Chapter 7
Joanne was an old acquaintance of Simone’s, whom she and Stella had grown up with. Joanne had been at odds with Simone since they were kids, and things had only gotten worse over time. Seeing Joanne’s furious expression, Simone let out a sudden laugh.
“What are you laughing at?” Joanne felt like she was punching a pillow–it was infuriating.
Simone stared at Joanne, who was desperately trying to suppress her anger, and couldn’t help but mock her inwardly. ‘Still the same clueless fool as always. How pathetic of her to get angry over this, Simone thought.
Simone showed no mercy and struck right where it hurt the most. “For someone who’s forever stuck in second place, you sure have a lot of time to meddle in our business.
“If I were you, I’d spend that energy studying instead–maybe then you could finally break free from being ‘always second.”
Joanne absolutely hated being considered a perpetual runner–up. She gritted her teeth with fury, but when she thought of the rumors swirling on the school forum, her expression softened a little.
“Simone, after all the nasty things you’ve done, you’ve already been kicked out of the Spence family. It won’t be long before you’re expelled from Sogin High School. Let’s see how long you can keep that smug look,” Joanne snarled through gritted teeth.
She was looking forward to the moment when Simone became the laughingstock of everyone. She thought, ‘Let me see how arrogant Simone could still be without the Spence family’s support. Saying those words out loud made Joanne feel much less upset.
Simone maintained a faint smile. “Without the Spence family, I’m still myself. As for getting expelled? That’s never going to happen.”
She muttered in her mind, ‘Without the Spence family, I’ll be so much better off. In my past life, I wore myself out trying to protect the Spence family, never considering my own needs. I gave up so much, including honor and achievements.
‘None of them mattered to me, though. All I wanted was the faintest trace of familial love that barely existed.
‘But whether it was something I cared about or not, Stella could effortlessly get it with just a slight furrow of her brows. Why is that fair? This time, I’m going after it all–reputation, success, and more.
It was noon, and the sun outside was blazing hot. Yet, inside the Irwin Group’s CEO office, the atmosphere felt as cold as ice. Cyrus was in a fury, violently smashing everything on his desk to the floor, leaving papers and objects scattered everywhere.
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His face was grim, his eyes icy and penetrating. “How dare the Spence family do that?”
Cyrus considered himself cold–hearted enough, but he hadn’t expected Samuel to be even more heartless. He had found out that Samuel had actually sent an eleven–year–old girl to Infinity Island.
Cyrus always thought the Spence family simply sent Simone abroad. If it weren’t for Simone acting strange during that dinner last time, he might have never known the truth.
Infinity Island was a lawless place, a name that struck fear the moment it was mentioned. It was full of dirt, violence, bloodshed, all kinds of shady dealings, and even illegal trades. It was a paradise for the wealthy but a nightmare for the underprivileged.
Anyone who stepped inside either ended up dead or gravely injured, with barely anyone making it out alive–let alone a child. Cyrus couldn’t imagine how Simone had managed to escape from such a place. Even he, as an adult, had found it terrifying.
It was the first time Christian had seen Cyrus so angry. Inwardly, he cursed the Spence family countless times but forced himself to continue his report. “She escaped from there at the age of fourteen, but there’s no way to track her life after that.”
Christian thought for a moment and continued, “Perhaps someone deliberately erased all traces of her life abroad during those years.” Cyrus nodded thoughtfully. “That’s true. If someone intentionally wiped out any records of Simone’s life abroad, it would be almost impossible to investigate. Alright, you can leave for now.”
After Christian left, Cyrus walked to the floor–to–ceiling window and lit a cigarette. Growing up in an unhappy family, he had never planned to marry or have children. Simone’s sudden appearance in his life was completely unexpected for him.
The unexpected event left Cyrus with mixed emotions. When Simone first came to him, he didn’t believe her. But then, the paternity test confirmed that she was indeed his biological daughter. As difficult as it was to accept, he forced himself to face the truth.
1/3
Chapter 7
It wasn’t until the moment that Cyrus truly realized how much he had failed his daughter. He had brought her into the world but hadn’t done enough to protect her.
*****
After school at five in the afternoon, Simone was looking for the Irwin family’s car when she unexpectedly spotted that familiar black Rolls–Royce Phantom. “Stop looking. The driver isn’t coming today,” Cyrus said as he stepped out of the car with his long stride.
Simone stared blankly as Cyrus walked up to her. “Why are you here?” she asked, feeling a little confused inside, though her face remained calm.
Although Cyrus had taken her out for a meal once before, Simone didn’t think that he was there just to pick her up from school. She clearly remembered how much he had resisted acknowledging her as his daughter when they first met.
“The driver had something else to take care of, and I just happened to be free,” Cyrus said, his expression momentarily stiff. He subtly avoided making eye contact with Simone.
Simone nodded without doubting him.
Once they were in the car, Cyrus said, “We’ll handle your legal documents in a bit.” It was something he had planned on doing before coming.
Simone paused what she was doing, feeling slightly puzzled by Cyrus. “Why?” she asked. She vividly recalled how much he had resisted accepting her when they first met.
Cyrus knew she hadn’t forgotten the tension from their first meeting, and a wave of regret washed over him. He said, “When we first met, I never imagined you could actually be my daughter.”
Simone understood what he was trying to say.
“Do you want to change your name?” Cyrus hesitated before asking, thinking about how Simone might not have had an easy life with the Spence family.
Simone shook her head. She had lived with the name her entire last life and didn’t want to change it. Cyrus assumed Simone still felt some attachment to the Spence family, so he didn’t ask further.
When they arrived, Cyrus quickly completed all the procedures, everything going smoothly from start to finish. Simone watched as her name was officially changed on the legal documents, now reflecting her new identity. She was no longer Simone Spence. She was now Simone Irwin.
After everything was done, Simone assumed Cyrus would take her straight back to the villa. To her surprise, Cyrus drove directly to a mall instead. “Aren’t we going home?” she asked, puzzled.
“We’re here to get you some proper clothes,” Cyrus said, glancing at Simone’s outfit with a faint frown.
For a moment, she thought she caught a hint of disapproval from Cyrus. She silently lowered her head and looked at her faded sweatshirt and jeans, thinking to herself, ‘Yeah, I do look kind of shabby.
Simone followed Cyrus into a designer clothing store. Once inside, Cyrus simply gestured for the saleswoman to buy all the new arrivals in the store. Simone didn’t even need to try anything on, which made things much simpler.
Simone silently glanced at him and thought, ‘Well, so bold and decisive way of doing things. That’s typical of Cyrus.
They visited several stores in a row, all following the same pattern, which Simone found quite relaxing. But the thought of how much money those clothes must have cost made her heart sting.
‘If only I had that much money, she thought, ‘I can’t even imagine how happy I’d be
Before, when Simone lived with the Spence family, she had been focused on getting Stella out of the picture and hadn’t even thought about earning money or pursuing a career.
To make things worse, Norah–Stella’s mother–didn’t give Simone a single penny. Now, she couldn’t even scrape together a thousand
bucks.
