Chapter 204 Who Is She Really?

    Joanna stood frozen for a beat, her mother’s words hitting like a p. Bitterness welled up inside her. She’d always known where her mother’s prioritiesy- power, appearances, and most of all, profit. And nothing offered a higher return than marrying into the right family.

    She lowered her gaze, her voice tinged with quiet frustration. “Mom… rtionships don’t work that way. You can’t force feelings.”

    Her mother scoffed, full of contempt. “Feelings? You think those rich boys actually care about love? They care about power and connections. Joanna, stop being so naive. That’s how they operate. Wake up. If you keep dragging your feet, you’ll be stuck picking from whatever’s left.”

    Joanna bit her lip but didn’t argue. She knew better–pushing back would only make things worse. So she just said quietly, “I get it. I’ll keep it in mind.”

    Her mother shot her a re, full of disappointment. “Keeping it in mind‘ won’t get you anywhere. You need to act. I heard Larry from the Houston family just got back into the country–he’s running the Houston Group now. If you can get close to him, we’d finally have some real standing in the Rivers family.”

    At the mention of Larry’s name, a subtle shiver ran down Joanna’s spine. She’d heard the stories–how calcting he was, how ruthless. Cold, unreadable, and dangerous in all the ways that mattered. That kind of man wasn’t someone you “got close” to. He was the kind you stayed far, far away from.

    She nodded vaguely. “I get it. I’ll figure out a way to talk to him.”

    And with that, she used work as an excuse and made a quick exit.

    Her mother shouted after her, her voice ringing through the house. “Work, work, work! You act like that job’s going to secure your future. No matter how well you perform, it won’tnd you a marriage!”

    Elsewhere, Sloane arrived at the meeting point where Lena was already waiting.

    Lena was already there waiting. As soon as she spotted Sloane, she walked up and handed over two folders. “Ms. Rivers, here are the DNA test reports you requested.”

    Sloane took the documents, her fingers trembling slightly. She took a breath to steady herself, then opened the envelope containing the results for herself, Helen, and Marshall.

    Based on the avable data and DNA analysis, Marshall is excluded as Sloane’s biological father.

    Her eyes froze on the sentence. Her heart dropped–but she didn’t stop. She flipped to the second file, the oneparing her DNA with Helen’s.

    No biological rtionship.

    For a moment, Sloane just stood there, the pages in her hands, her mind nk. If ner Helen nor Marshall was her parent… then who was?

    ked hard, then quickly moved on to the third report—Samantha and all.

    Based on the avable data and DNA analysis, the results support Marshall as Samantha’s biological father.

    She grabbed the final envelope–Helen’s test. Just as she expected, Samantha was the biological child of both Helen and Marshall.

    Sloane had been right.

    But now, thin

    more tangled.

    se years ago? Who switched the babies?

    the real daughter of the Rivers family. But who else knew the truth? they hiding? What deeper secret had been buried all this time?

    most of all… who was she really?

    Sloane clutched the reports tightly, her mind spinning with questions and

    emotions she couldn’t fully name.

    “Ms. Rivers, are you alright?” Lena asked gently, eyes full of concern.

    Sloane shook her head and let out a breath. “I’m okay. Thank you, Lena. I really appreciate you getting these.”

    Lena nodded respectfully. “Is there anything else I can do for you?”

    Sloane paused, thinking. Then she looked up, her voice calm but firm. “I want you to investigate everything about the Marshalls from neen years ago. Their social circle, who they were close to—especially if they had any enemies.”

    She couldn’t quite exin it, but something in her gut told her Helen had never wanted her to seed. If she turned out to be the daughter of someone the Marshalls hated… it might exin everything.

    Of course, it was only a guess. But Sloane intended to find out the truth.