chapter1311

She stared in shock. Grace? Wasn't Grace supposed to be on the run? How could Lucinda still be in touch with her? Kylie felt a wave of disbelief and anger crash over her. She never imagined Lucinda would keep sneaking around, still talking to Grace in secret.

These last couple of days, Grace had been so upset by Lucinda's decisions, she almost thought she'd have a heart attack. But what could she do? Lucinda was her own daughter. Sometimes, Grace honestly wished Lucinda could be a little more like Lydia, clever and level-headed. Why did the smart kids always seem to belong to someone else? Just thinking about it made her chest tight.

"Let's meet at a restaurant tonight," Grace said. "In a couple of days, I'll have to leave for a while." She sounded tired, worn out from constantly hiding and pretending to be someone else. Life as a fugitive was exhausting.

Lucinda's eyes went wide. "You're leaving? Where are you going?" Grace was her anchor right now, and she felt lost at the idea of her leaving.

Grace let out a deep breath, her voice softer. "Don't worry. I'm not abandoning you. I just need to step away for a bit. I'll come back soon." The truth was, Lucinda had burned through all of Grace's money. Grace had already explained everything to Night Eagle, hoping he could talk to Blood Oath and maybe get some of it back. Even a little would help. Plus, she needed to go abroad to meet some people before returning to deal with Lydia. Lydia was a big problem that had to be dealt with, once and for all.

Lucinda blurted out, "But... what about the plan to take down Lydia?" She couldn't wait any longer. She was desperate.

Out in the hallway, Kylie overheard and her eyes flew open. Did she just hear that right? Take down Lydia? Her anger flared, her vision almost blurring with rage.

Lucinda!

Even now, she was teaming up with Grace, the escaped felon, hurting Lydia. Kylie could barely contain herself. She reached for the door, ready to burst inside, when suddenly someone grabbed her arm and pulled her into another bedroom.

"Juna? Why are you stopping me? I just heard Lucinda say she wants to kill Lydia!

"Please, calm down." Juna gently, guided her to the sofa. On the coffee table, a tablet displayed a live feed

from inside Lucinda's r

they

could see everything, even the

hallway.

Kylie stared at the screen, still stunned. Juna, Lydia, what's going on here?"

Lydia, sitting quietly on the sofa, finally spoke up. "Mom, we're monitoring Lucinda's every move."

Kylie frowned, suspicion growing. Lydia, are you keeping secrets from me?" She had a feeling this was bigger than she realized.

Lydia looked at her, deciding it was time to share the truth. "Grace has spent years working at the Norwood family, looking after Lucinda. Even after leaving, she stayed in touch. Every time Lucinda made a mistake, Grace would take the blame Have you ever wondered why?

Kylie's brow furrowed in confusion. "Ever since we brought Lucinda home, Grace has cared for her her own. She always said she thought of Lucinda as her

daughter..." Suddenly, the tel

hit

het Her eyes widened in disbelief as she looked at Lydia. "Lydia... are you saying Grace is Lucinda's real

mother?"

Lydia nodded. "Yes."

It took Kylie a long moment to let it sink in. So, when Frank showed up at our house

before, that was Grace and Lucinda's doing too?"

Lydia nodded again. It was their idea, but Frank was just a pawn. He's not

Lucinda's biological father at all.