The day of old Don’s memorial mass was bitterly cold.

Cecilia arrived at the estate early. She checked every detail herself, from the wreaths and the guest list to the arrangements for the family luncheon in the afternoon.

No matter how badly her marriage with Lyon had fallen apart, the old Don had treated her well. She wanted to see this farewell done with dignity.

Just before the ceremony began, engines roared outside.

Lyon had returned.

He was not alone.

Gianna stepped out of the car wearing an overly formal black dress. She linked her arm with his and walked slowly toward the estate. Her expression was composed. She looked like a woman who already had one foot inside the Melville family.

Cecilia glanced at her and said nothing.

During the entire mass, she hardly spoke to Lyon.

The priest read the eulogy at the front while family members laid flowers one by one. Margaret’s expression was tense from beginning to end.

After the mass, everyone moved to the side room for the memorial luncheon.

The table was filled with traditional Cicilian dishes and cold cuts. The atmosphere should have been restrained and solemn. Gianna’s presence, however, made it awkward.

Finally, Lyon’s aunt, Elizabeth Melville, set down her knife and fork. She said with a cold face, “Lyon, you know what kind of occasion this is. Bringing a woman from outside to a family memorial is an embarrassment to everyone, isn’t it?”

Her words silenced the entire room.

Gianna pressed her lips together. Her eyes quickly turned teary.

She hesitated for a moment, then pulled a prenatal test report from her bag. Her voice trembled as she said, “I know I shouldn’t have come. But this child in my belly is part of the Melville bloodline. I just wanted him to know what his grandfather was like.”

The words “bloodline” changed everyone’s expressions.

Some frowned, some exchanged glances, and most instinctively looked at Cecilia.

Even Lyon froze for a moment. He clearly did not know about this.

Gianna looked up at him with a pleading face. “I wanted to tell you in private, Don Melville. I didn’t want to force you. I only want the child to grow up knowing who his grandfather was.”

Margaret clenched her napkin tightly.

Elizabeth’s face turned red with anger. “Cecilia and Isabella are here! If you want to act crazy, at least pick another day!”

Lyon was silent for a few seconds. He did not deny anything. He said coldly, “Since she’s pregnant, her coming to the memorial mass doesn’t break any rules.”

His words cut through the room like a knife and stripped away the last layer of restraint.

In the past few years, Lyon had come across women trying to have his child through their own tricks. He had always spent money to make them disappear.

He had said that no other woman could bear his child. No matter how messy things got, Isabella remained the only child of the Melville family.

But Gianna was pregnant, and Lyon had admitted the child was his.

If this had happened before, Cecilia might have smashed a glass or overturned the table.

But she remained seated. She felt surprisingly calm.

Elizabeth opened her mouth to say something, but Cecilia stood and beat her to it.

“Today is the old Don’s memorial,” she said indifferently. “Let’s not ruin this solemn occasion.”

She reached for Isabella’s hand.

Isabella wore a little black dress. She looked around at the adults with wide, innocent eyes. She did not understand what was happening, but she could feel the tension in the room. She quietly let her hand slip into Cecilia’s.

Cecilia looked at Margaret. “Madre, I’ll take Isabella back home then. I’ll leave the rest to you.”

Margaret’s lips moved. Her eyes shone with awkwardness and apology. She whispered, “Go ahead.”

Cecilia nodded and led Isabella toward the door.

When she passed Lyon, it seemed he wanted to reach out and stop her. But in the end, he only frowned and said, “Cecilia…”

She did not look back.

Lyon stood frozen. He looked at her straight and determined back and felt a strange unease.

But he pushed that down almost immediately.

Cecilia had loved him for so many years. She would not leave him easily.

After Cecilia took Isabella back to the villa, she let her take a nap as she headed into the study.

The divorce procedures were almost finished. She did not want to waste any more energy on Lyon or Gianna.

Some people, however, seemed determined to push her to the edge.

In the late afternoon, the nanny came to the study door, almost in tears.

“Donna Melville! Isabella’s missing!”

Cecilia sprang to her feet. She knocked over the chair.

“What do you mean? Wasn’t she painting in the backyard?”

“I went to the kitchen to get her some juice. When I came back, she was gone!” The nanny’s hands shook as she handed Cecilia a voice recorder. “All I found by the lawn was this…”

Cecilia forced herself to stay calm and pressed play.

A woman’s voice came through. It was distorted but sharp and triumphant. “Cecilia, you tried to put an obstacle in my path, and your daughter’s going to be a problem for my child. If you won’t give up the spot, I’ll decide for you.”

Even with the distortion, the tone and the way the words were spoken left no doubt.

It was Gianna.

Luckily, the bracelet Isabella always wore had a tracking chip.

Her assistant quickly pinpointed the signal. The location was an old dockyard in Booklyn. It was a ship maintenance warehouse that had remained out of use for years.

Cecilia snatched her car keys and ran out the door.

She pressed the gas hard as she drove and gave orders over the phone. “Find everything on Gianna. Nightclub security footage, fake diplomas, bank transfers with producers, and any contracts showing that the company cleaned her records. I want it all released tonight.”

Her assistant replied, “Understood.”

By the time Cecilia reached the old dock, it was completely dark.

The warehouse area was a mess. Shipping containers were stacked like walls. Thick smoke poured from the farthest warehouse, and gasoline had been poured across its entrance. Flames crawled up the metal walls.

Inside, Isabella was locked in.

“Mamma!!!”

Isabella’s tearful cry hit Cecilia like a knife.

She ignored the danger. She grabbed a blanket from the ground, wrapped it around herself, and kicked the half-closed metal door open. She ran straight inside.

The warehouse was stacked with old ropes and wooden crates. The wiring was ancient, and the fire spread fast. Smoke filled the air, and it made Cecilia’s eyes sting.

At the far end, Isabella crouched under an old workbench. Her face was streaked with tears.

“It’s okay! I’m here.”

Cecilia grabbed Isabella and held her tight. She wrapped her in her soaked coat and whispered calming words as she pressed against the wall. She then ran toward the exit.

A sudden crash came from behind. A burned wooden beam fell and nearly hit her shoulder.

She did not look back. She kept her arms around Isabella and ran through the flames.

When they finally collapsed on the ground, Isabella coughed violently from the smoke. Her hands shook as she clutched Cecilia’s coat. She cried so hard that she could barely speak.

Cecilia held Isabella. Her body was trembling all over.

Fear, anger, and a fierce need for revenge boiled inside her.

After the ambulance took Isabella to the hospital, Cecilia finally freed a hand and checked her phone.

Within hours, Gianna’s name was on every major headline.

Leaked videos, old bills, nightclub photos, behind-the-scenes footage, and evidence of bribed doctors fabricating reports all came out.

Gianna’s careful “innocent rising star” image was shattered completely overnight.

Footsteps pounded down the hospital corridor.

Lyon arrived with his men. His expression was dark. Gianna followed behind him, and her face was wet with tears.

“Cecilia!” he demanded the moment he walked in. He held back his anger as he spoke. “Was this your doing? Gianna’s getting attacked all over the internet right now! Are you happy now?”

Cecilia slowly lifted her head to meet his gaze. Her eyes were icy.

He did not even ask about Isabella’s condition. Instead, the first thing he did was defend Gianna.

This was ridiculous!

Cecilia smiled and asked, “Lyon, do you know your daughter was almost burned alive at the docks tonight?”

His anger froze instantly.

Gianna, behind him, went pale.

He finally seemed to realize what had happened. His eyes moved past Cecilia toward the hospital room door. His voice grew tight. “Isabella… how…”

Cecilia said nothing. She tossed the voice recorder to him.

“If you want to know how, listen to it yourself.”

Lyon’s gaze settled on the recorder.

He had not moved. Gianna stood behind him. Her face changed.

Her voice trembled with sobs. Tears streamed down her face. “Donna Melville, do you really hate me this much? Ruining my reputation wasn’t enough? Are you going to use a fabricated recording to accuse me of trying to hurt Isabella?”

She pressed a hand over her belly. Her body curled slightly. “Don Melville cares so much about Isabella. I see her as my own child. How could I ever harm her?”

The uncertainty on Lyon’s face disappeared. His face turned completely dark. He looked down at Gianna in his arms. She cried so hard that she seemed close to fainting. Then, he lifted his gaze and looked at Cecilia. She looked calm.

“Cecilia, you’re willing to frame Gianna and put our daughter’s life at risk for this?”

Cecilia looked at him in silence. It was as if she wanted to see through the face she had once loved and understand everything about him. After a while, she let out a soft laugh. Even that sounded empty of emotion.

“Lyon, you really are blind.”

She did not wait for an answer. She turned, pushed open the hospital room door, and walked inside.

The hospital room was quiet. Isabella was sleeping. Her face looked pale, but her breath was steady.

Cecilia walked to the bed and sat down at the edge. Her fingers touched Isabella’s soft hair.

A strange calm filled her. The earlier scene had drained all emotion from her.

She stayed in that room for a long time. Sunlight filtered through the window and spilled across the floor.

Her phone screen lit up. Three new texts appeared.

The first two were from Lyon.

[Gianna’s emotionally unstable, and the baby’s at risk. The doctors say she shouldn’t be put through stress.]

[No matter what, the child’s still part of the Melville bloodline. To keep her calm, I might give her a title. Behave yourself. It won’t affect your position.]

Every word showed his bias clearly.

He did not ask whether the recording was real or fake. In his mind, Gianna and the child in her belly mattered far more than the truth.

Cecilia read the messages without any reaction. She replied to him.

[Do as you wish.]

The third text was from Margaret.

[Cecilia, all the paperwork is finished and has been sent to the airport. Isabella’s custody documents are included. Take care.]

Cecilia breathed deeply. The knot in her chest loosened. She sent a simple reply.

[Thank you.]

Cecilia finished the paperwork to discharge Isabella. The little girl leaned on her for comfort and whispered, “Mamma, are we going home?”

“Yes, we’re going home.” Cecilia kissed Isabella’s forehead and carried her to the car.

They returned to the villa. This place was full of too many memories. Cecilia did not pause.

She went straight upstairs, entered the dressing room, and took out a suitcase. She began to pack.

Her movements were quick and decisive. She showed no hesitation.

She packed only the things she and Isabella would need. She also packed some of Isabella’s handmade crafts.

The expensive jewelry and fancy clothes stayed untouched.

All those things she had gained as Donna Melville no longer mattered.

When she looked around the place that had once been her home, her heart remained calm and steady.

There was no warmth here anymore. It was only an elegant and empty shell.

Cecilia picked up Isabella, grabbed the suitcase, and walked out the door without looking back. They got into the car and drove straight to the airport.

As the plane rose into the sky, a blanket of clouds stretched beneath the window.

Isabella slept in her arms and breathed evenly.

Cecilia watched the ground disappear farther and farther away until it vanished completely.

The plane would land in Ros Angeles. There would be no Lyon, no Melville family, no suffocating entanglements.

Her new life with Isabella was just beginning.