Chapter 2

Early the next morning, I took the hair samples with the follicles attached, along with Mom's wooden hairbrush, and headed straight for the city's DNA testing center.

I paid extra for expedited processing to get the results in three days.

During those three days, I continued tutoring at Kyle's house as usual.

However, my mindset had undergone a subtle shift.

If Mom did secretly give birth to Olivia, then everything she'd said about doing this for our family would be the biggest joke in the world.

I'd flip the table immediately, march into court with Dad's medical records, and make sure she walked away with nothing.

With that dark thought simmering in the back of my mind, I started causing trouble whenever I tutored Olivia.

Kyle treasured his little girl more than anything, so during her lessons, I slipped in a personal agenda of my own.

"Olivia, today's phrase is 'evil stepmothers'. When someone mistakes an evil stepmother as their mother, it often turns out badly." I smiled sweetly as I ruffled Olivia's hair.

Olivia nodded, only half understanding.

Mom happened to be walking by with a glass of milk. Her hand jerked, and she nearly spilled it all over the Persian rug. She stared at me in horror, frantically signaling with her eyes for me to stop.

Hearing the commotion, Kyle walked over. After gently helping Mom wipe her hands clean, he turned to me.

"Mr. Wilder, I don't like people trying to drive a wedge into my family's relationships. Even as a joke."

Mom immediately shook her head, looking both flustered and grateful.

I studied the possessiveness and exclusivity in Kyle's eyes and couldn't help wondering.

What exactly was this guy after?

Was it because Mom was older? Or because she had a little extra weight around her waist?

Three days later, the DNA results came back.

I sat on a bench at the testing center, staring at the final line of the report.

"Biological mother-daughter relationship ruled out."

Olivia wasn't Mom's biological daughter.

Could it be that Mom hadn't lied after all?

Was she really living in that mansion as a fake wife and a fake mother to a child she wasn't related to in any way?

Holding the report in my hands, I suddenly felt my throat tighten.

Images flashed through my mind: Mom's bloodshot eyes after working on the sewing machine on the assembly line, and the careful, ingratiating smile she wore around Kyle.

Despite approaching fifty, she had to strip away her dignity and throw it at someone's feet just to keep up with her husband's medical bills.

I tore the report into pieces and tossed it into the trash.

Fine.

If Mom was carrying out an undercover mission, then as her son, I'd help her see this charade through.

That evening when I got home, my father, Jayden Wilder, was leaning against his hospital bed sorting vegetables. When he saw me, a faint smile appeared on his pale face.

"Arthur, your mom's working another night shift at the factory tonight. I made chicken soup for her. Bring it to her at work tomorrow, okay? She's had it so hard."

Looking at Dad's hands, which were little more than skin and bone after everything illness had put him through, my eyes stung, and I nearly burst into tears.

"Dad, that's not necessary. Mom eats pretty well at work," I lied, forcing myself to suppress my guilt.

"How can that be? Your mother's always trying to save money. She lives on bread and pickles. She left in such a hurry today that she carried my phone. Bring that to her tomorrow too."

Dad stubbornly shoved the Thermos into my hands before lying down to rest.

I returned to my room. After relaxing for a while, something Dad had said suddenly resurfaced in my mind.

Mom carried the wrong phone?

Acting on instinct, I hurried into the living room and picked up the old phone. Using Dad's birthday as the unlock code from memory, I accessed it.

After poking around for a few moments, I found a location-sharing app buried deep within the settings.

Two years ago, Dad had insisted they both install it because he worried something might happen to Mom during her night shifts.

At that very moment, the green dot representing Dad's phone was moving rapidly across the map, straight toward the upscale neighborhood where Kyle's villa was located.