CHAPTER 217: CHAPTER 217 THE LOST SISTER

Serena’s POV

I made my way to the studio with a mix of anticipation and dread churning in my stomach. The questions about my past refused to leave me alone, and Ethan Quinn seemed to hold some of those answers.

"Ethan, do you have a moment? I’d love to meet at the studio to discuss the London collaboration. There’s so much I want to chat about," I said into my phone, trying to keep my voice steady despite my racing heart.

There was a brief pause on the other end before Ethan quickly agreed. "Serena, you’re out of the hospital already? How are you feeling?"

I forced a light laugh. "I’m much better now. Do you have time to meet?"

"Of course. See you shortly."

Twenty minutes later, Ethan walked into my office, his eyes immediately scanning me from head to toe with unusual intensity.

"Your color looks much better than when you were hospitalized," he remarked, studying my face.

I smiled politely. "Thank you for your concern, Ethan."

Instead of jumping straight to my questions, I started discussing work matters first. We’d barely gotten into the conversation when Maya burst through the door. Her expression darkened when she saw us chatting comfortably.

"Mr. Quinn, what an unexpected honor," she said, her voice dripping with sarcasm. "Had I known you were gracing us with your presence..."

Ethan shifted uncomfortably, rubbing his nose. The tension between them was palpable.

I quickly stood up and pulled Maya aside, whispering urgently, "Maya, please, let me talk to him alone first."

She pouted, looking irritated. "Why should I? I want to ask him why he ran off like that!"

"Don’t be impulsive," I pleaded. "Let me test the waters first. If you confront him directly and get rejected, how embarrassing would that be?"

My words finally calmed her down. "Serena, will you ask him for me?"

I nodded firmly, giving her the OK sign. "I’ve got this covered."

Maya shot Ethan one last cold glare before finally turning to leave.

I sighed with relief as I sat back down. Ethan cleared his throat awkwardly. "Maya seems to have... misunderstood something."

"Misunderstood what exactly?" I raised an eyebrow, determined to stand up for my friend first. If Ethan truly wasn’t interested, I needed to help Maya move on sooner rather than later.

When he hesitated, not answering, I decided to change tactics and ask what I’d really come for.

"Ethan, I actually called you here to ask... do you have any other sisters in your family?"

Ethan’s eyes sharpened instantly, clearly catching the curiosity in my voice.

Has Ryan already discussed my background with her? His expression suddenly relaxed.

"Serena," he said softly, "do you remember something?"

Then he did something unexpected. "Sis, have you figured something out?"

That single word—"sis"—hit me like a thunderbolt. "What... what did you just call me?"

Ethan studied my shocked expression and apparently decided to stop hiding.

His face turned serious as he spoke deliberately. "To be precise, you might be my third sister. I’m the youngest child of the Quinn family. I was sent abroad when I was little. After you went missing in that accident at sea, our family searched for you for a long time, but there was no trace."

"After meeting you in London, I began to suspect."

"Sis, if you don’t believe me, you can come back to London with me to meet our parents and our older sisters."

My face froze, eyes wide with shock. The suspicion I’d harbored had actually turned out to be true.

"Serena? Are you having trouble accepting this?" Ethan asked, looking helpless at my reaction.

"I wasn’t certain at first either, but Mr. Blackwood and I have discussed it. The timing of your memory loss coincides exactly with when my third sister disappeared after falling overboard."

"And you look so much like our mother. If there’s no connection between you two, I wouldn’t believe it."

"That’s also why Maya misunderstood my intentions."

I snapped back to reality, catching another crucial detail in his words.

"Your misunderstanding with Maya is related to me?" I asked, my voice rising slightly. "And Ryan knew about all this? You two discussed this privately?"

Ethan nodded. "Actually... I got close to Maya because I wanted to learn more about you from her."

"She’s your best friend, so I figured she’d have more information about you."

"As for Mr. Blackwood... he was only looking out for your interests when he talked with me."

I sucked in a sharp breath. Forget what Ryan had done—if Maya ever found out Ethan’s real reason for approaching her, she’d be furious with me too.

"How could you..." I started.

"I know I shouldn’t have done that. It was presumptuous, but I really, really wanted to know if you were my third sister or not."

Ethan’s handsome face crumpled with regret. He clearly knew he’d acted inappropriately.

"Serena, Mr. Blackwood mentioned you’ve lost many of your memories. Have you remembered anything yet, even a little?"

I sighed, feeling overwhelmed by one revelation after another.

"Serena, are you alright?" he asked, concerned by my pale face. He probably realized he’d shared too much too quickly.

I rubbed my temples as silence fell over the office. After what felt like an eternity, I finally processed everything he’d told me.

"Ethan, I have two questions," I said at last.

Ethan nodded eagerly. "Ask away, sis."

"First, does the rest of the Quinn family know you’ve found me?"

He shook his head. "I haven’t told anyone else yet."

"Second, do you dislike Maya?"

Ethan froze, clearly unprepared for this question.

"I’m asking about romantic feelings, not friendship," I clarified. "You’d better answer honestly."

I was determined to keep my promise to my friend, no matter what else was happening.

Ethan rubbed his nose nervously. "Serena, I haven’t known Ms. Carter for very long. That’s a difficult question to answer."

"Let me rephrase—do you dislike Maya?"

This time Ethan didn’t hesitate. He shook his head. "No, I don’t."

I smiled slightly. "If you don’t dislike her, why not give it a try?"

"Maya is a wonderful woman. I think you two would make a good match. If you tried being together, it might work out wonderfully."

Ethan thought for a moment but responded with silence.

"It’s just a suggestion," I added. "Don’t feel pressured."

Ethan nodded. "Alright, I’ll consider it."

I felt relieved. "I’ll continue with my treatment until my memory fully returns. Until then, I remain skeptical about this connection between me and the Quinn family."

Ethan understood I wouldn’t accept everything immediately. "I can wait until you remember, sis."

"Good. I have no other questions. You can go now."

I was essentially dismissing him—my mind was a chaotic mess, and I needed some time alone to process everything.

Ethan didn’t push further. He simply nodded and left.

As silence returned to my office, I half-closed my eyes, my thoughts raging like a storm at sea.