Chapter 146

Alice’s eyes were red and brimming with tears as she choked out her words, resentment lacing every syllable.
She’d waited for this day for as long as she could remember. In her dreams, today would have been all about her-she would be the one everyone admired, the center of attention, the girl everyone fussed over.
But now, everything she thought should have belonged to her had been snatched away by Anastasia.
People were scrambling to help Anastasia with her bags and papers; even Mr. Harrison Lancaster himself had insisted on driving her to school. And Alice? No one even bothered to ask how she was.
Mary, her mother, was quick to console her, her heart aching for her daughter. “Alright, alright, honey, I’ll go talk to Mr. Harrison Lancaster right now. Just wait here for me.”
“I want to ride in the same car as Mr. Harrison Lancaster!” Alice demanded, her voice trembling with hope and desperation.
Mary agreed to everything Alice asked without a moment’s hesitation. “Of course, sweetheart, I’ll take care of it.”
But Alice hesitated, uncertainty flickering across her face. “But… will Mr. Harrison Lancaster really agree?”
Mary, utterly convinced, didn’t even pause. “Your father gave his life to save Lady Lancaster. There’s no way Mr. Harrison Lancaster would refuse you.”
To Mary, the Lancaster family owed them a debt that could never be repaid. If Alice became the legitimate daughter of the Lancaster family, it still wouldn’t be enough. So what was so outrageous about asking Mr. Harrison Lancaster to give Alice a ride to school?
Alice finally managed a tremulous smile, tears drying on her cheeks.
Inside the car, Anastasia had just settled into her seat. The driver was about to start the engine when suddenly Mary appeared at the window.
“Mr. Harrison Lancaster!” she called out.
Anastasia looked up, her heart sinking when she spotted Mary, with Alice trailing behind, suitcase in tow. She suppressed a sigh.
Harrison, eyes closed, was trying to rest. Annoyed at being interrupted, he opened his eyes and asked, “What is it?”
“Mr. Harrison Lancaster, Alice is starting school today as well. Since you’re already taking Lady Lancaster, could you please give Alice a ride too?”
Anastasia blinked in disbelief. Did she hear that right? How could Mary ask something so shamelessly, as if it was the most natural thing in the world?
If Harrison was taking her, then he should take Alice as well? She was his wife- what, exactly, was Alice supposed to be? How could Mary even compare the two?
Alice didn’t seem to see anything wrong with the request. She gazed longingly at the empty seat beside Harrison, and when she saw Anastasia sitting there, her eyes burned with jealousy. She looked as if she wanted nothing more than to shove Anastasia aside and take her place. For origınal chapters go to.net
Just then, Harrison spoke, his tone cold and sharp. “Mary, what exactly is your and your daughter’s status here?”
The temperature in the car seemed to drop with his words.
Before Mary could answer, Harrison called out, “Logan?”
Logan, the butler, straightened up. “Mr. Harrison Lancaster, Mary and Alice are household staff.”
A maid, wanting to be treated as an equal to Lady Lancaster? The very idea was absurd.
Mary’s expression faltered.
She tried to protest, “Mr. Harrison Lancaster, Alice’s father once saved Lady Lancaster-”
Mary never missed a chance to bring up this favor, using it to demand things from Lady Lancaster and Harrison, as if it gave her a lifetime license to ask for favors.
In the past, Harrison hadn’t bothered to argue, letting her go on, but his patience had limits.
He cut her off. “Your husband’s compensation-a million dollars. Wasn’t that enough?”
Mary’s face drained of color. She fell silent at once.
Back when her husband died, the Lancaster family had given her two options: take the million-dollar settlement and leave, or stay and the family would provide for her and her daughter for life.
A million dollars isn’t a small sum by anyone’s standards. Who else would have offered so much? The Lancaster family had been more than generous.