THE HIDDEN HEIRESS

. Then, Lilith Wolfe descended the steps. Her tailored emerald-green pantsuit fit her like a second skin, exuding power and control. The sharp bob framed her regal face, her red lips curving into

wrong but didn't understand. Not until later that night, when she had wandered downstairs for a glass of water-only to see them together. Lilith perched on her father's desk, his hands gripping her waist. Their whispers were low, urgent. Lana had frozen. Her father was laughing with this woman, his face close to hers in a way he had never been with her mother. Something cracked in her chest, but she turned and ran, pretending she had never seen it. But it didn't end there. Years later, when everything fell apart, Lilith returned. Lana had been watching from the family Mercedes. The tinted windows hiding her face from the world. She wanted to do something, help her mom from the humiliation but the driver locked her in as she watched her mom tremble in front of what used to he their own empire now being taken away from them. Lilith stood at the top of the staircase, her expression as cold as ice. "This is business," she had said, her voice void of sympathy. "And you no longer have a place here." Her mother's voice cracked. "Please-" Lilith turned to the guards. "Throw her out." The flashing lights of the paparazzi outside made it even worse. Lana had wanted to scream, wanted to fight-but what could she do? It would have been even worse for her photos would have been published. And then she had seen him. Standing beside his aunt. Damian Wolfe. Watching. Not stopping it. Not helping. And in that moment, Lana's hatred for him was sealed. Lana needed air. The park was quiet, the sunset painting the sky in golden hues. She sat on a bench, gripping the edges, her heart