Freya.

The second my father said those words, something inside me cracked open.

Yes… I knew it.

Deep down, I had known there was always a hidden motive behind his sudden apology. No one in this family ever did anything without an agenda, especially not when Elaine and Helene were sitting there with their tight, fake smiles and cold eyes. The small flicker of relief I had felt earlier turned sour, twisting painfully in my chest like a knife slowly turning.

He kept talking, voice steady and practiced. “You’re the eldest daughter of this family, Freya. You should always try to maintain the reputation of the family. You should always...