Melody's POV

“Why would Mr. Hutchinson go out of his way to support someone like me, a below-average student? Why would he hire Alvin as the family gardener? And why would he let me visit the house so often? Every time I came by, he’d even smile at me.”

Alvin let out a laugh. “Funny thing is, at first, I thought Mr. Hutchinson had a thing for Karrie. I figured he was planning to marry her and make her your stepmother.”

Karrie looked a little awkward at that. “Thank goodness I didn’t actually try to seduce him. Because I suddenly remembered, when I first met Mr. Hutchinson, he made a point to tell me something: that you and I were born on the exact same day.”

Her voice hardened as she went on, “That’s when it clicked. I’m the real daughter of Mr. Hutchinson. That’s why he looked at me differently. That’s why he treated me so well. But Mr. Hutchinson’s too kind. He didn’t have the heart to throw you out, so he chose to keep things the way they were for now.”

She stood taller, her voice full of smug righteousness as she added, “But as Mr. Hutchinson’s true daughter, it’s only right that I help him fix this mistake.”

As she spoke, her expression grew colder—almost twisted.

She stared straight at me. “Melody, nothing in this world comes free. You’ve lived a life of luxury all these years. Did you really think there wouldn’t be a price to pay? You think I’m just going to let you walk away?”

The two thugs standing behind her glanced at me with sleazy eyes, then turned to Alvin.

“Boss, you’re really cutting this daughter loose?”

Alvin nodded without hesitation. “Of course. I raised Karrie myself. She’s the one I care about. Once she takes her rightful place as Hutchinson’s heiress, she’ll take care of me.”

Then, he gave me a disgusted look. “As for her, I couldn’t care less. She’s nothing but trouble for Karrie. If she disappears for good, or better yet, ends it herself, that’d be the best outcome for everyone.”

The thugs cracked their knuckles and started walking toward me.

My heart was racing. I grabbed Damon’s sleeve in desperation and looked up at him, silently begging for help.

He was tall, strong, and the captain of our school’s karate club. He’d even competed at the provincial level and done really well.

I chose to ignore how useless he’d been earlier. Maybe he was just scared. So I whispered, “Damon, please… help me—”

But before I could finish, he yanked his arm away and walked straight over to Karrie.

“Karrie,” he said, smiling warmly, “I knew you weren’t just anyone.”

I stared at him in disbelief. “Damon… you—”

He rolled his eyes at me. “What? Don’t tell me you thought I actually liked you? The only reason I ever flirted with you was because you're Hutchinson. But the truth is, the only one I’ve ever cared about is Karrie. Now that I know you’re not Hutchinson’s real daughter, I have no reason to take your side anymore.”

Karrie looked thrilled to see me so humiliated. “Nobody ever liked you, you know. They only liked the status that came with being ‘Miss Hutchinson.’ But the joke’s on you. Your identity was fake all along.”

She followed my gaze to Damon and let out a smug laugh. “All thanks to Damon. If it weren’t for him, I never would’ve figured out I was the real heiress.”

Damon gave a modest shrug. “Karrie, you’re giving me too much credit. It wasn’t that hard. I mean, look at you. You don’t look anything like someone who grew up in the mountains. You don’t resemble Alvin either. But Melody? She doesn’t look like Mr. Hutchinson at all. With all those coincidences, how could I not start putting the pieces together?”

As I listened to them, it finally sank in.

This whole thing was all because of Damon?

Melody's POV

It turned out, it all started because Damon thought I didn’t look like my father. That suspicion led him to believe I might not be his biological daughter. As such, Karrie had actually been trying to get a chance to collect our DNA for testing, but she never found the right opportunity.

Then Damon gave her another idea. They didn’t need to test me and my dad at all. If they could prove that Karrie and Alvin weren't father and daughter, that would be enough to shake everything.

I stared at Damon, furious—so angry I could barely breathe.

He had always acted like the perfect guy around me. Sure, he came from a poor family, but he was smart, charming, respectful, and one of the most popular boys at school. He treated me like I was special, always kind, always willing to help. To me, he was boyfriend and even husband material.

In fact, I had already made plans. Once we were officially together, we’d get married after graduation. I’d bring him into my father’s company, and we’d run the family business together.

But now, as I stood there watching him and Karrie all cozy together, I couldn’t believe what I was seeing.

Karrie smirked. “See? That’s why I said you’re not the real heiress of Hutchinsons. If you had even a shred of common sense, you’d have realized a long time ago that Damon and I were the ones truly meant for each other.”

Logic told me that backing down right now might be the safest choice. But I was raised with pride. I couldn’t just bow my head, especially not with those two thugs she brought in standing nearby. One look at them, and it wasn’t hard to guess what they had planned if I surrendered.

I glanced at the clock on the wall, then suddenly shouted at the two men, “If you don’t want to die today, get the hell away from me!”

They were just street thugs, not professionals. My sudden outburst actually scared them for a moment. Taking my chance, I forced myself to stand.

“You’re all insane,” I spat, glaring at the three of them. “The reason I don’t look like my dad is because I take after my mom. Have you even looked at our family photos? I’m a carbon copy of her!”

“I was going to let this go. I really was. But after hearing all this? You’re going to pay. I’ll cancel your sponsorships, and you, Alvin, you’re done too. I’m calling the police, and you’ll all rot in jail!”

Karrie’s face twisted in rage. “You little bitch! I was just planning to throw you out and be done with it, but since you insist on making this ugly, I changed my mind.”

She turned to the two thugs. “She’s a knockout even though she's not an heiress, you agree? This is now your one and only chance to sleep with a woman this beautiful. And if she ends up pregnant? Well, lucky you, you’ve got a future.”

“Alvin!” she barked. “Grab your phone and start filming. I want Melody ruined so badly she’ll never be able to show her face again.”

As soon as she finished, the two thugs exchanged a glance and started moving toward me.

I had nowhere to run. Desperate not to be violated, I scrambled toward the window, ready to throw myself out.

But just as I reached it, Damon grabbed my leg and yanked me back, slamming me onto the floor. The two thugs pounced on me.

I fought with everything I had, but I had already lost count of how many times I was hit.

By the time they’d nearly torn all my clothes off, I had no strength left to resist.

And then, finally, the door to the study burst open.

“Stop! Stop right now!” my father’s voice screamed.