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The Silent Heiress's Million Dollar Gambit

Maui

My stepmother’s bodyguards were seconds away from dragging me back to a life that was essentially a prison cell wrapped in silk. I couldn't even scream for help because the words always died in my throat—a clinical condition called selective mutism that felt like drowning on dry land. I had just discovered the sickening truth: my father was planning to sell me to a sleazy investor named Sterling to cover his company’s bankruptcy. They were going to drug me, ship me off to a private island, and strip away the only thing I had left—my late mother’s multimillion-dollar art trust. When I arrived at the manor, my stepmother Lydia handed me a glass of wine laced with bitter sedatives, her smile sharp as a razor. "Drink up, darling. It’ll make the transition to Mr. Sterling much easier." My stepsister Harper stood in the corner, wearing a dress bought with my mother’s stolen money, mocking my inability to speak. My father didn't even look me in the eye as he calculated my price tag, treating his own daughter like a piece of damaged, mute inventory. They thought because I didn't speak, I didn't hear them laughing about the "accident" that killed my mother or how they planned to burn her final restoration work. They assumed my silence was a sign of surrender, a white flag waved by a broken girl who would never fight back. How could the people who were supposed to be my family treat me like a commodity to be traded? Did they really think my silence meant I was weak, or that I didn't know every dirty secret they were hiding in their ledgers? I didn't drink the wine. Instead, I burst into the VIP suite of Carlisle Pierce, the most cold-blooded billionaire in New York, and slammed a crumpled napkin on his table with a desperate, last-second gambit. "MARRY ME. NOW. $1 MILLION."

Romance Revenge Contract marriage Billionaire Girl Power

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Darkness fell.

The two Rivera sisters were about to get married at the same time.

Wearing a white lace dress, Natalie Rivera looked at her reflection in the mirror. Her makeup was delicate and her eyes shone with happiness.

Today, she was going to marry Rowley O'Brien.

They had been in love for a year now and were finally tying the knot.

"Natalie, you're so lucky. You're marrying into the O'Brien family, an aristocratic family in Bloridge."

Wearing the exact same wedding dress, Alisha Rivera walked in and spoke in a voice dripping with sarcasm.

Seeing how beautiful her sister looked, Alisha was green with envy. How she wished she could scratch Natalie's pretty face!

Natalie's expression hardened. "I also want to congratulate you, Alisha. You're going to be Jarvis Braxton's fourth wife soon. By the way, I heard that he was seriously injured in a car accident recently and that he couldn't walk and was dying in a couple of years. If you marry him, you'll be a widow soon."

"Natalie Rivera!"

Alisha was so angry that her face turned purple. At the thought that she was going to marry a disabled man while Natalie was going to marry into the O'Brien family, she clenched her fists fiercely.

"Natalie, you don't know what the future holds for us. Do you really think that you'll be Mrs. O'Brien forever?"

"Natalie, Alisha, you're here!" Carrying two cups of coffee in her hands, Flora Rivera strode in with a smile. "Have some caffeine in your system first. The grooms' cars are still on the way."

The hypocritical smile on her stepmother's face made Natalie frown. They had lived under the same roof for over a decade. How could she not know what kind of person Flora was?

Natalie took solace in the fact that she would be moving out of the house soon and wouldn't have to see Flora and her daughter anymore, so she took the cup of coffee, albeit hesitantly.

"Thanks." Natalie only took a sip.

"You're welcome, dear." Seeing that Natalie drank some, Flora breathed a sigh of relief. "Although you're not my biological daughter, I've always treated you as my own. I'm sad that you're going to be leaving us."

Flora's eyes welled up with tears as she spoke.

Natalie resisted the urge to roll her eyes. No wonder this woman had won the title of the Best Actress; she truly was talented in acting.

When Natalie was eight years old, her mother passed away. In less than a month, her father brought Flora and Alisha home. Alisha was only one month younger than Natalie.

Only then did Natalie realize that her father had long since betrayed her mother.

"Ma'am, the O'Brien family's car is here," a servant knocked on the door and updated Flora.

"Oh!" Flora grinned. She winked at the servant and ordered, "Elva, take Natalie to the car."

Hearing this, Natalie stood up but suddenly felt a little dizzy. Her vision was blurred, so she could only let the servant lead the way.

A black car was parked at the gate. The servant, Elva, put Natalie in the back seat.

From the balcony, Flora watched as the car pulled away. Her smile deepened.

"Mom, are you sure this is going to work? What if Natalie finds out that something's wrong?" Alisha asked, fidgeting with her dress anxiously.

"Don't worry, my dear. I've taken care of everything. She will take your place and marry into the Braxton family."

It turned out that the black car belonged to the Braxton family, not the O'Brien family.

Alisha was unconvinced. "But how will I deceive Rowley tonight?"

Flora reminded Alisha cautiously, "As long as you have sex with Rowley tonight, the O'Brien family won't be able to do anything about it. Remember, don't let them see your face."

"Okay, Mom." Then, Alisha's expression darkened, her eyes filled with jealousy and hatred. "Mom, I have to make Natalie's life a living hell. Then she'll know the consequences of stealing my man."

Flora sneered coldly. "I doubt that Natalie will survive tonight. Do you know what happened to Jarvis' ex-wives? They all disappeared mysteriously."

……

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