Chapter 1

In that moment, the surrounding guests lowered their voices to whisper among themselves.

"How tragic. Their own flesh and blood, publicly cast out."

"She just wasn't born to wealth, I suppose. Three years back in the family, and she still reeks of small-town manners."

"Now look at Cathleen. She's someone with class. Exactly what you'd expect from the Newark family's careful upbringing."

I kept my head down, my shoulders trembling slightly.

Cathleen Newark thought I was crying. She gathered the hem of her six-figure haute couture dress and strode smugly over to me, her voice dripping with false gentleness.

"Abby, don't be sad. Even though Mom and Dad gave me the shares, we'll always be family. As long as you're willing, there will always be a place for you at the Newark family table."

My biological mother, Rita Rowan, stood nearby, her face twisted with disgust as she shielded Cathleen as though I carried some contagious disease.

"Cathleen, you're too kind! Why waste words on an ungrateful wretch like her?"

"Abby, let me make this clear: sign this family severance agreement, and from now on, if you cause trouble out there, don't even think of dragging the Newark family into it. Our family has only one heiress—Cathleen."

My biological father, Gary Newark, wore an expression of stern authority. He held a document he'd prepared ahead of time and looked at me coldly.

"Abby, this decision is for the good of the company. You lack ability, and you're narrow-minded. Handing the shares to you would only harm the company. Sign the papers. Let's at least leave each other some dignity."

Dignity? This family had the nerve to talk to me about dignity?

The original owner of this body had wanted that so-called dignity too badly. She had craved even a crumb of recognition from these parents. That was why she stayed up late fixing Cathleen's sloppy, error-ridden code.

That was why she ruined her eyes optimizing the company's systems. An IQ of 180, and she still ended up depressed and dead.

How could she ever have competed with Cathleen, blessed as she was by fortune itself?

Cathleen had a built-in charisma halo. All she had to do was get teary-eyed and shed a couple of crocodile tears, and no matter how outrageous her actions, everyone around would fall under her spell and defend her blindly.

No wonder the original owner of this body had wished away her family ties in exchange for… something else.

I took a deep breath. When I lifted my head again, my eyes were bloodshot, tears trembling on the verge of falling.

"Dad, Mom… are you really set on being this heartless?"

My voice cracked with misery, looking utterly pitiful.

A flash of smug triumph lit up Cathleen's eyes. She sighed. "Abby, don't make things harder for Mom and Dad."

With trembling hands, I took the document.

Originally, I'd been plotting how to bring the company down from within. But this? This was even better. They were handing me the ammunition themselves—and kicking out the only core technical expert they had.

Fine. If they wanted to stake everything on a talentless thief who could only plagiarize, I'd give them exactly what they asked for.

I picked up the pen. In front of the crowd, I signed my name on the severance agreement.

"Fine." My voice broke with fake sobs, but every word came out clear. "Since you don't want me, I'll leave."

Rita exhaled in relief, as if she'd finally scraped off a piece of chewing gum stuck to her shoe. "At least you have some sense left!"