Chapter 5
From the moment Sierra woke up that morning, she’d felt unsettled, as if something terrible was about to happen.
She had to get Eli and her mother out of there as soon as possible before things got worse.
Ring ring. Her phone’s shrill tone made her nerves spike.
She answered tensely.
“Hello, Thane.”
“Sierra, your and your mother’s identity records have been wiped clean, but Eli’s still shows you’re not listed as his legal guardian. I can’t move forward with the process.”
She remembered that after giving birth to Eli, Magnus had handled the newborn registration himself.
Could it be…
“I need Eli’s birth records to erase his file. Sierra, is he listed under your ex-husband’s name as the legal parent?”
Her heart sank. If Magnus was the one listed as Eli’s legal parent, it would make everything impossible.
She steadied her voice. “If I can get a copy of Eli’s birth certificate or legal custody papers, can you erase his records?”
“Yes, but you need to hurry. I’ve already submitted the identity reset paperwork-if we don’t get the old records cleared in time, it’ll
turn into a mess…”
“Got it.”
After hanging up, Sierra paced the living room.
Suddenly, her gaze fell on the locked study.
She called a locksmith. Usually only front door locks required proof of ownership and ID, so she just told him her kid had lost the key while playing around. The master unlocked it in minutes.
Inside the study was the same cold gray décor.
Under the massive desk sat a pure black titanium steel safe.
Sierra took a deep breath, crouched down, and looked at the digital lock.
She had an exceptional memory-she’d passed the bar exam on her first try. When reviewing Magnus’s divorce case that day, Odessa’s birthday had been seared into her mind.
“960513.” Click. The safe door popped open.
She skipped past various corporate files and found the dark red marriage certificate and a folder labeled “Guardianship Records.”
The marriage certificate showed Magnus and Odessa’s sweet, radiant smiles.
Completely different from her “fake” one. When Magnus had taken their wedding photos, he’d worn a stone-cold expression, claiming he didn’t like being photographed.
He didn’t dislike photos-he just didn’t want to take them with someone he didn’t love.
15:26
She opened the file-and there it was. Eli’s name was listed on the birth certificate, with Magnus and Odessa marked as his legal
parents.
Magnus was absolutely ruthless.
He had actually gone behind her back and registered Eli under his and Odessa’s names.
It hurt worse than having salt rubbed into a raw wound.
Sierra didn’t have time to dwell on it. She quickly removed Eli’s page, photographed it, and sent it to Thane.
Then she rapidly put everything back exactly as it was.
Minutes after finishing, her phone rang again. Thinking it was Thane:
“Hello, do you need more information…”
It was a doctor. “Miss Whitlow, your mother has been in an accident. Her condition is serious. Please come to the hospital immediately!”
“What! What happened?”
“Your mother fell down a hillside, causing intracranial bleeding, complicated by high blood pressure complications…”
Fell down a hillside?
Sierra didn’t have time to think. She grabbed Eli and rushed to the hospital.
Seeing her mother’s condition, Sierra felt dizzy and broke down sobbing.
Eli’s eyes were covered, and he innocently asked if Grandma had forgotten to take her medicine.
The doctor emerged from surgery, sighing that they’d done everything they could.
Sierra’s legs gave out as she collapsed to the floor, tears streaming down her face.
Sierra had lost her father young, and Marion had struggled to raise her alone. But before she could enjoy her golden years, she’d died in this foreign place because of Sierra.
If… if she hadn’t insisted on following Magnus here, they never would have come to New York, and her mother wouldn’t have met
such a fate!
She pounded her chest, her heart already shattered to pieces.
Soft little hands wiped away her tears as Eli’s small arms circled her neck.
“Don’t cry, Mommy. Grandma will get better!”
Poor Eli didn’t know Grandma was never coming back.
While organizing her mother’s belongings, Sierra noticed the phone was missing.
Suspicions began forming. Her mother had never liked hiking-how could she have fallen down a hillside?
Where they lived was completely flat. The only hills were at that hillside estate.
Suddenly she felt like all warmth had drained from her limbs.
Without hesitation, she grabbed her phone. “Hello! I want to report a case!”
15.26
Police quickly took over the case, and the medical examiner began the autopsy.
They soon reached a preliminary conclusion: Marion had collision injuries that didn’t match a hillside fall-more consistent with staircase impacts.
Police checked street surveillance and confirmed Marion had been heading toward the hillside estate.
Sierra already suspected the answer, but she needed solid evidence to prove it.
Just as she was about to uncover the truth, the investigation was shut down.
Police closed it as an accidental death, brushing her off with claims of insufficient evidence.
A kind female officer whispered, “Miss, did you cross someone you shouldn’t have? I’d advise you to give up. Let your mother rest in peace and don’t bring trouble on yourself.”
She understood the implication. Only the Everhart heir had that kind of power in New York. Magnus had made it happen.
Sierra wiped away her remaining tears and resolutely took a cab to the hillside estate.
She wanted facts. She wanted the truth!
Otherwise, she’d failed as a daughter!
She screamed herself hoarse outside Love Dessa Estate, but couldn’t get Odessa to come out.
Instead, several bodyguards shoved her to the ground.
Magnus called, his voice furious from the moment she picked up.
“Sierra! What the hell are you doing! What does your mother’s death have to do with Dessa?”
She wasn’t afraid of anything now. “Magnus, I really regret ever meeting you. Have you forgotten what you said when you knelt before my mother?”
“You said you’d love and cherish me for life! Look what you’re doing now!”
“My mother died and you didn’t even come see her. You’re even covering up the truth!”
The man’s voice turned threatening. “My patience is limited. If you keep causing trouble, I’ll make sure you never see Eli again!”
The last breath left her heart as she collapsed to her knees.
Mom! I’m so sorry, Mom!
Eli was her final anchor. Without him, she couldn’t go on living.
As Sierra walked down the hillside in despair, a middle-aged woman in a maid’s uniform stopped her.
“I only worked with your mother for one day, but she was a wonderful person.” The woman pressed something into her hand. “Take care of yourself. This is all I can do to help.”
The woman hurried away.
Sierra opened her palm to find her mother’s phone.
