The True Heiress's Return

Mitchell's tall frame of over six feet swayed slightly. In an instant, he felt the wooden box in his hand blazing hot, almost as if it were burning through his heart.

Shakira pulled out a small card, "Every time there's a parents' meeting at school, no one shows up. The other kids say I'm an orphan. They bully me and look down on me. I only made my first friend in the second grade-she was the first to want to play with me and do homework together. But soon, she moved away. Before leaving, she gave me a card with her new address and phone number, telling me to visit her. I was so scared of losing that card that I carried it with me every day. But one day, it suddenly disappeared, and I knew I was alone again, with no friends."

Then she had a talisman that had seen better days, a charm adorned with symbols that once protected her, but it was lost. "When I was in sixth grade, I fell seriously ill. I had a fever that wouldn't break, and my heart raced at night-I just couldn't get better. My grandma, dragging her tired legs, went to a church. At the church, she prayed for this talisman..."

"That's enough!" Mitchell's heart felt heavy, almost suffocating. Even though these memories had nothing to do with him, he felt overwhelmed with emotion.

He closed the box and shoved it into Shakira's hands. He struggled to speak, his words coming out choked, "Now, everything belongs to its rightful owner."

Shakira placed the items back in the box just as she had taken them out. Suddenly, she giggled softly, her eyes shining with a kind of icy clarity. "You really think giving me these things means they're back where they belong? All my precious belongings from childhood were taken by Yvette. What about the rest? Can the life she stole from me ever be returned?"

Mitchell clenched his fists, "I will find out the truth. Don't worry, I'll make it right."

"Hah, it's unnecessary," Shakira replied coldly, dismissing his concern, "What happened in the past doesn't matter anymore. I just care about the future."

She looked deep into Mitchell's tormented expression, "You gave me these things, but does Yvette even know?"

Mitchell replied, "She hasn't come back yet."

"When she returns, she'll be furious." Shakira hinted.

Mitchell didn't know, but Shakira was well aware of the significance of those items-the ones meant to strip away her fortune. Without them, Yvette would face a string of misfortunes. Realizing this, Shakira said, "I don't owe you anything. Let's call these things a purchase." Mitchell instinctively protested, "You don't have to."

Shakira said, "Yvette helped Lago make the connection, so Lago could negotiate the Southville development project with the Nelson family."

Mitchell was taken aback. "That's insider info. How do you know..?"

Shakira said, "Of course, I know."

During her recovery, she had overheard her family arguing about it. Lago wanted the project, but his skills were limited, so he had to rely on the Nelson family. This way, he could get a cut of the profits.

Unfortunately, Lago thought he could confidently rake in big bucks, but a traitor in his company stabbed the project team in the back and sold the bidding numbers to the competition, causing them to fail in the auction.

With support from the Nelson family, Lago had only suffered minimal losses, while the Nelson family itself had lost several

08:18 Mon,

lucrative projects in the process.

3

In her past life, Finn rushed abroad overnight to reclaim the lost business, but now, the Nelson family had embarrassed themselves and was already struggling to keep afloat, likely putting all their hopes on thi project. When the time came... they would probably end up losing even more!

Shakira furrowed her brow and whispered to Mitchell, "You don't need to know how I know this, but you should tell Finn to stay away from this collaboration."

Mitchell instinctively responded, "Finn just mentioned this the other day. He's already drafted a proposal to make back the losses from before. He won't easily give up on it."

Shakira nodded a hint of resignation in her tone. "I figured as much; Finn has invested a lot into this."

She gave Mitchell a pointed look and added, "Anyway, this is my way of repaying your kindness. This project is off-limits. If they touch it, they'll ruin everything. I've said my piece; whether you believe me or Finn listens is entirely up to you." She was only willing to offer this much. She thought, "The Nelson family's financial troubles had nothing to do with me.'

"Alright, if there's nothing else, you can go back now." With that, Shakira turned to leave.

Mitchell was still pondering, "Wait, I still-" Just as he grabbed her elbow, a sudden blinding light illuminated the area, engulfing the two of them in a piercing white glare.

They instinctively raised their hands to shield their eyes from the headlights of a luxury car, a distinguished Maybach that slowly came to a halt before them.

The door swung open, and a wheelchair rolled out. Walter, his eyes cold as frost, stared at them with an impassive expression. "What are you two doing?"

His question startled Shakira. She quickly shoved Mitchell away, feeling a strange, inexplicable tension. She thought, 'Why did it feel like I was caught on a date with someone when my partner showed up unexpectedly? Ugh, no, no, no!' Shaking her head, she approached Walter's side. "Mr. Lopez, why are you back?"Content rights belong to NôvelDrama.Org.

Walter smirked, "What's it to you if I return home?"

Shakira was momentarily speechless and thought, 'Why Is he in a bad mood?" "Well, didn't you say you'd be out for dinner tonight? How come you're back so soon?" His face darkened, "No appetite."

Shakira rubbed her nose sheepishly. "Oh." Internally, she wondered, 'Who'd gotten on Walter's bad side. Look at that! The moment he returned, he was in a bad mood. Walter's frosty gaze shifted from Shakira to Mitchell, who was still standing stiffly. "Mr. Nelson, what brings you here?"

Mitchell thought, 'The tone was exactly like Shakira's moments ago. Who was imitating whom?" He straightened up and replied, "I'm looking for Shakira regarding something. Does Mr. Lopez need to pry into a servant's personal matters?" "I don't remember the Lopez family having your sister." Walter scoffed, throwing a sharp retort.

"You!" Mitchell felt his temper rising.

Shakira, sensing the tension and worried about collateral damage, said to Mitchell, "Just go back."

Mitchell held his breath, wanting to lash out but couldn't find the words. He pulled Shakira several steps away, his face darkening with frustration. "Are you really planning to stay close to Walter?"

"I think I like it here just fine," Shakira replied.

E-

"Fine! Since you're so keen on him... whatever you need, just let me know. I'll do my best to help," he said before shooting a glare at Walter and storming off.

Shakira stood there, stunned, her heart racing with annoyance. She thought, 'Since when did I have an affinity for Walter? Mitchell seriously had a way of twisting things!'