Chapter 3 - The Broken LineageA collective gasp seemed to ripple through the quiet room, though Arthur heard none of it. Blood roared in his ears like a surging tide.
Clara.
The name was a wound that had never truly healed. Clara was Arthur’s only daughter—the brilliant, artistic girl who had walked out of the Montgomery estate eight years ago after a bitter, explosive fallout over the family empire. She had renounced her fortune, severed all contact, and vanished into the shadows of the city. For eight long years, Arthur’s private investigators had searched for her, returning empty-handed time and time again.
Arthur stared at the little girl, his vision blurring with unshed tears. He looked past the dirt, searching her features—the high cheekbones, the almond-shaped hazel eyes, the small cleft in her chin.
She was the living image of his lost daughter.
“Your mother...” Arthur choked out, his chest heaving under his tailored suit. “Where is she? Where is Clara?”
The little girl looked down at her bare feet, her shoulders sinking. “Mommy fell asleep three days ago in the cold room. She told me to take the silver heart and find the big house with the lion gates if she didn't wake up. But I got lost... and I was so hungry.”
Arthur felt as though a blade had been driven through his heart. The implication crushed him—Clara was gone. She had died somewhere in the cold underbelly of this very city, leaving her child alone in the world.
Arthur stood up so fast his heavy dining chair scraped violently against the floor, knocking over a crystal water goblet. The glass shattered, splashing ice water across the white linen, but Arthur didn't care.
He stepped around the table and dropped directly onto his knees on the hard floor before the child, ignoring the shock on the faces of the city's elite.
“What is your name, sweet girl?” Arthur asked, his voice cracking as he reached out to gently cup her dirty, ice-cold cheek.
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“Lily,” she whispered softly.
“Lily...” Arthur repeated, a tear finally escaping his eye and tracing down his aged face. “You don't ever have to be hungry again, Lily. I am your grandfather.”
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