Beyond Her Cruelest Lie

om him had frozen Olivia' s access to the Hayes family fortune. The empire he had built, the one Olivia

. He said a man needed his own space. Back then, I thought it was a kind gesture. Now,

l resemblance, I soon learned, but at the time, it was enough. I later found out that Isabelle was Richard Hayes' s biological daughter, given up for adoption long ago, a secret he carried with deep regret. He saw Isabelle in me, or rather, he saw the man his daughter had loved. Marrying Olivia

was now pa

a memorial. We went to a quiet beach she had loved, a place where she would spend hours collecting shells. Rich

I wrote her name on a piece of paper and set it on fire, letting the

luxury sports car screeched to

d in flashy, inappropriate designer clothes. Oliv

l gathering. She was clearly drunk. "Having a party withou

ding me and Leo. "Show some respect,

know what' s going on? You," she pointed a shaking finger at me, "you' ve wanted me out for y

und her. "Don' t listen to them, baby. Th

memorial, broke something inside me. The cold, c

walked right up to Mark Jenkins. He watched m

say, stay-at-home

st pulled my arm back and pu

ered backward, tripping over his own feet and landing har

eaving. It wasn' t justice. It wasn' t enough.

She launched herself at me, her nails bared li