Chapter 3

The girl's voice was as melodious as a songbird, her gaze holding a barely concealed curiosity and assessment as she looked at me.

My feet suddenly froze in place.

Cousin?

William's body stiffened slightly. He extracted his arm from the girl's grasp and quickly walked over to me, his eyes complex as he looked at me.

His tone carried guilt and a hint of pleading. "Lily, this is Olivia, my... " he paused, seeming to choose his words carefully, "my business partner's daughter."

He turned to Olivia and introduced me: "Olivia, this is my cousin, Lily. She grew up in the countryside and hasn't been out much."

That's when I remembered. Yes, that flood years ago. My parents had died trying to save William from being swept away.

I became an orphan, taken in by his family. So wasn't I indeed just a lonely orphan with no relatives?

So, I was just his cousin now.

I looked at them, one in a tailored suit, the other in flowing silk, a perfect couple.

And me, wearing the faded old clothes issued by the prison, my hair dull and my face pale, like a ghost crawled up from underground.

I lowered my head, looking at my own dry, rough hands.

These hands had been soaked in icy water through countless winter days in the prison laundry, burned by hot oil countless times in the kitchen.

They had also been clenched into fists, nails digging into flesh, enduring the blows that fell on my body when I was bullied.

But I had never thought these hands were ugly before, because William had once held them, saying he would give me a good life.

Now, I felt they were too ugly to even belong in the same air as him.

I didn't cry or make a scene. I just nodded to him, showing I understood.

William let out a sigh of relief. He was probably afraid I'd cause a scene and embarrass him.

Sitting in the car, the soft leather seats made me uncomfortable. The car was filled with a pleasant scent, coming from Olivia.

She sat in the front with William, chatting easily about stocks, wine, and dinner parties – things I couldn't understand.

"Will, are you really not going to Mr. Wang's party tonight? He organized it especially for you," Olivia said.

"Not tonight. I just picked up Lily, I need to get her settled," William glanced at me in the rearview mirror, his eyes evasive.

"Oh come on, it's just a cousin. Mrs. Johnson can take care of her. Your business is important," Olivia pouted, her voice sickeningly sweet.

I shrank into the corner of the back seat, trying to make myself invisible.

The cancer in my stomach started to ache again. I quietly pressed my hand against my abdomen, taking deep breaths.

The car pulled into a place I couldn't have imagined even in my dreams.

A huge wrought iron gate, a garden with fountains and neatly trimmed lawns, and a mansion that looked like a castle stood before us.

A middle-aged woman wearing an apron came out to greet us. William called her Mrs. Johnson.

Mrs. Johnson took the small bag from William's hand – all my worldly possessions.

She weighed it, a fleeting look of contempt crossing her face, then her gaze fell on me.

I was familiar with that look. Many people in prison had looked at me that way. After all, I was just a mute country girl.

"Sir, is this..."

"My cousin, Lily," William interrupted her. "Mrs. Johnson, take her to the guest room on the first floor and help her get settled."

"The first floor?" Mrs. Johnson hesitated. "But sir, that room is for the staff..."

"That room," William's tone left no room for argument. He didn't want to dwell on the topic.

I followed Mrs. Johnson, walking across the mirror-like marble floor, past the enormous crystal chandelier, and finally to a small, dark room at the corner of the stairs.

It had only a single bed and a small wardrobe, with a window facing the back wall of the yard.

But it was clean, and just for me. It was much better than prison.

This was my new home.