Chapter 293 Seems Like a Different Person

Chapter 293 Seems Like a Different Person
Scarlett's POV

"Did they give their names?" I asked Jenkins, already mentally cataloguing potential threats.

"A Miss Calista Harper and Mr. Damon Holton, miss. They say it's urgent."

I blinked in surprise. Calista? What was she doing here? And with Damon no less.

"Let them in," Dad said before I could respond. His tone was curious rather than concerned, which told me he recognized at least one of the names.

Five minutes later, the front doors opened to reveal an unexpected sight. Calista stood in the doorway dragging a designer suitcase behind her, looking like she'd just stepped off a fashion magazine cover despite the early hour. Damon hovered beside her, his expression a complex mixture of resignation and worry.

"Honey!" Calista announced with the kind of bright enthusiasm that immediately put me on alert. "I've decided to move in with you!"

I stared at her. "I'm sorry, what?"

"Move in," she repeated, as if it were the most natural thing in the world. "We're going to be roommates! Won't that be fun?"

My gaze automatically shifted to Damon, whose face had gone carefully blank in that way that screamed 'this situation is completely out of my control.'

Dad stepped forward, his Paul Morgan persona smoothly taking charge. "Miss Harper, Mr. Holton, welcome to the Langley estate. Please, come in."

While Dad and Damon exchanged pleasantries, Calista had already started dragging her suitcase toward the main staircase.

"Excuse me," I called after her, quickening my pace to catch up. "Calista, what exactly is going on?"

She paused on the second step, turning to face me with an expression that was both innocent and mischievous. "Oh, didn't I mention? I want to be closer to Liam and Luna. They're such darlings, and I hardly get to see them."

I studied her face, looking for any sign of the sharp, calculating Silver Fox I knew. Instead, I found someone who seemed almost... different.

"What about your plans with Damon?" I pressed. "Weren't you two supposed to be working on producing an heir for the Holton family?"

Calista waved dismissively. "Oh, that can wait. Playing with the kids is much more important right now."

With that, she dashed towards the children's room.

Her casual dismissal of what should have been a significant life goal made me wary.

When I tried to follow her into the room, Calista firmly closed the door and stared at me. "Sorry, I want to spend some time alone with my favorite little ones."

The tone in her voice, as if she were staking her claim, made me even more uneasy.

Downstairs, I found Damon in the living room, staring out the window with the expression of a man watching his carefully constructed world shift on its axis.

"What happened?" I asked without preamble.

"Honestly, I didn't know. Everything was normal last night. We were discussing the wedding date, talking about the future. Then this morning, she suddenly started packing her bags." His voice carried a hint of confusion. "She said she needed to be with the kids. When I asked her why, she looked at me as if I were speaking a foreign language."
 
It did sound strange. Calista would always consult me, but this time she clearly didn't want to tell me.
 
I continued to ask, "Did she seem unusual in any way?"
 
"She seemed very agitated, very impatient," Damon continued, "It felt like... she had become a different person."
 
Those words hit me like a punch. This behavior was identical to Victoria's. Could it be that Calista had also been implanted with a chip?
 
I remembered Liam and Luna mentioning that Calista looked a lot like the "auntie" who took care of them growing up. Could it be that Calista also had a twin sister? Were they subjects of the twin experiments as well?
 
Seeing my troubled expression, Damon asked, "Is something wrong? Calista isn't in any danger, is she?"
 
The dark organization was a serious matter, and I couldn't tell him. "I can't tell you anything right now," I said sternly. "Give me some time to think of a solution. In the meantime, act normal. Don't let anyone see that you're worried."
 
Damon nodded. "Alright. Please take care of her during this time."
 
I nodded. His feelings for Calista gave me some comfort.

After Damon left, I made my way to Nicholas's room. He was at his desk, surrounded by medical texts and looking more relaxed than I'd seen him in weeks.

"Nicholas," I said, closing the door behind me. "I need to tell you something important. Calista Harper is Silver Fox."

His pen stopped mid-sentence. "The Silver Fox? From the Shadow Group?"

"Yes. And I'm transferring full operational control of our intelligence network to you, effective immediately."

Nicholas set down his pen, his expression becoming serious. "What's the situation?"

"I need you to investigate whether Calista has a twin sister. Use every resource we have, but be discreet. If I'm right about what's happening, we're dealing with something that goes far beyond family drama."

He nodded, already reaching for his secure phone. "Consider it done."

Upstairs, I found Iris stationed discretely in the hallway outside Calista's chosen room.

"Report," I said quietly.

"Miss Harper has been engaged in conversation with the children for the past hour," Iris replied in her perfectly modulated voice. "The interaction appears positive. The children are laughing frequently."

"I want continuous monitoring. If anything seems off, anything at all, alert me immediately."

"Understood."

Through the partially open door, I could hear Calista's voice mixing with the children's laughter. The sound should have been comforting, but instead it made my skin crawl. Everything about this felt wrong, like watching a performance by someone who'd studied the role but had never lived it.

At dinner, Calista was the picture of charm. She entertained everyone with witty stories and observations, her timing perfect, her manner warm and engaging.

But I couldn't shake the feeling that I was watching someone wearing my friend's face.

As the evening wound down and we prepared for bed, I remained in the living room, ostensibly reading but actually thinking through the implications of what I'd observed today.

If Calista really did have a twin, and if Dark Organization had somehow switched them or activated dormant programming, then having her here, close to Liam and Luna, could be exactly what our enemies wanted.

The question was: what did they hope to accomplish? And more importantly, how could I protect the children without alerting whoever might be watching that I was onto their game?

Outside, the night sounds of the estate settled into their familiar rhythm, but for me, sleep felt impossibly far away.