Liora’s POV
The day after I was found and brought back to my wealthy biological family, they tried to force me to take my sister’s place and become the canary of some mentally unstable, possessive CEO.
All because the family was on the verge of bankruptcy, and selling me off was their way of repaying debts and saving themselves.
My chest tightened with bitterness, and I was just about to refuse when suddenly, a floating text appeared right in front of me like subtitles in a livestream.
[Poor little sister. Lost by her family when she was young, now being sacrificed to repay her sister’s debt! That obsessive psycho CEO is a total control freak. He’ll lock her up in a luxurious mansion full of bodyguards and maids, dictate what she eats, what she wears, secretly monitor her every move, and even force her to love him. Her future is pitch black. All she can do is lie flat and accept food being handed to her and clothes chosen for her. How pitiful!]
I froze on the spot.
Pitiful? Seriously, that was what you call pitiful?
I’d been wandering alone for eighteen years with no one loving me. I had to work to feed myself, and even when I was sick, I could only tough it out alone.
And now someone wanted to feed me, clothe me, watch over me, and obsessively care about me?
I gladly volunteer to be that canary!
“If my sister doesn’t want to go, I’ll go in her place.”
A lovesick lunatic? Sounded like the perfect match for someone like me, who was starved of affection.
——
“Mom, Dad, you really love me the most! You were smart enough to make my sister go instead of me to stay with that freak, Alistair Hawthorne! I heard he’s cruel and twisted. He murdered his own father and beat his brother so badly that he had to be sent abroad. I don’t want to be tortured by a man like that!”
“Thank goodness Liora looks exactly like me,” my sister Daphne Fairborne giggled sweetly, clinging to our parents. “As long as we dress her up like me, that psycho will never know the difference!”
My mom hugged her tightly, relieved. “Yes, thank God we found her. If we’d really sent you into that pit of fire, I would’ve been devastated.”
My dad sighed. “This is the only way left to save the company.”
My heart tightened.
So, this was why they brought me home, not to make up for losing me all those years, but to throw me into the flames in my sister’s place.
Why? We were both their daughters. Why was I the sacrifice while she was protected like a treasure?
I was about to confront them when more comments appeared before me.
[Poor little sister. Lost by her family when she was young, now being sacrificed to repay her sister’s debt! That obsessive psycho CEO is a total control freak. He’ll lock her up in a luxurious mansion full of bodyguards and maids, dictate what she eats, what she wears, secretly monitor her every move, and even force her to love him. Her future is pitch black. All she can do is lie flat and accept food being handed to her and clothes chosen for her. How pitiful!]
I froze on the spot.
Pitiful? Seriously, that was what you call pitiful?
I’d been wandering alone for eighteen years with no one loving me. I had to work to feed myself, and even when I was sick, I could only tough it out alone.
And now someone wanted to feed me, clothe me, watch over me, and obsessively care about me?
That was honestly the life I’d been dreaming of.
As I was still processing, my parents finally noticed me and my expression.
My mother immediately pulled my sister behind her and coldly said, “You heard everything, didn’t you? Starting today, you’ll take your sister’s place and serve Alistair. If you refuse, then don’t call us your parents anymore. You’ll no longer be part of this family—”
But before she could finish, I cut them off with a smile. “If my sister doesn’t want to go, I’ll go. But I have one condition.”
Rather than staying with this fake, biased family and being torn apart, I’d rather gamble on my own future.
A lovesick lunatic? Sounded like the perfect match for someone like me, who was starved of affection.
My family quickly agreed to my condition. They dressed me up and sent me straight to the Hawthorne estate.
That very night, I met the so-called obsessive, deranged Alistair.
To my surprise, he was gorgeous.
Tall, lean, wearing gold-rimmed glasses, with sharp features and a cold, elegant face.
Liora’s POV
Alistair’s eyes were cold and distant when he looked at me, and even his voice carried a chill as he said, “Since your family sent you here, you belong to me now. You’ll follow my rules.”
Comments popped up again in front of me like a livestream chat.
[Oh my God! How can a psycho CEO be this handsome?!]
[His voice is unfairly attractive. I don’t care if he’s insane. I’m in love. Hahaha.]
He looked calm and composed on the outside, but I could tell that deep beneath that quiet exterior, he was studying me.
If he really was the kind of obsessive, insecure control freak, then the first thing I needed to do was earn his trust.
I lowered my head, eyes red, fingers tightly gripping the hem of my dress, and asked, “If I follow all your rules, you won’t throw me out, right?”
Alistair seemed surprised, like he hadn’t expected me to say that. For a moment, something curious flickered in his eyes. “You want to stay here that badly?”
I bit my lip and let a few hopeless tears fall. “Yes. If they could send me here so easily, it means they never loved me. I just want someone who sees me, needs me, and keeps me close. Someone who makes me their whole world.”
As soon as I said that, the air shifted instantly, and his eyes darkened.
He stood up, stepped toward me, and gently lifted my chin with his long fingers. “Good. Remember what you just said. From now on, you’re mine.”
The comment section instantly went wild.
[Help! Why does it feel like they’re diagnosing each other’s mental instability with their eyes?!]
[She just hit the crazy man’s weak spot. Seems like he loves a girl whose world revolves only around him!]
And just like that, I officially started my dream life, where I didn’t have to cook, clean, or lift a finger.
Alistair would also personally take my measurements and hire designers to make clothes in whatever styles he liked. He even had a nutritionist create meal plans for me based on my health reports. He also gave me a phone with a built-in tracker so he could monitor me at all times.
Yet, the comments were unimpressed.
[Bro’s raising her like a pampered pet. That level of control is insane.]
But I lowered my head, eyes watery.
Alistair immediately panicked. “What’s wrong? You don’t like what I’ve done?”
I shook my head and threw myself into his arms. “No. It’s just that no one has ever treated me this well before.”
For eighteen years, I’d gone hungry, worn thin clothes in the cold, and survived on my own. Now someone was willing to go to all this trouble for me, so how could I not feel touched?
He relaxed and gently wiped my tears, speaking in that possessive, twisted tenderness, “Then, never leave me. Ever.”
Choking back tears, I nodded and hugged him tighter.
When he noticed how much I loved staying at home, he directly transferred ownership of the entire villa and the whole estate to my name. He even had a swing installed and bought small animals to keep me entertained.
During the day, he went to work, and I stayed home, eating, relaxing, and making little gifts for him, like a horribly decorated cake or a messy bouquet of flowers.
Every day, I’d call him first and report everything I did, ending with a soft, “I miss you.” He loved it more and more.
At night, I would cling to him, asking for kisses and cuddles endlessly. Even in my sleep, I’d make him hold me like a frightened kitten who couldn’t rest unless she was in his arms.
When it thundered and rained, I’d cry and crawl into his embrace. “Alistair, could you please hold me tighter? I’m scared.”
The comments went crazy.
[She’s good. She knows exactly how to melt a psycho’s heart!]
Late at night, I could always feel his burning gaze on me. He’d gently stroke my cheek and whisper, almost to himself, “I think I can’t live without you anymore.”
Step by step, he fell completely.
Eventually, he announced publicly that I was his girlfriend.
Liora’s POV
In less than a year, Alistair couldn’t wait any longer and wanted to get engaged.
The moment my parents heard the news, they completely lost it.
They never expected their useless, insignificant younger daughter to win the affection of someone like Alistair, the infamous, obsessive, and unpredictable CEO.
They rushed over from their house that same night and insisted we meet somewhere discreet in public.
I didn’t want to go, but over the phone, they threatened me. “If Alistair finds out you’re a fraud, what do you think he’ll do to you?”
That one sentence hit the deepest fear in my heart.
Over this past year, my feelings for him had already changed, from calculation and survival to something real. I’d seen his vulnerabilities, the soft side he hid from everyone else. In his eyes, I wasn’t just someone he kept; I was his only light.
The thought of him learning the truth, the thought of him breaking because of me, I couldn’t bear it.
So, I went.
In the private room, my mother folded her arms and immediately started yelling. “So, now that you’ve climbed higher, you think you can forget where you came from? If we hadn’t brought you back and given you a chance, you’d still be some nobody struggling to survive! Now that you’ve secured your position, you want to cut ties with us? Over our dead bodies!”
I swallowed my anger and replied coldly, “Don’t forget that you agreed to my terms when I left. Our relationship is over. My last name isn’t Fairborne anymore.”
My mother sneered. “Oh, really? But you’re pretending to be your sister right now, aren’t you? And while you’re using her identity, you’re telling me you can’t do anything for your family? Or do you want that Hawthorne boy to find out his beloved fiancée is a fake and is just using him for benefits?”
I clenched my jaw. “You’ve already gotten plenty from me, haven’t you? Your company rose from bankruptcy because of Hawthorne Corporation’s support. Alistair even erased the debt you owed. What more do you want?”
Looking cunning, my father slid a contract across the table and said, “He spoils you so much. Getting his signature shouldn’t be hard, right? As long as you help us secure this seventy-million-dollar project, we promise you could be Mrs. Hawthorne forever. Your sister will stay abroad and never bother you again.”
I glanced at the contract and laughed. “Fairborne Corporation gets 90% of the profit, while Hawthorne Corporation takes all the risk. How generous of you. I’m not going to help you scam him. Don’t come to me again, or deal with the consequences. Before you think about exposing me, think about yourselves. If Alistair finds out you tricked him, too, do you think he’ll let you all survive a second time?”
After that, I stood up and left, slamming the door behind me and shutting out their angry voices.
That night, Alistair held me in his arms and asked softly, “I thought you cut ties with them. Why did you still go?”
“They heard about the engagement, so they just wanted to see me,” I simply answered.
He didn’t press further. Even though selling their daughter for profit was inhuman, he was still grateful for them doing that, as we ended up being together because of that.
But then, he offered, “Baby, if you don’t like them, I can make them disappear. Forever.”
I shook my head. “No need. At the end of the day, they’re still my parents.”
The comments sighed.
[She’s still too soft-hearted. Her family definitely won’t stop.]
Well, as long as I didn’t give them the chance, they couldn’t do anything.
The next three months were peaceful. I was completely absorbed in the excitement of preparing for the engagement, ignoring every call from my parents. Even so, they didn’t dare step into the Hawthorne estate, so things quieted down.
Until the day before the engagement.
Alistair was supposed to come with me to try on my dress, but something urgent came up at the company and he had to leave.
He was about to send someone to drive me home when we ran right into my parents.
“Mr. Hawthorne,” they said with a smile, “let us take our daughter to try on her dress. We wouldn’t want to delay tomorrow’s engagement, would we?”
Liora’s POV
I wanted to refuse, but Alistair nodded before I could speak.
“Alright then. I’ll come find you as soon as I’m done. Take good care of her,” he said to my parents.
The moment he left, my parents grabbed me and forced me into their car.
To my horror, I saw someone sitting inside, a face I hadn’t expected to see again.
My sister.
The sister who was supposed to be abroad, hiding from the public eye.
She stared at me with pure hatred as she fumed, “Liora, you’ve been living my life and enjoying everything that belongs to me for a whole year. It’s time you gave it back.”
My heart pounded with anger and fear. I tried to get out of the car, but my parents held me down tightly.
Then my sister pinched my jaw open and forced a glass of water down my throat.
My vision blurred, and my body went weak.
At that moment, the livestream comments were exploding.
[I knew it! They definitely had another plan!]
[Sis, don’t fall asleep! Stay awake!]
Just then, my phone rang.
It was Alistair.
My mother quickly covered my mouth and signaled for my sister to answer.
“Don’t panic. Stick to the plan,” she whispered.
My sister cleared her throat and answered the call.
On the other end, Alistair’s low, gentle voice came through the speaker. “Baby, are you at the boutique yet? I can’t wait to see you in the dress.”
“Almost there, Alistair,” my sister replied sweetly. “Once I try it on, I’ll send you a photo, okay?”
[No way, her voice sounds exactly like the real one! It’s over!]
Just as she was about to hang up, I forced myself to stay conscious and bit down hard on my mother’s hand.
“Ah!” she screamed.
I tried to yell, “Alistair, help me!” but my voice was hoarse, barely a whisper.
“Who was that?” Alistair’s tone sharpened with suspicion.
My sister didn’t miss a beat. “Nothing. My mom just shut the car door on her hand, that’s all.”
“I see.”
As such, the call ended, and despair washed over me.
Almost being caught, my mother slapped me across the face. “You little ungrateful brat! And you think we’d let you marry him? You’d forget we even exist!”
My head was spinning when I heard my sister laugh softly. “Relax, Mom. The only one marrying Alistair is me.”
My stomach dropped, but my body finally gave out, and everything went dark.
When I woke up, I was lying on the cold floor of their villa, tied up from head to toe.
My sister was standing proudly in front of the mirror, wearing a diamond-studded custom gown, while my parents praised her as if she were the queen of the world.
As they talked, the truth became painfully clear.
When my sister heard abroad that Alistair wanted to get engaged to me, she regretted everything. So, she teamed up with our parents, snuck back to the country, and planned to replace me.
All this time, while they pretended to stay quiet, they were preparing for this moment when they could take everything from me and give it back to her.
Noticing I was awake, my sister crouched down and patted my cheek mockingly. “Little sister, you’ve stolen my life long enough. Time to give it back.”
My throat was dry and raw, but I managed, “You’re the ones who forced me to do this in the first place…”
Instantly, her hand struck me.
“You’ve been living as me, enjoying everything that’s mine, and you dare act like a victim?” she snapped, ripping the necklace and bracelets from my body with jealousy burning in her eyes.
“These were supposed to be mine! Give them back! I’m the one who should be Mrs. Hawthorne. The one getting engaged to him tomorrow is me!”
My parents stood nearby, voices cold and sharp. “That’s right. Give up your place quietly, and we’ll still take care of you. But that face of yours, yeah, that needs to be dealt with. We can’t let you threaten your sister’s position.”
Liora’s POV
I let out a weak, humorless laugh. “Do you really think I got this far just because of my face and her identity? It took me everything, carefully pleasing Alistair, handling his paranoia, feeding his emotions, to protect your wealth and status. Do you really think Daphne could’ve done the same?”
My parents hesitated for a moment, but my words completely enraged my sister.
She grabbed a fistful of my hair and slashed the knife at my face. “If you’re not relying on that pretty face, then you don’t need it, right? I’ll ruin it and let’s see what you have left to fight me with!”
The sharp pain cut through me again and again, and I couldn’t hold back the screams. Blood soaked through my clothes. Even my parents looked a little shaken.
“That’s enough, isn’t it? Her face is ruined now. She won’t be a threat to you anymore,” my father muttered.
Still, my sister looked like she wanted to continue, but at that moment, Alistair called again.
She quickly shoved a rag into my mouth to shut me up, then answered the phone.
When she heard he was on his way to pick me up, the whole family panicked. They forced more drugged water down my throat and dragged me into the storage room to keep me unconscious.
But the pain burning across my face kept me barely awake. Outside the door, I heard Alistair’s voice.
“Why did you already put the dress on?”
My sister laughed sweetly. “Because I wanted you to see it in person! Alistair, I’m starving. Will you take me home for dinner?”
She pulled him toward the door, but he paused suddenly, sniffing the air. “Smells like blood.”
My mother raised her bandaged hand and forced a chuckle. “I shut the car door on my hand earlier. It bled a little.”
He hesitated for a second, thinking of our phone call earlier, then nodded and kept walking.
The comments were in chaos.
[Come on, girl! You have to let Alistair know you’re in there!]
I forced my blurry vision to focus and saw a box full of tools beside me. With all the strength I had left, I slammed my head against it, and the box crashed to the floor with a loud clang.
Hearing that, Alistair stopped again and looked toward the storage room. “Is someone in there?”
My dad quickly stepped up. “Yeah, just a maid tidying up. She’s clumsy. We already told her to be quieter!”
My sister tugged at his arm to lead him away again.
I curled up on the floor, despair slowly swallowing my consciousness.
Then I heard Alistair stop again and ask coldly, “Where’s the bell I gave you?”
The comments exploded again.
[Oh my god! The anklet! The bell he had handmade for her! Ring it now!]
With every bit of strength I had left, I kicked my ankles together.
Third Person’s POV
The bell gave a soft, quiet chime from inside the storage room.
At that, Alistair’s expression went cold instantly.
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