Lily jabbed a finger at her daughter''s forehead and dragged her by the arm down the stairs, terrified she might try something else.


    Inside the room, Hannah stood in her pajamas, arms crossed, looking down at the man on the bed who reeked of alcohol and perfume. The scent was strong, identical to Cora''s, and while it might have transferred while she was helping him, she couldn''t ignore the practiced ease with which Cora had gone for his belt buckle. She''d clearly done it many times before.


    If her mother hadn''t stopped her, Cora probably would have put on a show right in front of her.


    To be so bold right under her nose... Hannah couldn''t imagine what had happened on the way home.


    She lowered her gaze and walked into the adjoining guest room.


    As for the drunkard on the bed-whether he woke up in the middle of the night to clean himself up,y there until morning, or fell prey to someone else''s opportunism—it had nothing to do with her anymore.


    He knew Cora was circling him like a shark, yet he let his guard downpletely. If the roles were reversed, people would be using her of seduction, of leading him on.


    Hannahy down in the guest bed and replied to a text from Tess. Her friend had found a new job and rented an apartment in a southern coastal city. She''d even found a beautiful seaside condo and was nning to save up to buy it, promising to have Hannahe live with her.


    Hannah: [Use the money I sent you. Just buy it!]


    Lionel already knew she was siphoning money through jewelry purchases. If he had any shame, he wouldn''t dare ask for it back.


    Tess: [!!!! Buying a house is a huge deal! Wait until you cane visit, and we''ll look at it properly before making a decision.]


    Hannah: [Okay. It''ste, get some rest.]


    After sending the message, Hannah nced at the time. A sense of unease


    settled over her. Lionel had left after a call from Sandra, so why was it Cora who brought him home drunk? What had happened in between?


    She pulled up the security feed from the garage.


    At first nce, nothing seemed out of the ordinary. Just like Sandra, Cora took every opportunity to press herself against him, but otherwise,


    thing appeared normal.


    But the more normal it seemed, the more wrong it felt. Cora wouldn''t have passed


    up such a perfect opportunity.


    Whatever. She needed to sleep.


    The next morning, Hannah went downstairs. Lionel was nowhere to be seen, he had either already left or was still asleep. She ate breakfast without waiting for him and prepared to leave for the office.


    "Ma''am, here are the car keys."


    Cora hurried over, holding out the keys to Lionel''s car.


    Hannah looked from the keys in Cora''s hand to the sycophantic expression on her


    face. She was clearly nning something.


    Hannah smiled faintly. "This isn''t my


    car. If you can''t even get that right, it''s a miracle you''ve managed to aplish anything besides getting here through connections. As long as you''re living in this house try to use your head."


    As Hannah walked past, she saw Cora''s brow tighten in a sh of suppressed anger.


    She got into her own car and headed to the office, her fingers tapping rhythmically on the steering wheel.


    Since there was a "surprise" waiting for her in that car, she decided it was a gift best delivered to Sandra.


    The only question was how.


    She had just arrived at the office when a male colleague was about to speak to


    her, but Yves'' assistant summoned her upstairs.


    "We found the source video," Yves said, handing her a tablet.