Chapter 49: Chapter 49: She Never Changed
Arabella had just finished speaking when another transfer notification popped up on her phone.
This time, however, the transfer was from Caspian Rhodes.
"Mr. Rhodes?"
"My cousin asked me to forward it. He wanted to thank you for your help today, Miss Donovan."
"That’s right, that’s right." Zane Lynch turned to look over at her, a wide grin on his face. "I was just about to send it myself when I realized I don’t have Master Donovan’s contact info. Might I have the honor of adding you?"
Feeling obligated after accepting their money, Arabella glanced at her sister before taking out her phone and scanning Zane Lynch’s QR code.
Zane Lynch tried to take the opportunity to add Eloise Donovan as well, but she turned away before he could, making it clear she wanted nothing to do with him.
With no other option, Zane Lynch could only console himself with the fact that he’d at least added Arabella.
From their interactions today, he could also see how close his newfound cousin was to Arabella.
Getting Arabella’s contact information was a step toward getting closer to her.
By the time they had escorted the two sisters safely home, enduring Hector Donovan’s explosive glare the entire time, it was already late at night.
Zane Lynch wanted to get on good terms with the brother who had raised Eloise, but before he could even finish speaking, the door was slammed in his face.
Zane Lynch nervously touched his nose, which had nearly been flattened, and said sheepishly, "Seems like the Donovan brother doesn’t have a great impression of us, huh."
Caspian Rhodes shot him a look. "Not us. Me."
"Huh?" Zane was so surprised his eyes nearly crossed. "You? Cousin, what did you do to our Eloise? Why’s her brother so on guard against you?"
Caspian Rhodes scoffed. "Your Eloise? Has she even acknowledged you? And you’re already calling her ’your Eloise’?"
The verbal blow landed, and the young master of the Lynch family instantly deflated. Remembering Eloise’s cold, standoffish behavior all day, he was on the verge of tears. "Was I really that bad today? Why won’t she even talk to me?"
"You’re just now figuring that out?" Caspian Rhodes mocked his foolish cousin without mercy. "What are your thoughts on what happened today?"
"What happened? You mean the thing with the Yates family and Cassandra?" Zane let out a long sigh. He had kept a calm facade all day, and only now, in front of Caspian, did he dare to reveal a sliver of vulnerability.
"I always used to hear my mom say how pitiful our cousin was. Her parents—my second uncle and aunt—passed away right after she was born, and then she developed that illness that kept her from running, jumping, or even laughing freely like a normal person. So Melody and I, as her older sister and brother, were told we always had to let her have her way, to protect her."
"But I never imagined the person we doted on and gave in to would turn out like this. Maybe our family really did spoil her rotten."
Caspian furrowed his brow, disagreeing with Zane. "Don’t blame yourself for her mistakes. Didn’t Mrs. Yates just say it? Anyone with eyes can see how you, my aunt and uncle, and Melody have treated her all these years. Your family doesn’t owe her a single thing. She, on the other hand..."
Caspian’s expression darkened as he recalled everything he’d heard that day. "If she had even an ounce of affection or gratitude for any of you, she wouldn’t have said those things to Ivan Yates for her own selfish ends, nor would she have done what she did to Melody and Miss Donovan."
Hearing Caspian mention his sister and his cousin, Zane’s wavering heart instantly hardened like stone.
When he first learned that Cassandra wasn’t his real cousin, Zane had been in agony, completely in denial.
What drove him to uncover the truth were his memories of the second uncle and aunt who had doted on him. He couldn’t let his real cousin remain lost out in the world, leaving his uncle and aunt unable to rest in peace.
But as he dug deeper, he found something even more devastating. It turned out that Cassandra had learned the truth from her biological father a year ago and had already started deliberately targeting Eloise, the girl whose life she had taken.
’No wonder my cousin told me not to tell my parents yet. Cassandra’s actions have been covert, leaving little evidence. If we tip her off, not only will I lose any leverage I have and fail to uncover the whole truth, but Eloise, already in an awkward position, could be framed in a counter-accusation.’
But that wasn’t what chilled him to the bone. What made Zane lose all hope in her was an accidental discovery he made while investigating her schemes against Eloise: Cassandra was also involved in Melody’s kidnapping five years ago—the one where she was almost killed!
"I can understand her targeting Eloise, secretly trying to suppress her and guard against her. After all, she’d been a Miss Lynch for so many years. Suddenly being told she’s an imposter would be impossible to accept. I can even see why she’d go down the wrong path and think about making Eloise disappear from the face of the earth to take her place for good. But why did she have to go after Melody?"
"She actively guided the kidnappers to abduct her, then deliberately had someone inform them that our family had called the police, hoping the enraged outlaws would kill the hostage. She was just a kid five years ago! How could she be so calculating? Is she even human?"
Even now, Zane couldn’t control his emotions when he spoke of it. He just couldn’t understand why Cassandra hated his sister so much—enough to want her dead.
Growing up, Melody was the closest to her. She gave Cassandra all the best things, always thought of her first. He, Melody’s actual brother, even had to take a backseat. And in return for all that sincere affection and favoritism? A knife in the back.
Caspian felt no attachment to Cassandra. In fact, he found her utterly loathsome. An outsider sees things most clearly, and he had seen her true nature almost at a glance.
"No matter how pampered the second Miss Lynch was, how could that ever compare to being the *only* Miss Lynch?"
Zane was stunned. "Just for that?"
"Is that not reason enough? Why else do you think she went after Eloise? This just proves she’s never changed. She’s selfish, ruthless, and vicious. She’ll attack anyone who gets in her way or harms her interests. Today it was Melody and Eloise. Tomorrow, it’ll be you, my aunt, and my uncle."
Caspian wasn’t just firing shots in the dark. After all, through Arabella’s description, he had already seen a future where Zane would be targeted and stripped of everything.
’While it’s unfair to condemn someone in the present for something they would do in the future, the things Zane has now uncovered serve as corroborating evidence for that very future. It’s just as I said: she has never changed, they had simply never seen her for who she truly was.’
Zane knew this, of course, but he couldn’t help the ache in his heart. He just curled up listlessly to the side, brooding in silence.
But Caspian couldn’t stand seeing him like this. With a look of utter disdain, he said, "Alright, that’s enough. Stop playing dead over there. It’s not like you just found all this out today. Now, let’s talk about you."
"Me? What about me?"
"Have you ever been in a relationship?"
The moment he heard that, Zane completely forgot about Cassandra. He shot up from his seat, nearly bashing his head on the roof of the car.
"C-C-Cousin... Wh-Why... I... I..."
Seeing his pathetic reaction, Caspian knew what Arabella had said was almost certainly true. He shot Zane a withering glare. "Are you laying an egg? Why are you squawking like that?"
Zane: "..."
