01: The true daughter

•Odette•

“She looks so much like Annabelle,” Nikki said, her wine glass hiding her mouth. Her gaze was discreetly fixed on a beautiful girl standing a few feet from us.

The girl had straight brown hair with crystal blue orbs and a pointy chin. She shared a three-part resemblance to my mother who was beside her, glowing like the sun.

“Of course, she does.” Bitterness stained my tone as I watched the biological mother and daughter bond in front of my birthday guests.

My birthday that was no longer the celebration of my birth to the Valmont family. It was now the day the real daughter of the Valmonts was switched with some girl originally from South Bronx who’d lived as the family’s sole heiress all her life.

The girl from South Bronx was me. The real daughter of the Valmonts was Silver, publicly referred to as Silvia now.

She turned up a month ago when my mother had a devastating accident in which she needed blood transfusion. My blood hadn’t matched my mother’s for donation.

Silver, who had been at the scene of the accident and brought my mother to the hospital, was able to donate in my stead to Annabelle because their blood was a perfect match.

Long story cut short, after a round of tests, I was not the real child of my family.

The street girl from South Bronx who’d been riding her bike at night and saw a woman dying in her car and chose to save her was the person who should have lived the life of a princess in my place.

“What are they talking about?” Nikki glanced at me to check my expression.

I wore my features neutral, looked away from my family, and replied, “I don’t know.”

For almost an hour, my mother and father have been going about with Silver in their middle, introducing her to their friends and business partners and telling them things that I had no clue of.

Absolutely forgetting that today was supposed to be my day. I was supposed to cut the cake alone and have Father share the news that I would be joining the board of directors in the family company after my new designs launched next week.

“Sucks, why don’t you go— Odette, look! Your father’s about to make an announcement.” Nikki shook my arm, pointing forward with her wine glass.

I lifted my head just in time to see my father striking his glass with a fork for attention. The guests went silent in an instant.

“Good evening, everyone,” Allister Valmont’s fancy New York accent filled the room. “Welcome to this birthday celebration of not just one of my daughters, but two of them.”

People clapped. Allister beamed and continued. “As most of you know, I recently connected with my true flesh and blood only a month ago. Come forward, Silvia.”

Summoned, Silver broke apart from my mother’s arm and went towards my father. He took her hand in his and his gaze softened.

My own throat went dry as an ominous feeling set in the pit of my stomach.

“My true daughter…” Allister caressed Silver’s cheek. “For twenty-six years you were apart from me, I want to make up for those times. You deserve a place in the family more than anyone else. Which is why you will be joining the board of directors in the company, starting Monday.”

A gasp rolled out of my mouth, along with several other mouths.

“No freaking way.” Nikki spoke my mind.

“Not only that. I grant you full command to the upcoming collection launch. You’ll oversee it and make sure everything goes as planned.” Allister added.

“Thank you so much, Dad.” Silver swung her arms around Allister’s neck for a tight hug.

The glass in my hand almost slipped from my grasp. My head buzzed in harmony with my pounding heart.

This could not be happening. I was supposed to be the one in command of the collection launch. They were my designs after all.

How could Father just hand them over to Silver!? He has only known her for a month, damn it!

“No need to thank me, my dear. It was all yours in the first place.” Silver ended the hug slowly after my father said those words.

Just then, someone cleared their throat, interrupting the atmosphere. It was Magaret Montague, my soon-to-be mother-in-law.

My fiancé, Tristen, was standing next to her. His face was pinched with slight discomfort. Beads of sweat were plastered to his forehead with strands of blond hair stuck to it.

He and his mother stepped forward to join my father and Silver.

Tristen’s blue eyes darted to me and rested for only a second before he looked away in guilt.

Wait a second. What did that mean?

“Ah, sorry. I was caught up in the moment that I forgot to announce something else.” Father’s brown eyes searched for someone as he spoke. His gaze landed on me.

A flicker of annoyance showed on his face. Another ominous feeling washed over me. I just hoped the guess that was creeping in the back of my mind wouldn’t come to pass.

“Long ago, the Montagues and the Valmonts made a vow to wed their children and unite both families. My other daughter, Odette, had been the one to bear the cross of this vow up till now,” Father stretched his hand towards me.

Everyone was looking at me. Everyone could guess what my father was about to say.

God, I hoped the tears that were stinging my eyeballs didn’t flow this moment.

“Silvia will take up that responsibility. Tristen, I hand over my flesh and blood to you.” Father placed Silver’s hand in Tristen’s and made the gesture of approving their union.

I squeezed the glass in my hand so hard that it almost shattered. Silver didn’t hold back, jumping on Tristen and sinking her claws into him.

No one told me about this arrangement. No one told me that my fiancé, my place in the company, even my designs would be given to Silver because she was the real flesh and blood of the Valmonts.

“Oh, my goodness. Odette, are you okay?” Nikki closed up to me, whispering in concern.

I didn’t respond to her. What could I say? That I wasn’t okay? I didn’t even have the right to be not okay. Logically speaking, all of these things weren’t mine to begin with. They were all Silver’s.

But should I pretend to be okay? They literally just discarded me and my worth in front of everyone that mattered. Even if I wasn’t their real daughter, I’ve been with them all my life. They were all I knew.

How could they do this to me?