?Chapter 817:


    Milton answered with a warm smile. “Your face is all the proof I need.”


    He didn’t seem bothered by her distant attitude. Swiftly, he pulled up a photo on his phone. “Lh, this is Arthur Campbell—he’s our father, the leader of the Sun Group and the head of the Campbell family. Look at him and tell me you don’t see the resemnce.”


    Elliana lowered her gaze to the screen in Milton’s hand. Arthur was a man surrounded by mystery, his image rarely captured, and almost no one had seen him in person. To the world, he was more of a legend than a reality. She never imagined she would see his face up close like this.


    Elliana stared at Milton, her mind racing. How could he speak of their father without the weight of all the years that had passed? How could he hold on to such warmth when their mother had been driven to hide herself from Arthur? She swallowed hard, her throat tight with unshed tears, but she forced herself to focus.


    Her gaze softened, and she shook her head slightly. “I don’t know what to believe,” she said quietly, her voice trembling just a little. “All my life, I’ve had no one but my mother. No family, no one to call my own. And now… you tell me you’re my brother, and I don’t know how to take that.”


    Milton took a step closer, his eyes sincere. “I understand. It’s a lot to take in. But you don’t have to carry this alone anymore. I’m here. We’re family, whether we’re ready to ept it or not.”


    Elliana felt a knot tighten in her chest. She wasn’t sure if she could trust him, if she could believe in this sudden revtion. Her entire world had just shifted, and the familiar ground she stood on felt as though it had been pulled out from beneath her. But despite her doubts, there was something in Milton’s words that echoed with truth.


    “Why now?” she asked, her voice a little more steady. “Why are you only telling me this now? Why wait until now to show up in my life?”


    Milton’s face softened, and he took another step forward, his gaze never leaving hers. “I didn’t know about you until recently,” he said quietly. “But once I learned, I couldn’t ignore it. I couldn’t let you slip through my fingers. If you’re my sister, I want to be a part of your life. I don’t want to miss this chance.”


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    Elliana looked at him, her heart still racing but beginning to settle. There was something genuine in his words, something that spoke to the loneliness she had carried all these years. Maybe, just maybe, she could allow herself to believe that family wasn’t as distant as she thought. Maybe it was possible to start over, even if it felt overwhelming.


    “I need time,” she said finally, her voice barely above a whisper. “I need time to think about everything.”


    Milton nodded, his expression understanding. “Of course. Take all the time you need. I’m not going anywhere.”


    As the weight of his words hung in the air between them, Elliana couldn’t help but feel a spark of hope, buried deep inside, that maybe, just maybe, this was the beginning of something new.


    Reverence. Why? Why had their father pursued their mother? And why did Milton seem to carry no anger, no scars from it? What kind of monsters were the Campbells? A sick, twisted part of her recoiled. If Milton could so easily forgive the one who had driven their mother into hiding, then what did that say about him? About the Campbells? About the life she was being asked to walk back into?


    While Elliana’s thoughts spun in a storm of suspicion and dread, Milton gently reached for her hand. “Lh, let me take you home. Dad’s waiting for you. He’s so eager to see you after all this time.”


    Arthur was waiting to see her? Her stomach knotted. She yanked her hand back on instinct.


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