Chapter 70 Her Safe
ISABEL'S POV
“I am sure there might be bigger problems to worry about than that,” I said, forcing my tone to remain light.
“No, that was my utmost worry. I thought there was a chance of this family breaking apart because of you,” my mom replied.
My grip around my knife tightened almost instantly, the metal pressing hard against my fingers.
Because of me?
Was I always this way? No. I wasn’t. I knew that for a fact.
I had given them everything — my obedience, my loyalty, my years. I was the daughter who followed rules, who never embarrassed them, who stood proudly beside them at every event. And yet, the moment Anna came back into this family, everything began shifting all at once. Their attention. Their concern. Their protection. And still, I was the one being blamed.
Fine.
Let’s see who would get blamed in a few hours.
“I am sure you guys have somewhere really important to be, right?” I asked, lifting my gaze with a faint grin.
My mom cleared her throat and reached for a napkin, gently wiping her mouth. “As a matter of fact, we do, and we have to leave now or we’d be late,” she said as she pushed her chair back and stood.
So that was it. They were just waiting for me to point it out.
My dad followed right after, standing up without adding a word. They picked up their phones, barely sparing me a glance, and walked straight toward the front door.
Just like that.
It was almost laughable how perfectly things were falling into place today.
As my mom had been speaking earlier, my eyes had drifted to her neck out of habit. That necklace — her precious necklace hadn’t been there. The one passed down through generations, the one she rarely wore, She only wore that necklace on special occasions, and the days she didn’t wear it, there was only one place it would be.
Her safe.
The sound of the door closing echoed through the house.
I stood up immediately.
Now it was just Dan and me left in the house, and Dan hadn’t even woken up yet. His room door was still shut, the hallway quiet. I didn’t have much time, but I had enough if I moved quickly.
I headed upstairs without hesitation, my steps light but fast. Every second mattered. I reached my parents’ room and pushed the door open.
A maid was inside, cleaning.
“Get out. Come back in a few minutes,” I said impatiently.
She flinched, startled by my tone, then quickly nodded and rushed out of the room. I shut the door behind her, making sure it was firmly closed.
My eyes immediately went to the painting beside the drawer.
Before touching anything, I paused.
I scanned the entire room carefully, letting my eyes sweep over every detail. The bed. The curtains. The placement of the lamp. Even my dad’s cufflink resting neatly on the table. I memorized it all, committing every little thing to mind. If anything was out of place later, it would raise suspicion and I couldn’t afford that.
Only when I was certain did I move.
I removed the painting carefully, gripping it at the sides and lowering it gently to the ground.
Behind it was the safe.
There it was.
But the moment I saw it fully, my heart skipped not in excitement, but in sudden realization.
There was a problem.
All this while, I had been so focused on getting the necklace from the safe that I never stopped to ask myself one important thing.
Did I even know the password?
My fingers curled into my palm as the thought settled in.
Mom had never told anyone the code. Not me. Not even Dan. It was something she guarded fiercely. So how exactly was I supposed to open it?
I bit down on my finger, my mind racing.
Breaking into it wasn’t an option. If the safe showed signs of tampering, Mom would know immediately. And she would never suspect Dan — never. That meant the blame would land squarely on me.
And trying random codes was even worse. If I entered the wrong password more than three times, the safe would go into automatic lockdown for twenty-four hours. Worse, it would log the attempt.
If that happened, they wouldn’t just know someone tried to open it, they’d know it was me.
Either way, if I messed this up, Mom and Dad would find out I tried to take the necklace. And when that happened, there would be no excuses, no explanations. I would be out of this house.
Damn it.
This was far riskier than I imagined. In my head, everything had gone smoothly. I never imagined something like this would stand in my way.
I straightened slowly, stepping back from the safe as I forced myself to think.
I needed to make the right choice.
Was it worth it?
Was framing that bitch worth risking my place in this house?
Because whether I liked it or not, if my plan succeeded or failed, Anna would still stay here. She would still be their precious daughter.
But I wouldn’t.
If this went wrong, I would lose everything.
I stared at the safe for a long moment, the room suddenly feeling too quiet.
But then another thought crept in.
If I walked away now… if I decided to stop… what would happen?
A few months from now, all the attention would be fully on Anna. Completely. Totally. No one would care what I did or where I went. No one would even notice if I disappeared.
I couldn’t let that happen.
I refused to fade into the background of my own family.
I straightened my shoulders and stood fully upright, my decision finally made.
To hell with it.
That girl needed to pay for everything she was purposely doing — everything she had taken without even trying. This was my house. My family. My life.
I walked back toward the safe, standing directly in front of it now.
I placed my hand on the cold metal surface, my mind working fast, sifting through possibilities. Birthdays. Anniversaries. Important dates. Anything Mom might use.
I closed my eyes briefly, then opened them again, determination settling in.
No matter what it took, I would crack the code.