Chapter 1677: Neither a Reed nor a Bennet

"What did you say you did?"

Kiara instinctively pulled her hand from Cassandra’s loose grip. Her eyes swirled with disbelief as she shook her head, as if what she had just heard was too unbelievable to process.

"You... hired men—shady men—to intrude into Nina’s home and deliver a package with a dead bird?" she repeated, watching Cassandra press her lips into a thin line. "And Attorney Grace knew this? Is that why she said what she did earlier?"

Earlier, Grace had suddenly uttered something in response to Cassandra’s hesitation. Her words, "It’s the court of law, not morality," had stood out to Kiara. She had noticed that but chose not to dwell on it, knowing that Cassandra had been unstable the past few months.

Kiara simply didn’t expect this.

"I’m... I know it was wrong," Cassandra whispered. "And even if I regret it, I can’t take back time—"

"But you can take accountability for that," Kiara interjected, her voice barely above a whisper. "Cassy, do you think leaving... is taking accountability?"

Nothing.

Cassandra didn’t answer—not because she didn’t know what to say, but because they both already knew the answer.

"Ki, I plan on apologizing." After a beat, Cassandra sighed. "It’s just—"

"You didn’t even apologize to Theo Miller, Cass," Kiara spoke again. "Not even to Patricia Miller."

Yes, Kiara had just learned that after Cassandra’s confession because the latter had mentioned it. Cassandra had mentioned it when she said,

"I did a lot of things."

Kiara rose from her seat, keeping her eyes on Cassandra. She opened and closed her mouth, but no words came out. To be honest, she didn’t know if she was angry or if what she was feeling was just pure dismay and disappointment.

One thing was for sure, though.

"You’re probably right, Cass," Kiara whispered, balling her hand into a tight fist. "I probably didn’t know you as well as I thought I did."

"Ki—" Cassandra rose from her seat as Kiara turned to leave. "Kiara."

Kiara stopped, her face crumpling as she couldn’t even bear to look back at her.

"I’m not leaving," she said. "Even if I wanted to, I don’t want to die. Not when Hugo Bennet helped us get to this point."

With that, she took another heavy step, only to stop again. "Also, Cassy, this home? Do you know whose place this is? It’s Finn’s, and I don’t know if I should be ashamed and just swallow my pride or be grateful."

And after saying that, Kiara walked away without another pause.

Kiara knew that telling Cassandra whose place this was would help keep them safe, but she also knew it was cruel. However, she didn’t do it out of spite or to hurt her friend. No matter what, Cassandra was still her friend. She only said it because of one thing:

To let Cassandra know just how heavy her actions were, and yet, the people she had hurt would still help her.

Because at one point, Kiara knew that Finn—he wouldn’t do what Cassandra did to him.

Neither Finn nor Nina deserved what Cassandra had done to them.

Meanwhile, Cassandra staggered back until she fell onto the couch. Shock and disbelief were plastered across her face as she bit her inner bottom lip. Her heart had been a mess, but tonight, it was worse. All the things she had done were slowly catching up to her.

The short imprisonment wasn’t all the karma— it was just a part of it.

This was her karma, and it was being served slowly and coldly.

And she had no choice but to drink it, no matter how bitter or poisonous it was.

Another tear rolled down her cheek, covering her lips.

---

[Skyline Plaza: Finn’s]

Nina stood by the sliding door that led to the kitchen and backyard. Her arms were folded under her chest, eyes ahead, deep in thought.

"Everything okay?" Finn’s voice came from behind her, snapping her out of her thoughts.

Nina looked back, catching him already standing on the other side of the open sliding door. She pressed her lips into a thin line, nodding before looking out again.

"Just thinking about what I heard today," she whispered, resting the side of her head against the door. "I still can’t believe it."

Finn smiled subtly, knowing what Nina had heard from that brief phone call with Penny earlier in the day had bothered her. Even though she tried not to let it affect her, Nina felt it.

No one could blame her.

In this lifetime, Nina treasured Penny and the Bennet family. So, even if she hadn’t wished for it and even though she couldn’t stop Priscilla from swapping her with Penny, she still felt responsible because she was part of the cause.

"Do you want to talk about it more?" he asked, watching her look back at him. "Or should we... watch a movie and hope it’ll distract you?"

The corner of her mouth curled up as her eyes softened. "I’m not bothered by that—at least, not like that."

"Just wondering, since I know anything that I say will not make you feel better."

"You listening to me rant, or when I couldn’t stop thinking about something is more than enough," she quipped, sighing heavily. "It’s just that... if I were a surrogate baby... doesn’t that mean I am neither a Bennet nor a Reed?"

His brows rose as the two of them stared at each other. She hadn’t said it all day, but Finn should’ve known that Nina was sharp enough to catch that.

"That’s what bothers me, Finn," she confessed, sighing heavily as she cast her eyes down. "It’s not that I want to meet or see my real parents, but..."

She paused, smiling bitterly at the thought. "... I don’t like the idea that the Cortez family might not be my relatives, after all."

"..." Finn pressed his mouth together, taking careful steps until he was standing behind her. He wrapped his arms around her and rested his chin on her shoulder.

Her brows rose as she glanced at him. "I’m not sad, Finn. I’m just—"

"You’re a Davis," he said, meeting her eyes with a gentle pair. "You may or may not be a Reed, but everyone knew you’re a Bennet and a Cortez by heart. And soon, you’re going to be Mrs. Finn Davis."

Nina bit her inner bottom lip as her eyes softened, her shoulders relaxing in his embrace. She leaned back on him, letting him carry her weight.

"I’m glad I found this out now," she whispered. "Now that you’re with me. I don’t think I could handle it well without your support."

"And I’m glad I’m here with you to carry the weight."

Her smile returned as she looked up at him. Finn smiled back, giving her a knowing look.

"Anyway, are you sure you’re fine with lending your place to Kiara and Cassandra?" she asked after a moment.

Finn hummed and thought about it before shrugging. "I still don’t forgive her, even if you say you forgave her. But Second Brother, I can’t bear watching Second Brother making a scene and hugging my legs like that."

"Haha." She laughed, recalling Hugo’s brief visit earlier that day. "It’s... it was horrible to watch."

His face scrunched up as he remembered. "And I felt embarrassed for him."

"Let’s just watch a movie."

"Mhm," he hummed, holding her hand securely and gently, making sure she knew he was there. That she could fall apart, and he would be there to catch her.