Chapter 400



The little boy came running over, grabbing the woman’s hand as he spoke in a soft, whiny voice. “Mom, I think this girl is very pretty. I want her to be my wife when I grow up.”

The woman beamed at her son, patting his head affectionately. “My dear boy, she’s from a poor family. She is not worth much more than a toy for you. Someone like her doesn’t even deserve to be by your side when she’s older.”

The little boy puffed out his chest, arrogance radiating from him.

Sophie, however, remained silent, her cold gaze fixed on the duo. These two fools had no idea what was coming. She knew her mother would make sure they regretted this.

The woman, clearly pleased with herself, suddenly shoved Sophie hard, causing Sophie to stumble.

The woman yelled, “Get in the kitchen and learn to cook! My son can’t be eating just my food forever. And don’t forget, you’ll need to call your grandfather and tell him you’re doing just fine. Behave, and maybe I’ll let you keep going to school with my son. But if you step out of line, you know what’ll happen.”

Sophie stared at the pair, their menacing expressions meant to intimidate. But instead of resisting, she put on an act, pretending to be meek as she obediently headed toward the kitchen.

Just then, the front door opened, and a man stepped inside.

The woman and the little boy rushed to greet the man with exaggerated joy.

The boy shouted, “Daddy!” The woman called out, “Honey!”

Curious, Sophie turned to see who this “important” man was. To her surprise, he didn’t look anything like the powerful figure they had described. His beard was unkempt, and his eyes had a dull, lifeless quality to them. But as soon as the man’s eyes landed on Sophie, they widened in shock.

Without hesitation, the man strode over and grabbed Sophie’s hand, his disbelief evident.

Dean’s voice was a bit frantic as he asked, “Who is this? What’s going on here?”

The woman stepped forward with a saccharine smile. “She’s a girl from the same kindergarten as our son. She offended him somehow, but our boy is so generous that he doesn’t hold grudges. He said he wanted her to have a good life, so I brought her home.”

₥ₒᵣₑ ᵤₚdₐₜₑₛ ᵢₙ gₐₗₙₒᵥₑₗₛ.𝒸ₒₘ The reason behind Dean’s disdain was more complicated than he let on. Sophie’s face was an eerie echo of Kallie’s when Kallie was a child, stirring memories Dean had long tried to bury.

Now, in the throes of middle age, Dean’s life was a shadow of what he had once imagined. He had killed his mother and framed Jake.

But instead of facing his own failures, Dean had convinced himself that Jake was to blame for everything. In his twisted logic, if Jake had just relinquished control of the Reeves Group, none of this would have happened. It was easier for Dean to project his anger onto Jake, and by extension, to despise Kallie.

Dean had heard that Kallie had returned to the Nixon family and was thriving. She had even opened an auction house, where, to his dismay, that fool had suffered a loss at Kallie’s hands.

Sophie was a spitting image of Kallie as a child, a resemblance that both unsettled and infuriated Dean. As long as this girl wasn’t Kallie’s daughter, Dean saw no reason not to unleash his pent-up rage on Sophie.

Without warning, Dean raised his hand and hurled a porcelain bottle to the floor.

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