Fake Heiress Stole My Life and Boyfriend

My dad is the most feared mafia boss in New York.

My mom is an elite heiress from one of the city's oldest billionaire families.

And then there's Julianmy genius older brother who used to spoil me to death.

When I was five, my dads enemies kidnapped me. They wanted to trade my life for his.

To save him, I found a chance to escape.

But I ended up falling off a cliff, losing all my memories, and growing up as an unadoptable orphan in a foster home.

The kidnapper, wanting to torture my dad, lied and told him hed thrown me to the sharks.

From that day on, my nameSeraphina Kingbecame a forbidden word in New York.

Twenty years later.

My boyfriends side chick ran me over with her car, sending me straight to the ER.

Standing by my hospital bed, she threw a black credit card at my face.

"My adoptive dad is a mafia legend. My adoptive mom is a New York socialite. My adoptive brother is a world-class scientist."

"Who do you think you are to compete with me?"

And my boyfriend, the guy who swore hed love me forever, stood there with cold, indifferent eyes.

"Mia, you can't give me anything. Just let me go, okay?"

I clutched the card and whispered, "Okay."

Every cloud has a silver lining.

That car crash actually brought my memories back.

"Glad you know your place. Otherwise, if my family stepped in, you wouldn't just be dealing with three broken ribs."

Chloe stood there in a custom Chanel tweed suit, a matching handbag dangling from her arm, and diamond-encrusted heels.

She looked every bit the spoiled, pampered princess she was.

She tilted her chin up, her voice dripping with arrogance.

"Leave New York within three days. I don't want to live in the same city as my boyfriends pathetic ex. It ruins my mood."

I kept my eyes down. She was just as ruthless and unreasonable as the rumors said.

I had three broken ribs. I couldn't even leave the hospital in three days, and she wanted me out of the city?

I looked at Ethan, who was standing nearby, hoping he would tell this brainless brat to give me some time.

But when Chloe saw me looking at him, she flew into a jealous rage.

She swung her expensive Chanel bag and slammed it right into my face.

"You bitch! You took my money and you're still drooling over my man!"

Blood started seeping through my head bandages.

I clutched my forehead, my face turning pale from the agonizing pain.

Chloe wasn't done. A cruel smirk played on her lips as she walked toward me on her stilettos.

Ethan instinctively reached out to stop her, but after a moment of hesitation, his hand dropped back to his side.

"Chloe, don't take it too far. The hospital has too many eyes. It's bad for your reputation."

"Reputation? Who cares?"

Chloe grabbed a fistful of my hair, pulling so hard I felt like my scalp was ripping off.

"I am Chloe King! No one in New York dares to cross me!"

"Even if my reputation is trash, people will still beg to be my dogs."

With that, she slapped me hard across the face.

Just when I thought I was going to die right there in that bed...

A tall, incredibly handsome man appeared at the door.

"Chloe!"

Chloe froze. She immediately let go of my hair, her vicious snarl instantly turning into a sweet, innocent smile. She ran over and wrapped her arms around his.

"Julian! What are you doing here?"

Julian affectionately ruffled Chloes hair.

"Are you bullying people again?"

He sighed, looking helpless.

"When are you going to grow up?"

The arrogant brat was gone, replaced by a sweet, pouty little girl.

"I don't want to grow up. With you, Mom, and Dad protecting me, I want to be your little princess forever."

The moment I heard Chloe call him "Julian," my heart stopped. I struggled to turn my head to look at him.

But Chloe's rough handling had aggravated my broken ribs.

The pain was so intense I started blacking out, cold sweat dripping down my back. I couldn't even make a sound.

If it weren't for the burning desire to reunite with my brother, I would have passed out right then.

But... my brother, whom I hadn't seen in twenty years, was standing just feet away.

Yet, I couldn't reach him.

I had to watch him shower Chloe with all the warmth, gentleness, and protection in the world.

He wasn't Chloes brother.

He was mine.

He was five years older than me.

He used to spoil me rotten, giving me all the best food and toys.

When we were kids, he loved to ruffle my hair too.

He would smile gently and say, "You will always be happy, Seraphina. I'll be your knight forever."

But now, all that tenderness belonged to someone else.

A wave of bitter resentment washed over me.

Why did they adopt Chloe? Why did they give all the love that belonged to me to another girl?

Was that fair to me?

I struggled on the bed, letting out muffled whimpers, desperately trying to get his attention.

And I did.

Through my blurry vision, I saw him slowly walk over to my bed.

He stopped right beside me.

"Miss, I apologize on Chloe's behalf."

"She's young and spoiled by our family, so she can be reckless. But she doesn't mean any real harm."

He pulled a black card from his pocket and placed it on my pillow.

"There's two million dollars in here. I hope this covers your trouble."

Looking at Julianhis face expressionless, his voice cold and detachedmy heart shattered alongside my body.

"Julian, I already gave her two hundred thousand! Why give her more? A charity case like her isn't worth that much if she sold her soul!"

"Chloe."

Julian scolded her, but his voice was filled with indulgence, completely different from the icy tone he used with me.

Chloe stuck her tongue out playfully and sneered at me.

"Stop playing dead. I barely touched you. At most, you have a couple of scratches."

Julian looked at my pale face and the cold sweat on my forehead. He seemed to realize something was off.

Maybe... I wasn't faking it.

But so what?

To him, I was just a stranger. And Julian King never cared about the lives of strangers.

He turned and took Chloes hand.

"Let's go. Today is Seraphina's memorial day. We need to visit the cemetery."

Chloe gasped, hitting her forehead.

"Oh my god, I almost forgot! Seraphina won't be mad at me in heaven, right?"

"I'm sure she won't. You're sweet and kind. Besides, she was the one who sent you to us. Why would she be mad?"

Julian smiled warmly, pinching her cheek.

"Exactly. You're the little princess Seraphina sent us."

"Eighteen years ago today, we went to her grave and found you, a three-year-old, sleeping right by her tombstone."

"The moment we saw you, we thought Seraphina had come back to us."

"Especially your eyes. They look just like hers."

Julian's eyes went distant, as if he were looking through Chloe at the little sister he missed so desperately.

After a long moment, he pulled himself back and sighed. "Let's go."

Just a second before Julian turned to leave, I forced myself through the agonizing pain and grabbed his sleeve.

"Julian..."

"What did you call me?"

Julian froze. His eyes locked onto my face.

Then, his pupils shrunk.

"Your eyes..."

Suddenly, his gaze turned ice-cold, and he violently shook my hand off.

"Your eyes do look like Chloe's, and they look like my late sister Seraphina's. But not everyone with those eyes is allowed to call me Julian."

He pushed my hand away so hard that my wounds ripped. I shook violently from the pain, helplessly watching him lead Chloe out of the room without looking back.

The massive room fell dead silent, leaving only me and Ethan.

Ethan looked down at me as I writhed in pain, condescendingly reaching out to press the call button.

"People move up, Mia. Don't blame me for being heartless."

"But that baby in your womb... you really can't keep it."

My heart stopped. I looked at Ethan in absolute disbelief.

I thought he didn't know I was pregnant. I thought that was why he let Chloe run me over.

Ethan looked down, slowly adjusting his cuffs, avoiding my eyes.

"I found the ultrasound report in your drawer weeks ago. You wanted to surprise me, didn't you?"

"If it weren't for Chloe, maybe I would have been happy."

"But a man has to prioritize his career. Chloe can give me everything I've ever dreamed of."

"You and that unborn kid can't give me anything!"

It felt like my chest was being ripped open. A suffocating pain engulfed me.

The sweet, loving boy from collegewhen did he become this monster?

Or maybe he was always this selfish and cold. I was just too blind to see it.

Vaguely, I heard a nurse's furious voice.

"The patient has broken ribs and is going through a miscarriage! Any movement causes agonizing pain! Are you her family? Do you even know how to look after her?"

"I have nothing to do with her. I just saw the accident and brought her in out of pity. I'm leaving now."

My heart was sliced open again.

Seven years of love, and to him, I was just a stranger he helped out of pity.

Tears fell silently.

He abandoned me and our child for Chloe to climb the social ladder, right?

Fine. I'd wait for him to reach the top.

And when he's at his proudest, I will stand before him.

I'll show him that the one standing at the very topthe one who can crush him and Chloe like bugsis the "orphan" they threw away and humiliated.

To avoid any more trouble from Chloe, I used the money she and Julian gave me to hire two private nurses.

On the third night, I booked a private medical transport and had myself transferred to a top private hospital in Boston.

It took six months for my body to fully recover.

A week ago, I finally contacted my dad.

Even though he was a feared mafia boss, reaching him wasn't hard.

He had a private number known only to the four of us in our family.

When I was a kid, he made me memorize it.

He knew he had too many enemies and feared we might get separated. He told me that as long as we were alive, we could always reach him through this number.

Stepping out of the JFK airport back in New York, the warm sunlight hit my face.

I finally felt alive again.

My dad's men were on their way to pick me up.

I was no longer a helpless orphan.

I was going to take back everything Chloe took from me, piece by piece, and become the one person in New York no one dared to touch.

"Mia? Why are you back in New York?"

A familiar, annoying voice broke my thoughts.

It was Ethan.

His face twisted with annoyance.

"We are over. Can you stop stalking me?"

Without warning, Ethan shoved me.

"Get out of here before Chloe sees you. She'll get jealous and start a fight."

"What is going on here?"

A sharp female voice shrieked.

It was Chloe. She marched over and shoved me hard, sending me sprawling to the ground.

"You cheap whore, trying to steal my man again..."

Chloe stopped mid-insult, squinting at my face. Then, she let out a loud sneer.

"Oh, it's you. You took my money and you dare to come back to New York to harass my boyfriend? Do you think I'm soft?"

She raised her hand to slap me, but paused, looking at the crowd gathering around us.

She immediately put on her elegant heiress mask.

A wicked grin spread across her face.

"Throw her into my van. I want to catch up with my old friend!"

Her two burly bodyguards immediately stepped forward, grabbing my arms to drag me toward her black Mercedes van.

But right before they could force me inside...

A fleet of dozens of luxury black SUVs pulled up in a perfect, intimidating line right at the airport curb.

Dozens of men in sharp black suits stepped out, marching straight toward us.