?Chapter 604:


    Back in the living room, Elliana was rising from the couch, heading for the stairs in search of a long-overdue nap.


    “Uh, what do we do with all those luxury cars?” Damian called after her, gesturing at the driveway overflowing with high-end vehicles.


    “Open the gates and bring them in,” Elliana said, barely ncing back. She shot Clifton a look. “There’s a massive garage out back. Park them all there.”


    “On it,” Clifton said, already moving like a man on a mission. Ever since Elliana had ripped into him the day before, he had taken her words to heart. He’d ditched his obsessive scrubbing, finally given the floors a break, and—miraculously—gotten a full night’s sleep. Finally, he looked like a new man: rested and sharp.


    Elliana observed him briefly, noting the change, but said nothing. Instead, she turned and headed for the stairs.


    As usual, Jeff was right behind her, trailing her like a forlorn puppy who had nowhere else to be.


    She reached her bedroom door and paused, hand on the knob. Jeff was still hovering behind her. “Why are you following me?” she asked tly.


    He didn’t reply—just stared at her with those wide, needy eyes, silently begging for permission to stay close.


    Her patience thinned. “Go do your homework.” With that, she stepped inside and shut the door firmly in his face.


    Jeff let out a dramatic sigh and shuffled back to his room, shoulders slumped like a scolded child. But the moment he hit his bed, the books stayed untouched. Instead, he reached for his phone. Homework? Why bother? He was tanking his grades anyway.


    Meanwhile, in her room, Elliana headed straight for the bathroom. She stripped off the wiry wig and scrubbed away the clownish makeup, revealing her real face. Fresh and free of the disguise, she crawled into bed and pulled the covers over herself. If it weren’t for Lance and Jeff living under the same roof, she wouldn’t have to keep donning this exhausting disguise. But since kicking them out wasn’t an option, the mask would have to stay on—at least for now.


    Sleep imed her in seconds. But at four o’clock sharp, her phone shrieked to life, yanking her out of sleep like a p.


    The caller ID showed it was Adah.


    Elliana picked up right away. “Hello?”


    Lose yourself in stories on gα?ησν????s


    There was a note of sadness in Adah’s voice. “Elliana, I officially reconnected with the Norris family today.”


    “How did everything go?” Elliana asked, her voice gentle.


    Adah let out a bitterugh. “Don’t expect any warmth from them. Besides my dad, no one seemed happy to see me back—least of all my grandmother. After all this time, she still calls me a bad omen.”


    Elliana wasn’t surprised. She’d heard stories before. Adah’s grandmother had always looked down on Adah’s mom, treating her as an outsider who would bring trouble to the family. Despite that, Adah’s father had insisted on marrying her, forcing Adah’s grandmother to ept it.


    The situation was eerily simr to Cole’s parents—except the Evans family had eventually embraced Cole’s mother, letting her run the household and treating her with respect. Even when sheter had an episode as her Psychephrenia red up, they still stood by her.


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