Chapter 185

With that thought in mind, Claire spent the entire meal doing everything she could to win over Sierra and Justin.

Not only did she fawn over them herself, she also kept ordering Aaron to give Justin a massage one moment and pour him water the next.

That evening, the Kennedy Family estate felt unusually warm and cheerful, filled with laughter.

The next day.

After breakfast.

Claire pushed Aaron to press Justin and Sierra into following through on the promises they'd made the night before.

Sierra sensed something was off about Claire, but didn't think much of it.

True to her word from the night before, she transferred a portion of her shares in the Kennedy Group over to Aaron.

She also took Aaron to the most upscale area of Suncrest City and bought him a top-floor luxury apartment, a three-story townhouse, and several commercial properties in prime locations — all put in Aaron's name in one go.

Claire watched as every transaction was completed.

Once the contracts were signed and the payments made, a cold smile crept across her face.

"Claire, what are you smiling about?"

Sierra had already felt that something was off about Claire today, and seeing that eerie smile sent a sudden chill through her.

But she still had no idea what was going on.

"Mrs. Sierra Kennedy, your son is so cruel and cold-blooded — so how can you be this naive?"

"Before transferring those shares, properties, and shops to Aaron, why didn't you call Frederick first?"

"You don't know yet, do you? Aaron is not Frederick's son. He never was."

Claire could have kept this to herself for now.

But she couldn't help it — she hated Frederick too much.

The thought of hurting Sierra and getting back at Frederick at the same time was too satisfying to wait another second.

"Claire, what are you talking about?"

"What do you mean Aaron isn't Frederick's son?"

"What on earth are you saying?"

Sierra had no idea what Claire meant. She was completely lost.

"Aaron, why don't you tell her yourself."

"Tell your grandmother — are you really your father's biological son or not?"

"Oh, and Mrs. Sierra Kennedy — Aaron isn't just not Frederick's son. He's not my son either."

Claire gave Aaron a nudge, trying to get him to say it all out loud.

But Aaron was too scared, too weak. He just stared at Sierra, unable to get a single word out.

He stood there crying in silence.

Knowing Aaron was too spineless to be of any use, Claire shoved him aside.

She faced Sierra herself.

"Fine, I'll say it."

"Five years ago, after I lost that baby, I could never get pregnant again."

"But I needed Frederick to accept me, to make the Kennedy Family take me in — so I faked a pregnancy. Then, while Frederick was spending all his time searching for that tramp Nora, I quietly found a girl ahead of time and arranged for us to give birth on the same day."

"Then I took her baby, brought it to my side, and told all of you the child was mine — mine and Frederick's."

"You thought to run a paternity test on the first child. How did you forget to do the same for the second? Well, that's the loophole I slipped right through."

Claire finished speaking in a slow, detached tone, her expression unhinged.

She let out a sharp little laugh.

Like someone completely lost in her own world.

When Sierra heard Claire's words, her chest heaved with rage.

She had always thought of herself as sharp and perceptive — yet somehow she had been played by Claire.

She raised her hand and slapped Claire hard across the face.

"Shut up!"

"Claire, do you even know what you're saying?"

"Aaron is Frederick's son. He has always been. What's gotten into you?"

Sierra thought of the shares, properties, and shops she had just signed over to Aaron — worth a full billion dollars — and refused to accept a word of it.

She was certain Aaron was Frederick's son.

She had not made a mistake.

"Mrs. Sierra Kennedy, you've lived as a lady of leisure for decades. You're too sheltered."

"Did you really think all those women around you actually liked you?"

"You're wrong. They were just like me — they stuck around because you were useful, because there was money to be made off you."

"You were fooled from the very beginning."

"You think you're so clever, but you've been the most gullible one all along."

Claire didn't feel like she'd said enough. She ignored the burning sting on her cheek and kept going, letting everything out.

"Claire, you're insane! You're absolutely insane!"

Sierra had never been this humiliated in her life.

She pointed at Claire and raised her hand to slap her again — but this time, Claire caught her wrist.

Then Claire shoved her, and Sierra fell to the ground.

"Yes, I've lost my mind!"

"Frederick drove me to this!"

"Back when I was a kept woman, I had so many young, wealthy men chasing after me!"

"Over the years, I've had no shortage of men — but the only one who ever made me want to settle down, the only one I ever truly fell for, was Frederick."

"So why, no matter how hard I tried, was Frederick's heart always with that tramp Nora?"

"Even after Nora stopped loving him and walked away, he still couldn't stop thinking about her. He didn't even respond to my advances!"

Claire couldn't accept it.

She hated Frederick for being so cold to her.

But the deeper the hate, the deeper the love beneath it.

When Sierra heard that Claire had been a kept woman before getting together with Frederick — and that she'd never stopped seeing other men throughout their relationship — she nearly fainted from shock.

"Is all of this true?"

"Aaron really isn't Frederick's child?"

"You came back to Suncrest City with Aaron out of nowhere just to trick me into handing over a fortune, so you could take the money and disappear with him?"

Looking at Claire's face, Sierra already knew in her gut that every word was true.

But she still couldn't let go. She needed to hear it one last time.

"Yes."

"That's right. I begged Frederick yesterday — begged him to give me another chance, to let me stay by his side — and he turned me down flat."

"If there's no future for us, why shouldn't I take what I can before walking away for good?"

"Don't blame me, Sierra. If you want to blame someone, blame yourself for raising a son like Frederick."

Claire had said everything she needed to say. She stepped forward and grabbed for the bag hanging from Sierra's arm.

Inside were all the documents they had processed throughout the day.

If she walked away with those, she'd never have to worry about money again.

"Claire, you shameless woman!"

"If I'd known what you really were, I never would have helped you push Nora out!"

"I brought this on myself!"

"This money was meant for my grandson. Since Aaron isn't my grandson, you are not walking away with any of it!"

Sierra held onto the bag with everything she had, refusing to let go.

Claire hadn't expected an old woman to have such a strong grip.

When she couldn't pull it free, she drove her foot hard into Sierra's stomach.

Sierra was no longer young, and she was already shaking with rage. That kick sent a wave of pain through her entire body, cold sweat breaking out across her skin.

Her grip loosened, and the bag was torn from her hands.

"Just because I called you Mrs. Kennedy for a few years doesn't mean you're actually a lady."

Claire grabbed the bag and checked inside — everything was there.

She spat on Sierra where she lay on the ground, her eyes full of contempt.

"Grandma!"

Aaron had been standing nearby the whole time. The moment he saw Sierra collapse, he rushed toward her.

But before he could reach her, Claire grabbed him by the arm.

She snapped a photo of Sierra lying on the ground, sent it to Frederick, and told him everything — the share transfer, the properties, the shops, all of it.

Once that was done, she dragged Aaron away.

Sierra was left alone on the floor of the dimly lit underground parking garage.

If no one found her in time and got her to a hospital, her life hung in the balance.