I gave him a bitter smile, the corners of my lips barely lifting. “You want to know if I can step down as the head of the family?”
It had been a year since I last saw him.
He’d filled out a little—looked healthier and more like a grown man now, even carried a hint of a married man’s presence. But there was sorrow in his eyes that hadn’t been there before.
During Cherity’s pregnancy and delivery, she’d told the media that Barrett had been sent abroad to further his studies.
But only I knew the truth—she had secretly hidden him in her private villa.
Every time she didn’t come home at night, she was with him.
At first, Cherity just wanted to keep the baby and raise her with me.
But people weren’t made of stone. Day after day, she too was moved by this pure and kind-hearted boy. Eventually, she gave her heart to him.
Panic flashed across Barrett’s face. He shook his head exaggeratedly. “That’s not what I meant! I know it’s just wishful thinking on my part. It’s just that… Sir, we already had a child…”
I lowered my head and gave him a faint smile before pulling up the identity cancellation form on my phone and showing it to him.
“Don’t worry. In seven days, I’ll go abroad.”
I said it slowly, but with unwavering certainty.
“By then, you’ll be the only head of this family.”
When I returned to my room, my younger brother was still anxiously waiting for me.
As soon as he saw me, he rushed over, his brows furrowed with concern.
“Bro, what happened? You and Cherity always got along so well, so who’s that guy?”
I shook my head, worn out. “Come with me abroad, Ashwyn. Let’s leave this place.”
My brother had always understood me.
I told him everything—even the truth about my rebirth.
Listening to all that, Ashwyn was filled with sympathy. He grabbed my hand and said, “Alright. I’ll go with you, bro. Let that bitch spend the rest of her life trying to find you—and never succeed.”
Garland’s POV
In the days that followed, Barrett’s existence was no longer a secret.
He had fathered the Prestiss family’s little princess with Cherity—and overnight, he became a hero to the entire family.
Even my once-biased in-laws turned on me, sneering, “You said our daughter couldn’t have children, but how did Barrett manage to get her pregnant then? Sounds more like you’re the one who couldn’t give her a child, hogging the position for nothing.”
I pretended not to hear and walked past them in silence.