Chapter 405

Lucien Sterling found it ridiculous—just plain absurd. Seriously, how could life mess with him like this? His dad used to always tell him about this little girl from some mountain village, like she was the one bright spot in his whole grim childhood. And yeah, he knew his father had always hated his mom. He'd tagged along as a kid, picking up that same disdain without even knowing what it meant. It was Calliope Godfrey who slowly helped him see things differently, who warmed him up and taught him to let go of that prejudice, to accept and love his mom again. Yet now, turns out that so-called "light"—was the one who killed her? And his father wanted him to just let it go? "So you're saying my mom died for nothing?" Lucien's voice came out rough, like it scraped its way through sand. But then, almost unfazed, Charles Sterling quietly pulled a red booklet from his briefcase and laid it on the coffee table. "I wanted to wait for the right time to tell you," he said calmly. "But now… I’m wo