Chapter 9 The Dowry Vanishes
"I said, Dad's not home!" Evelyn Bennett smirked triumphantly. "He forgot all about your little visit today! I mean, marrying a guy like that—did you really think Dad would throw you a welcome-back party? Hah! That'd be too embarrassing even for him!"
"I don't need a party!"
Clara Bennett shot to her feet, stepping in front of Evelyn. "I want my dowry!"
"Dowry?"
Evelyn Bennett raised a brow, her lips curling into a venomous grin. "What dowry? Never heard of it!"
Clara Bennett froze, her heart pounding wildly.
In that moment, every ounce of grievance, frustration, and rage surged up inside her. She knew her roots weren't glamorous—branded an illegitimate child from the day she was born. But she hadn't chosen that. All these years, even in the shadows, she'd reached for the light.
No sane girl would agree to a substitute marriage like this, right?
All she wanted was to save her mother.
Why did they have to strip even that shred of hope away?
Evelyn Bennett snorted, turning to head upstairs, but Clara Bennett grabbed her arm.
"Don't walk away—explain yourself!"
"Explain what?" Evelyn Bennett snapped, digging her nails into Clara's arm.
Clara Bennett winced, stumbling back, her head slamming against the wall with a dull thud, a ringing filling her ears.
She looked up, catching Evelyn's increasingly sinister smirk. "Clara, you're a married woman now—dumped into that backwater hole like a bucket of dirty water! Don't even dream of clinging to the Bennett name anymore!"
"But... Dad promised me!" Clara Bennett gritted her teeth. "He said if I took your place, I'd get a big dowry—enough to help my mom..."
"Help your mom get a fancy hospital room and imported meds?" Evelyn Bennett burst into mocking laughter. "Oh, my naive little sister, do you even remember why Dad kicked you and your mom out in the first place?"
Clara Bennett fell silent, a chill creeping into her chest.
"Didn't your precious mom get herself knocked up with a pair of bastards, driving Dad into a rage?"
"Clara, trash belongs in hell! You think Dad would save her? Hah—he'd rather she died out there!"
"No..." Clara Bennett's eyes reddened, tears welling up despite her efforts to hold them back.
"My mom's not like that. She was framed..."
"Oh, you mean by my mom?"
Evelyn Bennett's voice spiked, her glare turning vicious.
Clara Bennett met her eyes with a cool, steady gaze. Her mother had once told her the guiltier someone was, the harder they'd pretend to be tough.
"I didn't say that," she said, wiping her tears, her voice calm. "We don't know the full story about what happened back then. So watch your mouth from now on. If you disrespect my mom again, I won't let it slide!"
"Hah! You'd need the guts for that first!"
Evelyn Bennett sneered, flipping her hair back to flaunt a new diamond necklace.
"Pretty, huh?" she taunted, eyeing Clara. "Just bought it. Not cheap—thirty thousand bucks!"
Clara Bennett froze.
Evelyn Bennett leaned in, her words slow and cutting. "Paid for with your dowry!"
"You—"
"Here's the truth, Clara," Evelyn spat. "Dad never planned to give you a dime! Letting you take my place was already a favor. Don't push your luck!"
Clara Bennett clenched her lips, trembling with fury, but powerless to fight back.
She watched Evelyn's smug grin as a maid politely "escorted" her out. She stumbled from the yard, the sky a dull gray, the air thick with dampness.
The weather this time of year was fickle—rain could strike without warning, catching her off guard.
Clara Bennett quickened her pace toward the bus stop.
"Third Master, Miss Bennett is out."
"Hm." Mason Reed pulled off his boxing gloves, tossing them aside, unwrapping the gauze from his hands layer by layer. "How's she doing?"
"She doesn't look... great."
The man's brow tightened.
"Miss Bennett's pale—probably took some heat at her family's place. I asked around. The Bennett staff said she didn't get the dowry and got humiliated by her sister."
Mason Reed's fist clenched, a cold glint flashing in his eyes.
"How much was her dowry supposed to be?"
"Thirty thousand, I hear."
"And that land the Bennetts are bidding on—what's it worth?"
"Ten billion."
"Perfect." Mason Reed let out a chilling laugh. "Let's use that land to wake up those dimwits at the Bennett house!"