The Heiress Returns: Reclaiming My Legacy

Chapter 1: The Precious Necklace

**Hannah’s POV**

“Why are you wearing that necklace?”

Ray’s voice startled me, it was cold and brutal. His voice was loud enough to slice through the laughter around us and draw curious eyes from the nearby guests.

I blinked, following his gaze downward to the glittering piece at my collarbone. The necklace sparkled against my skin, but the way his face darkened made it look like I was wearing stolen treasure.

Why is he so worked up over a necklace?

“Why are you…”

“I asked you a question, Hannah!” he cut me short with his strikingly annoying voice.

I straightened my back, forcing my chin up so no one would think I was intimidated. “Because Lily gave it to me,” I said evenly.

I couldn’t afford to sound gentle, but I had to be careful not to sound too harsh, because I know what it is like with the wealthy billionaire families. They would step on every toe you have if you play it cool. I knew the moment I showed weakness, I would be emotionally bullied, considering the fact that I am the lost-but-found daughter from the orphanage.

Ray’s countenance stiffened as though my words were an insult, he scoffed in disbelief, and I am sure he didn’t expect my defense in that manner.

His hostility wasn’t new to me. In fact, he had been radiating it since the very moment I walked into this house. So much for being a blood brother. Instead of welcome, I was met with suspicion, irritation, as if I were some impostor that barged into his perfect little world.

The anger boiling out of him over a piece of jewelry was very petty for my liking, it irritated me.

His brows knitted together, his lips curling with disbelief, he raised his voice, so loud that the violinist faltered mid-stroke. Conversations hushed, replaced by murmurs and sidelong glances. “Don’t lie to me that necklace was my coming-of-age gift to Lily. She cherishes it. She would never….never…let anyone else touch it, let alone flaunt it in public.”

The words cracked like a whip.

I bit the inside of my cheek very hard, to steady the storm rising in me. ‘Hannah… calm down,’ I told myself. ‘You’ve only been here a week. You’re still finding your footing. Don’t blow up…don’t give them a reason to call you uncultured.”

But hell no!

This man wasn’t going to bark at me like I was some unwanted guest. It is not like I enjoyed being here anyway, this is my first time in this kind of banquet and it is uncomfortable because I had absolutely no one I could share a conversation with to keep me busy.

I had literally dragged my feet down here because I would be announced as the daughter of the Black family. I had braced for the loneliness, the suffocating stares and opinion people would have about me.

But what I hadn’t braced for… was my own brother choosing to humiliate me first.

My throat burned with the words fighting to get out. I was seconds away from matching his tone, from throwing the truth back at his face. ‘How dare you call me a liar?’

Just as I opened my mouth to speak, Lily drifted toward us. Her entrance was perfectly timed, like an actress stepping onto a stage she owned. Her face was pale, lips trembling, and her wide eyes shimmered like tears was about to drop.

The delicate way her fingers clutched the folds of her gown could have won her an award. To the untrained eye, she was the very picture of innocence, a porcelain doll wounded by the cruelty of her sister.

“I… I didn’t know how to refuse Hannah,” she said, her voice breaking at just the right moment to tug at heartstrings. “She insisted on wearing it. And… after all, I’ve already taken so much from her. How could I say no?”

A chorus of whispers erupted around us like wildfire. Gasps, sighs, little mutterings that pricked my skin like needles. In that instant, I knew what they were thinking.

Heat flared in my chest, so hot it nearly burned me from the inside out. The urge to laugh bitterly nearly consumed me, because wasn’t it ironic?

The necklace had been placed around my neck by Lily herself. She had grinned, adjusted the clasp, even told me, “You’ll look stunning in this, Hannah.” And now she stood here, playing the frail little lamb in front of an audience eager for scandal.

I took a deliberate step forward, my heels clicking sharply against the marble, each sound like a challenge echoing through the hall. “That’s a lie, Lily.” My voice rang clear, cutting through the murmurs. “You walked into my room before the party, pulled this necklace out of its box, and said it would be perfect with my dress. You gave me literally everything I’m wearing.”

Her lips quivered, her lashes fluttered, but the wide, tear-bright eyes only made her look more fragile, more believable. She was performing for the crowd, and they were eating it up.

Ray’s scowl deepened like he was restraining himself from dragging me out right there. “Enough, Hannah!” he barked, his voice low but thunderous enough to command the gathering. “Don’t drag Lily into your nonsense. She’s too kind to expose you, but I won’t let you humiliate her further.”

Humiliate her?

A laugh tore out of me, short and sharp, though it tasted bitter on my tongue. “Humiliate her? She’s the one twisting the story, Ray.” I looked around and scoffed in disbelief, “You are not listening to me, Lily, tell them that you gave me this necklace” I said in so much desperation to liberate myself of this mess, Lily practically looked away like I was talking trash.

The whispers grew, feeding off the drama, a storm building around us.

A week ago, I had been ‘plucked’ from the orphanage and placed into this glittering cage they called a family. Tonight was supposed to be an opportunity to introduce me as the lost-but-found daughter. Instead, I was on trial, judged by strangers who had already decided I didn’t belong.

Well, this was one hell of a welcome.

“What’s going on here?”

My mother’s voice rang out, clear and sharp with disapproval. The crowd parted like water as she strode forward, regal in her evening gown. My father followed at her side, his face as unreadable and severe as carved stone. They looked less like parents and more like monarchs descending on a subject who had dared to break their rules.

“Your daughter,” Ray said firmly pointing at me, his voice carrying the conviction of a man who believed he was dispensing justice, “decided it would be amusing to steal Lily’s necklace and then blame her for it.”

The word steal burned through me.

“I didn’t steal anything!” My voice rang out louder than I intended, slicing through the hush that had settled over the hall, but I refused to cower. “Lily gave it to me. She…”

“That’s enough, Hannah!” My father’s bark cracked like a whip, silencing me. His glare bore into me, filled with disappointment so raw it cut deeper than Ray’s accusations. “Do you have any idea what you look like right now? Causing a scene, shouting in front of our guests? You’re embarrassing us.”

I bit the inside of my cheek to keep from spitting back the fury rising in me. Embarrassing them? For defending myself? The fuck did I just hear?

Lily decided to play her part better.

She shook her head gently, lashes fluttering as she lowered her eyes. “Please… don’t blame Hannah,” she said softly, her voice trembling with saintly patience. “I don’t mind. If she likes the necklace, she can wear it. I just… I just don’t want anyone to misunderstand. Let’s not take this too far”.

The way her words wove themselves was masterful. She wasn’t accusing me, oh no…she was protecting me, forgiving me, as though she were shielding me from the storm. To everyone watching, it made her glow like an angel.

That feigned selflessness was the nail in the coffin.

The guests murmured, their sympathy spilling over for Lily while their disdain sharpened like knives aimed at me. I felt like the villain in a play I never auditioned for.

I forced myself to meet my parents’ eyes, my voice ringing out, low but steady. “So what now? I’m a thief?”

My mother’s lips pressed into a thin, bloodless line. Her eyes flickered with guilt and somewhat, shame and irritation at being dragged into this spectacle, she pulled me away from the crowd and whispered, “I know I messed up big time not protecting you at the hospital when you were born,” she sighed, obviously regretful “But that’s not Lily’s fault; she is also the victim. You need to unlearn certain things, Hannah. A Black doesn’t create scandal. A Black knows her place.”

A Black.

The word landed on my shoulders like a chain. I had carried this name for what? A week? Seven days of being paraded as the long-lost daughter, dressed up, shown off, and now publicly shamed.

They were throwing the family code at me, as if it had been branded into my skin at birth.

“Hannah, could you please apologize to your siblings?” my father said, his tone clipped, final, as though an apology would fix everything. As though bending my head and swallowing the lie would make me worthy of being called their daughter.

“I won’t apologize for something I didn’t do. If this family prefers lies over truth, then maybe the shame isn’t mine to carry.”

The silence that followed was deafening. Even the orchestra faltered, a note hanging unfinished in the air like the whole hall was holding its breath.

Ray’s face darkened, his jaw rigid, veins bulging at his temple. My father’s glare could have burned through glass. My mother turned away, as if even looking at me was unbearable.

“You really do lack home training, it is such a pity” Ray said, looking at me with disgust.

I looked at Lily… sweet, innocent Lily, hidden behind her big brother Ray, lowered her eyes demurely, her lashes fluttering like butterfly wings. But I couldn’t help but notice the tiniest curve of a smile right there at the corner of her mouth.

Damn. I had just met the wolf in sheep’s clothing.

A storm brewed inside me, but I refused to bow. My chin lifted higher, defiance lacing every inch of my posture. If they wanted me broken and apologetic, they would be waiting a lifetime.

This wasn’t just about a necklace anymore.

I would need to understand the game I had just been thrown into, before Lily burned me alive with her weird attitude.