Chapter 4

I opened the folder, and the familiar project name caught my eye. "Cross-Border Tax Optimization Plan for the Novapac Region."

This was Kasen's signature project from my previous life. I could practically recite every key milestone by heart.

"Thanks. I'll get ready for it," I said, closing the folder. Suddenly, I remembered that mysterious text from this morning. "By the way, do you know a lawyer named Addyson Carlson?"

Peyton scrunched up her brows, thinking. "The one from Lucent Legal? Her husband's in our legal department, I think. Why are you asking?"

"It's nothing, just asking," I said, steering the conversation away. But inside, my mind was a mess. In my last life, I didn't know Addyson at all. Why would she suddenly contact me?

At exactly three in the afternoon, I arrived at Lucent Legal. The receptionist gave me a strange look as she checked my name. "Miss Contreras? Miss Carlson has been waiting for you for a while."

Addyson's office was at the end of the hallway. When I pushed the door open, I saw a woman in her early thirties with a short, sharp haircut, typing away at her computer. As she looked up at me, I noticed a small scar above her left eyebrow.

"Miss Contreras, please have a seat," she said, her voice deep and commanding. "I bet you're wondering why I reached out to you."

I nodded cautiously. "Honestly, I'm pretty surprised."

Addyson pulled an envelope out of her drawer. "Last week, an anonymous client dropped this off and asked me to give it to you when you came to ask about your mother's support."

She slid the envelope across the desk. "Professionally, I checked to make sure there was nothing illegal before accepting the commission."

Inside the envelope was a stack of photos, my mother, Lauryn Contreras, sitting in a coffee shop with a middle-aged man, dated last month.

The last shot was a close-up of them handing over some papers. Even though it was a bit blurry, I could still make out the word "will" on it.

My fingers trembled. In my previous life, I only learned after my mother passed away that she'd already made a will before the three of us ever started arguing. She'd left all her assets to my sister and brother.

I hesitated, my voice shaky. "These photos..."

"They're all legit," Addyson interrupted me. "Miss Contreras, under the Inheritance Act and the Senior Rights Protection Act, your responsibility to care for your mother and your inheritance rights are two different things.

"Just because you've been the primary caregiver doesn't mean you're entitled to a larger portion of the estate."

She handed me a packet of information. "But the law also says every child has an equal duty to support their parents. You can ask your siblings to split the expenses and duties."

I took a deep breath. "What if my sister and brother refuse to fulfill their responsibilities?"

A sharp look flickered in Addyson's eyes. "You can file a lawsuit to legally compel them. I specialize in these family cases. I've got a 98% success rate."

As our conversation wrapped up, Addyson walked me to the door. Suddenly, she asked, "Miss Contreras, does your mother go by the nickname Laura?"

I nodded, surprised. "How did you know that?"

Addyson smiled. "Just a hunch. If you need more help, come see me at the same time next week."

Back at the office, I jumped right into the Novapac tax project. I'd tracked all the public info about this in my last life, but getting my hands on the internal docs was a real eye-opener. Before clocking out, I sent my polished draft to Callum and cc'd Peyton.

At exactly eight that evening, I walked into my mother's hospital room with a bag of fruit. Coraline was sitting by the bed, peeling an apple. As soon as she saw me, she sprang to her feet. "Where have you been? I've been stuck here all day!"

"It's my turn from eight tonight till eight tomorrow morning," I said, setting my bag down and pulling out my notebook. "You can go home now, Coraline. Dariel's got the next shift."

My mother coughed weakly. "Anabel... do you have to make such a fuss about this? Your sister's got a busy job..."

"I'm busy too, Mom," I cut in calmly, pulling out the thermometer. "Let's get your temperature checked."

Coraline grabbed her bag and, with a huff, made sure to announce loudly, "Mom, I'll come see you tomorrow. Some people just don't care. I'm not going to be like her."

Once the door clicked shut, my mother closed her eyes, pretending I wasn't even there. I shrugged it off and started checking her medication log. Every little detail was second nature to me now.

Mom had a penicillin allergy, her blood pressure meds at nine, and how she always got thirsty around midnight...

When the nurse came in for her rounds, she was genuinely surprised to find every nursing chart filled out perfectly. "Wow, Miss Contreras, did you study nursing or something?"

"Just know a thing or two," I replied with a smile. Little did they know, it took me fifteen years to learn all this the hard way.

At two in the morning, Mom suddenly started running a low fever. In my previous life, I would've panicked and called the on-duty doctor right away. But now, I knew it was just a normal post-op reaction.

I wiped her down with warm water and swapped out the ice pack, moving with the kind of practiced skill you'd expect from someone who'd done this for years.

"Anabel..." Mom suddenly grabbed my hand, her eyes unfocused. "How... how do you know all this?"

"I learned it in my dreams," I replied coolly, not missing a beat as I kept wiping her arm.

At six in the morning, while Mom was still asleep, I handled a few work emails on my phone. Callum had replied to my proposal at four a.m.: [Unique insights. Come to my office at ten on Wednesday for a detailed discussion.]