Lydia knew exactly how much Lucinda despised her. Honestly, Lucinda had been hating her ever since she set foot back in the Norwood house. But Lucinda was wrong about her. Lydia had never wanted to fight for anything. It was Lucinda’s greed, her refusal to let go of what was never truly hers, that kept her stirring up trouble in secret, making mistake after mistake.

Earlier, Lydia had to admit she was deliberately testing Mr. Norwood’s reaction. She felt there was something off about the old man. Maybe she was right, maybe not. She’d need to dig deeper to be sure. And with clones involved, this was way too serious to ignore. She needed to report it to the people in charge, and fast.

After sending off her report with all the clues about the clones, exhaustion hit her hard. She rubbed her aching temples, glanced at the sky outside her window as it started to lighten, washed up quickly, and collapsed into bed. Sleep came easily.

While Lydia slept, chaos broke out among the core team at the country’s top biological research institute. “A clone? There’s actually a clone here?” Boris, the senior scientist, shot out of his chair in shock.

One of his younger colleagues wandered over, grinning. “Professor, the UN has banned all human cloning. No country is allowed to do any research. This has to be a joke.”

Boris stared at his computer screen, shaking his head. “No, not a joke. This report came from Miracle Hands.”

The younger scientist’s face went serious in an instant. “What?”

Lydia had no idea how long she’d been out when a gentle knock on her door pulled her back to consciousness. “Lydia, are you awake? I made you some ginseng soup.” Lucinda’s voice was sweet and soft from the hallway.

Lydia frowned, noticing the sky outside was already dark. She sat up and called out, “Come in.”

Lucinda came in with a bright smile, carrying a delicate bowl of soup. She set it down in front of Lydia, her voice full of concern. “You were up all night. You must be exhausted. I made the myself. It helps you feel better.”

Lydia stared at the steaming soup but didn’t reach for it. Her expression stayed calm. “Thanks.”

Lucinda’s face fell for just a second, then she forced her cheerful smile back in place. “I put a lot of effort into this. Just try a little, okay?”

Lydia still didn’t move. Lucinda’s eyes flashed with frustration, but she quickly switched to a wounded look. “You don’t think I’d poison you, do you?”

herself. Then she looked drank it

She seemed prepared. Pulling out a small bowl, she poured some of the soup from the big bowl and drank it valía, all Sally innocence. “See? It’s fine. I know I made lots of mistakes before Please, forgive me.”

Lydia watched her quietly. “I just woke up. My stomach isn’t ready for food yet. Leave the soup here. I’ll have it in a bit.”

Lucinda had no choice but to set the bowl down. After a little more small talk, she left the room, clearly disappointed.

As soon as Lucinda was gone, Lydia’s gaze fixed on the soup. She thought for a moment, then got up and brought out a small testing device. It was designed to detect any harmful substances.

She placed the testing probe into the

soup and watched the numbers flicker on the screen. Sure enough the test showed a trace of a new europaralytic drug. The dose wasn’t high, but if someone drank it regularly, it would make them sluggish, maybe even take away their will.

Lydia let out a cold, knowing smile. She’d figured Lucinda wasn’t suddenly feeling generous.