Chapter 1

"Anna, my death will be the path that leads you into the Sterling family."

"Only after I am gone will Charles Sterling feel the guilt that will make him love you.

"From the muck of my life, you have bloomed—the most precious flower. So, never look back at the mud.

"Remember this: I do not love you. I am nothing more than a greedy, selfish woman."

*****

"Fifteen million, Charles. I want 15 million." Nina Summers sat on the sofa in the top-floor reception room of Sterling Corporation, her voice eerily calm.

She wore a faded, worn coat, her frame so thin she seemed as though a breeze could topple her. Yet her back remained straight, and her eyes—sharp as ice-forged blades—pierced the man seated across from her in the lavish leather office chair.

That man was Charles, a business titan who shaped the fate of Harbor City with a mere gesture. Dressed in an impeccably tailored charcoal suit, his handsome features were marred only by a frown etched with undisguised scorn.

"Nina, it's been six years. You've certainly grown bolder." His voice was colder than the winter wind. "Fifteen million? What makes you think you're worth that?"

A faint, humorless smile touched Nina's lips. "I'm not worth it. But she is."

She turned slightly and gently guided forward the small figure who had been quietly hiding behind her.

A girl, about five years old, was dressed in an overly thick winter coat that seemed out of place indoors. Her cheeks were flushed from the cold, and her eyes—wide with a mix of timidity and curiosity—were unmistakably Charles' own. She peeked around the lavish, unfamiliar room.

Charles' breath caught the moment he saw her face. It was like looking into a mirror from the past.

"Her name is Anna Summers. Your daughter," Nina said, her voice still unsettlingly calm.

Charles swallowed hard, forcing his gaze back to Nina's pale face. "And why should I believe you?"

"A paternity test can be arranged. Anytime." Nina drew a document from her cloth bag and slid it across the table. "Her birth certificate. Fifteen million, not a cent less. Once the money is transferred, she's yours. I'll disappear from your world completely."

Her words were like venom-tipped knives, stabbing right into the spot Charles despised most.

Six years ago, in a moment of poor judgment, he'd become involved with Nina, a university student. He'd been drawn to her vitality, her stubborn resilience—but it hadn't taken long to see the ambition lurking beneath those clear eyes. She'd probe about his family, play the role of his wife around his friends.

Charles had no tolerance for social climbers. He'd given her money to terminate the pregnancy and leave his life for good.

He thought she'd taken the money and vanished. Instead, she'd had the child. And now she was here, using that child to extort him.

In his mind, she was greedy. Her expectations felt like an insatiable well.

"Fine!" Charles gritted out. He picked up the intercom, his voice icy. "Alex, take this woman and the child for a paternity test. Use the fastest method available."

He didn't bother looking at either of them again.

During the two-day wait for results, Nina and Anna were placed in a hotel suite. Charles' staff delivered expensive clothing and toys until the room overflowed.

Anna had never seen such beautiful things. Her small hand reached out, gently touching an exquisite doll before she pulled back, looking up at Nina.

Nina sat by the window, gazing at the city traffic below. Without makeup, her face looked drawn and fragile in the fading afternoon light. She coughed lightly, covering her mouth with a handkerchief before tucking it quickly into her pocket—a faint stain of crimson left behind.

"Anna, come here," Nina called, beckoning her daughter over.

The little girl immediately left the doll and hurried over, resting her head against her mother's knee.

"Do you like all these things?" Nina asked, gently running her fingers through Anna's soft hair.

Anna nodded, then shook her head. "Anything you buy for me is the best, Mom."

Nina's heart clenched as if gripped by an iron fist, the pain so sharp it stole her breath. She drew a slow, deliberate breath, forcing back the metallic tang rising in her throat, and smoothed her expression into something cold and detached.

"Anna, remember this. From now on, you can have as much as you want—anything you like. That man is your father, and he's loaded."

"But... Mom, didn't you say Dad was a bad guy?" Anna looked up at her, her little face full of confusion.

Nina's heart twisted again. Yes, she'd spun tales about Anna's father being away on some long voyage, just so Anna wouldn't feel left out growing up without a dad. But as Anna got older and started to understand, Nina had to turn that "father" into a villain—a man who abandoned them—so Anna wouldn't hold onto false hope.

"I was wrong before. He's not the bad guy. I am—the real villain here," Nina said, her voice rough.

Anna's eyes widened, tears welling up. "No, Mom! You're the best person in the world!"

"No, Anna, you have to remember this. I'm a bad woman. For money, I gave you to your dad. I don't love you. I only care about money. Got it?" Nina took her daughter's slender shoulders, her grip firm, her voice low and urgent—each syllable meant to be carved into memory.

Tears rolled down Anna's cheeks, heavy and fast. She shook her head, sobbing too hard to speak properly. "That's not true... Mom loves me..."

"I don't love you!" Nina's voice rose sharply—a rare burst of volume that made Anna flinch and her cries hitch into silence.

Seeing the hurt and fear in her daughter's eyes was like a knife twisting in Nina's heart. But she couldn't stop. The plan was only beginning.

She would use her own rot to nurture the most beautiful flower. And flowers should never cling to the mud that fed them.

"Why are you crying? From now on, you'll be the Sterling family's little princess, living in endless luxury. You should be happy." Nina forced the words out, harsh and unfeeling. "Wipe your tears. Don't ever shed another tear for me. It's not worth it to cry for a greedy woman like me."

She pried Anna's small fingers from her coat hem, one by one, and stood up, turning her back so she wouldn't have to see.

Anna's weeping softened into quiet, shaky hiccups. She didn't understand—how the mother who loved her most could become, overnight, a "bad woman" who didn't love her at all.