Chapter 2

Autumn had always been frail. She barely had the strength to go outside, let alone fight two guys at once.

Sure enough, the thugs shoved her to the ground almost immediately.

Zach frowned and asked, "Where the hell did this crazy woman come from? Finish her off, too."

Even as Autumn struggled on the ground, she still tried to protect me. I yelled, "Zach, she's Jeanette's friend! Aren't you afraid that the Goode family will come after you if you lay a finger on her?"

A momentary hesitation crossed his face. Then, in a carefree tone, he said, "I've never heard of Jeanette having a friend like her. Even if it's true, she looks weak and sickly. She's probably a nobody to Jeanette. Do you think she'd choose this girl over me, the rightful heir of the Chase family? Don't make me laugh. Besides, I'll decide how the story goes if both of you die here.”

Autumn was beaten within an inch of her life, and I was tied up so tightly that I could not move.

I glared at Zach and said, "I don't know why you're convinced I stole your life, Zach, but I'm the Chase family's real son. I can forgive everything you've done, but if Autumn dies because of you, I swear I'll make you suffer and beg for your death!"

Zach looked at me with pity. Then, he laughed and said, "You won't admit the truth even when you're about to die, Julian. But of course, you've lived a life of luxury for so long. So, you can't bring yourself to accept that you were switched at birth. Denial won't save you. I had a DNA test done. It proves I'm the real heir of the Chase family!"

I looked at him with disbelief.

I wondered, 'A DNA test? How is that possible? My parents have been gone for years. There are only two children left in my family: my sister and me. How can Zach Cross be one of us?'

However, there was no time to ask questions.

The thugs dragged us to the river.

The water was hundreds of feet deep. Anyone who fell in would be done for.

I looked around desperately, wondering when my sister would arrive and trying to find a way to escape.

Zach noticed and laughed. He asked mockingly, "Still trying to run? You never learn. Hey, break his legs before you toss him in."

One of the thugs picked up a steel rod and walked toward me.

Autumn grabbed his ankle with the last of her strength. She yelled, "I'll hold them off, Julian! Run!"

"I'll kill you, you troublesome woman!" the blond thug yelled. He raised the steel rod and was about to attack her.

Suddenly, a car screeched to a halt in front of us.

"Stop! Unless you want to die!"

I saw the familiar face of my butler as he stepped out from the car, and relief flooded through me.

My family had finally arrived.

The thugs were immediately taken down.

Zach yelled, "Who are you people? What do you think you're doing? I'm the real heir of the Chase family!"

One of the men knocked him out cold with a single strike.

The butler ordered the men to carry Zach and the thugs to the warehouse. I would decide how to punish them later.

Autumn and I were sent to the hospital.

The doctor said I had only surface injuries; they were nothing serious.

Autumn was not so lucky. She had taken a hard blow to the head and needed to be hospitalized.

Only when she was finally wheeled out of the emergency room and into recovery did I feel like I could breathe again.

I borrowed a phone from the nurse and called my sister to tell her I was safe.

When my sister heard someone had tried to smear me as an imposter and wanted me dead, her fury was off the charts.