Chapter 2

CH 2

POV: Victoria Morph

Opportunity

Victoria Morph did not believe in fate.

She believed in advantage.

The television screen went dark.

But the image of the crescent moon embracing a small star remained burned into her mind.

Seventeen years.

A missing heiress.

A global search.

And a reward large enough to change a bloodline forever.

Victoria slowly turned her head toward the hallway.

“Elena,” she called.

Soft footsteps approached.

Measured. Careful. Obedient.

The girl appeared seconds later, holding a laundry basket against her hip. Her hair was tied back loosely. A few strands clung to her cheek from the kitchen heat. Her blouse was plain, slightly faded from too many washes.

“Yes, Ma’am?”

Always polite.

Always careful.

Victoria studied her with new eyes.

Twenty years old.

The right age.

Too quiet.

Too unaware of her own worth.

“Come here,” Victoria said calmly.

Elena hesitated — just slightly — before stepping closer.

There was something in her guardian’s voice that felt different.

“Turn around.”

Elena blinked.

“Ma’am?”

“I said turn around.”

Slowly, she did.

Victoria reached forward and pulled the collar of Elena’s blouse down just enough to expose her upper back.

And there it was.

The crescent moon.

Embracing a small star.

Not inked.

Not painted.

Not imagined.

Real.

For a brief second, Victoria’s fingers trembled.

Her heartbeat quickened.

All these years.

All these years she had believed the girl was nothing more than a burden left at her doorstep by distant relatives who couldn’t afford another mouth to feed.

She remembered that day clearly.

A thin child.

Oversized sandals.

No parents claiming her.

Victoria had taken her in for one reason only—

Cheap labor.

Someone to scrub floors.

Wash dishes.

Run errands.

And now…

That same unwanted girl might be worth more than Victoria had ever earned in her entire lifetime.

“You can go,” Victoria said quietly, stepping back.

Elena adjusted her blouse and turned around, confusion flickering in her eyes.

“Yes, Ma’am.”

She walked away without another question.

Without suspicion.

Without understanding the storm that had just begun forming over her life.

Victoria remained still until she heard the kitchen tap running again.

Then her mind began to move.

Fast.

The Hartwell family had made one dangerous mistake.

They revealed the birthmark publicly.

That meant anyone with that mark could claim to be the missing heiress.

But not everyone could make the world believe it.

Victoria walked toward the window and stared down at the crowded street below.

If she sent Elena to them…

No.

Too risky.

Too unpredictable.

Elena was honest in inconvenient ways.

Soft-hearted.

And stubborn when it mattered most.

If questioned, she might speak too much.

She might tell truths that did not align with a profitable story.

And the truth…

The truth was dangerous.

Victoria’s lips pressed into a thin line.

But Sophia…

A slow smile formed.

Sophia was ambitious.

Beautiful.

Confident.

She understood presentation.

She understood power.

And most importantly—

She knew how to lie without blinking.

Victoria turned toward the hallway again.

“Sophia,” she called.

A bedroom door opened almost immediately.

A young woman stepped out, dressed far better than Elena ever was. Her hair fell perfectly over her shoulders. Her nails were polished. Her eyes were sharp.

“Yes, Mother?”

Victoria stepped closer.

Lowered her voice.

“How would you like to become a billionaire?”

Sophia froze.

“What?”

“The Hartwell family is searching for their lost daughter,” Victoria said carefully.

Sophia’s confusion shifted.

Interest replaced it.

“And?”

Victoria’s smile widened slowly.

“I think we just found her.”

Silence stretched between them.

Then Sophia whispered, almost breathless—

“You’re not serious.”

“Oh,” Victoria replied.

“I am very serious.”

In the kitchen, unaware of the conversation unfolding down the hall, Elena scrubbed a stubborn stain from a ceramic plate.

Water ran over her hands.

Soap bubbles slid down the sink.

Outside, powerful men were reopening a seventeen-year search for their sister.

Inside this house—

A lie was being born.

And Victoria intended to make it worth everything.