"Claire, I don't care where you got your information from. Just keep your mouth shut." Octavia's voice was sharp, a warning sounded more like a threat than a request. She could tell Claire was convinced that Cindy wasn't Latham's daughter. Maybe she even had proof.
If Octavia thought Claire would be intimidated, she had another thing coming.
"Octavia, did I hit the nail on the head? So Cindy really isn't Latham's daughter, right?” Claire teased, her tone light but her words cutting.
Octavia shot back without thinking, “That's ridiculous. Where did you even get that idea?” Then, suspicion crept in. "Wait. Did you send those photos to Latham?" She knew Claire was probably messing with her, but she had to ask, just in case.
Claire didn't miss a beat. “Photos? I didn't send anything. What photos? If you're so sure, why don't you send one to me, let me take a look?"
Of course Octavia wouldn't send her anything. When she saw how genuinely confused Claire seemed, she relaxed a little, the knot of worry in her stomach loosening.
"If it wasn't you, fine. Claire, no matter how things were between us before, I always made sure you had everything you needed. For old times' sake, can you just forget this ever happened? Cindy was a complete accident. I never did anything else to betray Latham. Honestly, this secret has haunted me for years. I've suffered enough. Just pretend you know nothing. If you need something... say it. Anything."
Octavia had expected this day to come, had braced herself for whatever outrageous demand Claire might make. Claire wasn't someone you crossed lightly. If she didn't keep her quiet, who knew what trouble she'd start. Octavia was out of moves, and she knew it.
Claire, for her part, was honestly surprised to see the mighty Octavia asking her for anything.
"Octavia, I've said it before. Ever since you gave up on me, I just wanted us to live our own lives and stay out of each other's way. I'd pay you back as best as I can for raising me, but you and Latham-neither of you are innocent here. My family, the one came from, did absolutely nothing wrong. Can you at least admit the truth about that?"
Her tone, usually so relaxed, turned serious.
Octavia hesitated, then nodded. "You're right. This mess was something Latham and I created. Unfortunately, it dragged you into it. But you can't ignore the fact that the swap gave you an advantage You were raised by the James family, given every opportunity. Your life was easier, you saw more of the. world than Cindy ever could, never had to worry about money. You even picked up skills she never had a chance to learn. Everything the James family gave you, that's compensation in itself."
She said it like she was laying down the final word, hoping Claire would drop the
subject and never mention Cindy's real background to anyone.
But Claire just laughed, and there was nothing warm in it.
"Who says I even wanted to grow up in the James family? You know, my grandmother could easily sell a single pillow for twenty million dollars. The estate she gave as a wedding gift the bidding war f
that was insane. Even in the country, I would never have missed out on
anything. And I would have had real family who actually cared, who actually loved me."
She looked at Octavia, her expression unreadable.
"You, on the other hand, knew I'd been swapped, but still brought me back to the James family. Then you spent years ignoring me, hoping I'd just fade away. Pretending like it was just some sad mistake. That's pretty close to murder, don't you think?"
"I never wanted that..." Octavia tried to defend herself. She wasn't a killer, how could she be? The worst she'd done was hope that this child who wasn't hers would quietly disappear.
But Claire had survived, no matter how much Octavia had wanted otherwise. And now, there was nothing left of Octavia's power over her.