?Chapter 586:


    Though Elliana had endured years of solitude and struggle, she had never truly been abandoned. Her mother’s love had simply manifested in ways that transcended conventional understanding. An overwhelming surge of devotion for the woman she barely remembered flooded her entire being.


    After allowing the weight of revtion to settle, Elliana spoke to Dobbs…


    Elliana closed her eyes and let out a slow breath as she said to Dobbs over the phone, “Let’s hold off on ruining Jones Pharmaceuticals.” She paced, tension coiling in her shoulders. “The Joneses have made my life miserable—mistreating me and scheming behind my back. Jones Pharmaceuticals is the legacy my mother left behind, and I fully intend to reim it from their grasp. But that can wait. Right now, something else demands my attention.”


    Her mind flicked to Cole. Working on his cure was her immediate priority. Picking a fight with the Jones family right now would only draw unwanted scrutiny from powerful factions, derailing her vital research into Psychephrenia.


    “Understood,” Dobbs replied calmly. “I’ll stand by for your orders. Meanwhile, I’ll fulfill every obligation your mother entrusted to me.”


    When the line went dead, Elliana found herself wide awake. Sleep abandoned her. She crept up to theb on the third floor and lost herself in her experiments until a sharp, insistent knock shattered her focus.


    A quick nce at the clock made Elliana blink—ten in the morning already. She set aside her tools and utched the door to reveal Heather, who stood with a furrowed brow and crossed arms.


    “You need to eat,” Heather insisted, concern etched on her face. “Keep this up and you’ll copse before you make any progress.”


    Elliana offered a sheepish smile. “Fair enough,” she said as her stomach growled in agreement. Without protest, she followed Heather downstairs.


    In the living room, Elliana found a scene straight out of a si: Clifton scrubbing the floor on all fours with grim determination, while Kieran strolled about like a smug foreman, hands sped behind his back. Since their switch in duties, Clifton had be intimately acquainted with every crevice of the house, while Kieran basked in the authority of his new role.


    Elliana stifled augh but didn’t interrupt. Both men looked up as she descended the stairs, greeting her with toothy grins.


    Slipping into character, Elliana gave them a sweeping wave like an overworked CEO. “Don’t mind me. Resume your tasks.”


    Clifton resumed scrubbing, and Kieran went back to his dignified pacing.


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    Then, something clicked in Elliana’s mind. She beckoned Kieran over.


    Elliana flicked her fingers, beckoning Kieran over. He hurried to her side, eager to assist. “At your service, Elliana.”


    “Where’s Lance?” she asked.


    True to his role as butler, Kieran knew everyone’s whereabouts. “He left early for work this morning,” he replied with the crisp efficiency of a seasoned staff member.


    Elliana nodded. “What about Jeff?”


    “That little scamp was packed up and out the door for school right on schedule,” Kieran said with a fond grin.


    Although Jeff now lived at Regal Grove, the Evans family driver continued to ferry him to and from school punctually. Kieran’s update eased Elliana’s mind. She had no worries about Lance. As an adult and the Evans Group’s AI R&D project director, Lance was more than capable of managing on his own. Jeff, however, was still just eight years old and, in Elliana’s eyes, far more vulnerable. The thought of him growing up unruly or unmotivated under her roof gnawed at her, so itforted her deeply that the Evans family remained hands-on with his education.


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