

Her face flushed with humiliation, her eyes welling with tears. “Brother, I know I was wrong,” she pleaded. “Please forgive me, just this once. Dominic doesn’t know it was me—I've covered my tracks well. At worst, I’ll be more careful next time…”

Pah!

The sharp crack of the slap echoed through the room, and Rey staggered, clutching her face in disbelief. Her wide eyes met mine, shock and pain reflected in them. She couldn’t believe it. I had always kept my temper in check, calm and organized, the very image of gentleness. But now, wrath rushed through me like a a hurricane I couldn’t hold back.

For the first time, I had hit her.

"Big b-brother...?" She whispered, her voice trembling. She still couldn’t process it—I had slapped her.

I stared her down. “It’s not enough that you tried to harm someone once. Now you want to do it again? If they hadn’t shown mercy to you’d already be in jail! And here you are, still dreaming of becoming his wife. Why don’t you look in the mirror and see who gave you everything you have?”

I stepped closer, and she flinched. The sight only made my anger burn hotter. “If it weren’t for them, you’d be begging in the streets. You’d still be nobody. But here you are, living the life of a princess with all your luxury cars and fancy villas, and it’s still not enough for you.”

She didn’t respond, but I could see the defiance in her eyes. The ambition, the greed. How could someone so vicious and stupid ever think she was worthy of being my sister?

“Stop all her cards,” I barked at my assistant, who stood by the door. “From now on, whenever she leaves the house, have someone follow her. I don’t want her pulling any more stunts like this.”

“Yes, sir.” My assistant gave a quick nod, already making the necessary arrangements.

I turned my back on Rey without a second glance. This woman had pushed her luck for the last time. She wasn’t just a disgrace to our family—she was a threat to everything we’d built.

Behind me, I could feel her burning gaze. Her face was still red from the slap, and I could only imagine the hatred stewing inside her. She had the gall to glare at me as if I had wronged her. In front of all the servants, too.

I'm not like my parents who would fall for her fake innocence and crocodile tears. I know all too well that she's anything but innocent no matter how she tries to fool everyone else.