Filed To Story: Returning to Her Not-So-Poor Family
Meanwhile.
Florence had gone to her son Martin’s company, just missing him. No one knew when he’d be back as he’d left in a hurry, seemingly on some urgent business. So, she refrained from calling or texting him, fretting in silence instead.
After a half-hour wait, the office door finally swung open. Florence lifted her gaze, filled with anxious anticipation, and blurted out, “Martin”
But it wasn’t her son who entered. It was her daughter—Diana.
“Mom, what are you doing here?” Diana burst through the door, her anger simmering, but upon seeing her mother, she toned it down a notch, “Are you looking for Martin?”
“Oh, you needed him for something?” Florence, taken aback, confessed, “The staff downstairs said he dashed out, in a hurry, no clue when he’ll be back.
What do you need him for?”
“Mom.” Diana hesitated, biting her lip. She really couldn’t stand Serena. Just earlier, her bestie texted her, saying she bumped into Serena out shopping yesterday, flaunting Martin’s platinum card, splurging hundreds of thousands like it was nothing.
She was livid, ready to give her brother a piece of her mind.
But she hadn’t expected to run into her mother here.
“Diana, has your brother got himself a girlfriend? Were you aware of this?”
Surprisingly, Florence was the first to ask.
Diana was caught off guard, “Did he tell you? Or did you find out yourself?”
“Lwas out shopping yesterday” Florence recounted the previous day’s events.
Diana hadn’t expected Serena to be so rude, running down the QY brand, insulting the sales staff, indirectly mocking her mother, and snatching away the items her mother had her eye on with Martin’s credit card.”Mom, I can’t keep this to myself any longer” Diana came clean about what had happened on Rodeo Drive, including Serena’s antics at the botanical garden, and her insistence on a private viewing at the Tower.
Florence was shocked to learn that the reason her son messaged his father about the private event was for a woman.
It was so out of character for her son.
After all, when he started his business, no matter how tough or difficult things got, he never once asked for help.
But now, for a girl, he had broken his own rule.
Just then, a message from Fitch popped up on Diana’s phone, leaving her thunderstruck.
It took her a moment to regain her composure before she numbly informed her mother, “Serena isn’t a real Collins. She was switched at birth! She shares no blood with the Collins family”
“What did you just say?” Florence was even more astonished.
Once Diana explained everything, Florence slammed her fist on the table, “So, she knew she wasn’t from a background as prestigious as the Cooper family, yet she’s been acting high and mighty because of my son’s affection. I will not allow such a person to set foot in the Cooper household! Call Martin right now, I want him here in half an hour to tell him myself.”
Diana agreed that their mother needed to step in and give her brother a stern talk. Otherwise, Martin’s future and the Cooper legacy could be ruined by Serena alone!
Serena was already on a shopping spree with Martin’s card every other day and bullying Martin on top of it.What would happen if they actually got married?
Diana prided herself on being reasonable. Even if Serena had a troubled background and her biological parents were unknown, it wouldn’t be an issue as long as she was willing to live a good life with Martin.
But her constant drama was a surefire way to bring chaos into their home.
She pulled out her phone, dialed her brother’s number, and said angrily, “Mom wants you at the office in half an hour. Don’t say I didn’t warn you. She’s fuming. You’ve already missed Grandpa’s birthday once. If you don’t show up this time, no one can save you”
Martin’s car was midway to his destination when his sister’s voice came through, “Mom’s heart’s acting up again, her old condition. If you make her worse, you’ll regret it for the rest of your life”
After hearing the dial tone on the other end, Martin ultimately turned the car around and headed back.
Evening.
Eunice chimed in, “It’s such a lively day today. Why don’t we go out for dinner?”
“That sounds great. It’s been ages since I’ve had dinner with Grandma and Grandpa, and my uncles and aunts! I miss those old times”
Serena said this to let Mirabella know that for the past eighteen years, it was she, Serena, who had been there for the Collins family!
Mirabella had no part in that!
“No problem.” Mirabella seemed unfazed, her expression steady throughout.
“Fantastic, I was just thinking it would be nice for the family to go out for a meal together! Eunice, you read my mind.” Belinda happily linked arms with her daughter-in-law and asked, “So, which restaurant shall we go to?”
“It’s got to be one of our own, of course.” Eunice’s smile was radiant and beautiful, “The service is impeccable, the ingredients are fresh, and it suits your tastes perfectly.”
Belinda beamed, “My daughter-in-law always knows the best.”
Just then, a servant came forward to report, “Sir, someone outside asked me to give this to you.”
Everyone’s attention turned to the servant, who presented a beautifully crafted wooden box the size of a laptop. The intricate patterns carved on the box suggested it was quite valuable.
Darren opened it to find a thick stack of property deeds, land titles, keys, and other such items.There was also a letter.
“Darren, by the time you read this letter, we will have moved away from Dawnstar. Enclosed are our letters of resignation, which have been processed through the company’s system and stamped officially. We are no longer part of the group.”
“We are too ashamed to face you and can only apologize in this way—sorry, Darren, for sparing our lives.”
“We voluntarily give up our monthly company dividends”
“In the last few days, we have sold all our shops, houses, antiques, paintings, jewelry, and other valuables at a discount. The money earned should barely cover our basic needs, and the rest of our assets, which we couldn’t sell in time, have been transferred to your name, Darren, for you to deal with as you see fit”
“With deep regret and shame, we once again apologize—sorry, Darren. No words can express our remorse, but we still want to say sorry. We were wrong. We wish you and your family prosperity and a soaring future—your unworthy brothers.”
The letter ended with the signatures of the brothers. Darren, with mixed emotions, handed the letter to Belinda and then said, “Bella, come with me.”
In the garden.
Darren composed himself, his gaze softening as he laoked at Mirabella, “You’ve been back in the family for half a year now. I have been wanting to give you a welcome gift, but we’ve never gotten around to it.
Everything in this wooden box is a token of my affection, and you must accept it.”Mirabella opened the box to see dozens of property deeds and land titles, even car keys, an astonishing amount.
“Tomorrow, you’ll accompany me to transfer the titles. All of this will be in your name, including the monthly dividends from those scoundrels. They will all be yours from now on.”
“It’s too much. I can’t accept it.” Mirabella pushed the box back without hesitation, earnestly saying, “Grandma has already given me plenty of shares and deposits.”
“That’s what your grandmother gave you. These are my wishes. If you don’t accept them, it’s like you favor your grandmother over me.” Darren insisted as he pushed the box back into her hands, his voice filled with affection, “Take it back to your room for now. Later, we’ll all go out for a meal. If it weren’t for you, well, I’d still be hovering at death’s door”
“Grandpa.”
“Enough, don’t you dare refuse! Otherwise, I will get mad. You know I haven’t fully recovered.” Darren said, breaking into a feigned cough for emphasis.
But Mirabella was no fool. She could see right through his act.
“Your uncles have their own businesses. They’re set for life. When i pass on, everything will go to you.
If you’re shying away from a small token now, what will you do later? Just hand it over to someone else?”
“Grandpa.”
“Our family owes you so much already. Consider this a chance for me to make it up to you.”
Darren said this and coughed deliberately once more, waving his hands dismissively, “No more talk, I’m out of breath. I need to go in and rest.
Holding the wooden box in her arms, Mirabella watched her grandfather’s retreating figure, filled with a mix of amusement and affection.
“I’ve caught wind that Calvin and Arlen are selling their properties, some at half price, just to gather more cash to take with them.”
Eunice had long been aware of their intentions, speaking coolly, “Because Dad gave them only two days, they’re rushing to liquidate. They need a buyer to pay in full, immediately transfer the money into their accounts. I applied some pressure, so no one dared buy their stuff. Then I got some people to push down their prices even further. In the end, I bought the two most valuable mansions and a stringof shops in the town center at a bargain. The rest, if they couldn’t sell, would have to be put under Dad’s name when the time was up.”
On hearing this, Serena realized that the wooden box, which Grandpa had insisted Mirabella take in the garden, contained the unsold houses, shop keys, and luxury car keys of her relatives.
A wave of jealousy surged through Serena’s heart!
They had already rewarded Mirabella with close to ten million dollars, wasn’t that enough? And now she was getting more?
What about her?
Did she get anything?
Didn’t anyone care about how she felt?
At that moment, watching Mirabella carry the wooden box upstairs, Serena felt a murderous jealousy.
Even though her grandparents had just proclaimed fairness in front of everyone, their favoritism was now blatantly obvious!
“Serena, Serena? Are you listening to me?”
Eunice’s voice snapped Serena back to reality, and she offered a strained smile, “Aunt Eunice, what were you saying?”
“Go upstairs and change. I bought some new clothes for your grandma, take her to try them on. We’ll meet in the living room in about half an hour.”
“Okay.Serena couldn’t remember how she made it back to her room, only that she had passed by Mirabella’s room and noticed it was larger and more beautiful than hers.
New Book: Returned To Make Them Pay
On her wedding anniversary, Alicia is drugged and stumbles into the wrong room—straight into the arms of the powerful Caden Ward, a man rumored never to touch women. Their night of passion shocks even him, especially when he discovers she’s still a virgin after two years of marriage to Joshua Yates.