How a Dying Woman Rewrote Her Epilogue

Sylvie was always someone who acted the moment an idea struck her—there was never any time to waste.

Her plan was to mortgage her house to the bank first.

At the very least, once the paperwork cleared, she could get her hands on something like six million dollars.

The only thing that worried her was how long the bank's process would actually take.

She wanted to see if she could negotiate a brief extension with Faust's side.

When she'd first decided to return home to restart her career, Selma had followed suit, but it had taken a while to find a place to settle down. Back then, Jarrod had helped her get the house. Now, that very house had become her lifeline.

At least it was enough to help her weather the storm.

Once Neural Intelligence paid out the next round of dividends, buying the house back wouldn't be a problem.

She had just gotten off the phone with the bank when her assistant appeared at her office door.

"President Fielding, you have a visitor..."

Sylvie looked up, noticing her assistant's nervous, hesitant expression.

She frowned, puzzled. "No appointment? Tell them I'm not available."

But before she could finish the sentence, a striking figure appeared at the doorway.

Sylvie's hand tightened abruptly around her pen.noveldrama

Lucinda entered, taking in the layout of Neural Intelligence with a discerning gaze.

Everything was state-of-the-art, perfectly put together.

With a starting point this high, it was hard to imagine the company going anywhere but up.

When Sylvie caught sight of Lucinda, her expression flickered. She sprang to her feet and walked over. "Mrs. Silverstein... What brings you here?"

She kept her composure-respectful but never servile.

Only then did Lucinda finally look her over, eyes cool and sweeping from head to toe. "Do I need your permission just to see you?"

Sylvie's heart skipped, the pressure in the room suddenly palpable. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean that."

"This company-Jarrod helped you start it, didn't he?" Lucinda cut her off, her tone cold and direct.

The question hit Sylvie like a punch to the gut.

From the day she'd been around Jarrod, she'd never once met Lucinda in private. Lucinda had never expressed any interest in seeing her, either. For her to appear now, at such a critical moment-Sylvie instantly guessed what was about to happen.

She pressed her lips together and told her assistant to close the door.

Only then did she pour tea for Lucinda. "Please, have a seat, Mrs. Silverstein."

She regained her composure quickly, handling herself without a hint of panic or awkwardness. Her upbringing had always been impeccable.

Lucinda could see that.

But she didn't bother with small talk. Her beautiful, distant features

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showed no emotion. "Your family's situation has been rather... entertaining these past few days. I always thought that even if you weren't born into the world's elite, you still came from a respectable background. Seems I overestimated you all."

Her words pinned Sylvie in place, exposed under scrutiny.

There was no hiding.

Sylvie's chest tightened, but she recovered fast. "Mrs. Silverstein, I'm sorry. But

these are my issues. There's a lot of misunderstanding—I'll handle it."

"No need." Lucinda's gaze was dismissive. "Jarrod's done plenty for you. But the Silverstein family isn't in the charity business. The house Jarrod bought for your family, the resources he's given you-those are more than generous. I'll give you two options. One: you publicly clarify that there's nothing between you and Jarrod, and keep your distance from him from now on. Or two: I'll seriously consider demanding you return everything he's given you."

Sylvie stood there, her face darkening, lips pressed into a thin line.

Lucinda was every inch the heiress, and as Mrs. Silverstein, she had all the force and intimidation of her position.

So this was what today was about a warning, plain and simple.

For so long, Lucinda had let things slide, but now, as things started to spiral out of

control, her intervention was swift and ruthless.

She wasn't offering choices-she was making threats.

Sylvie finally understood firsthand what it meant to face the full force of the Silverstein matriarch.

She stood frozen, refusing to answer. Lucinda, of course, hadn't come to hear her response anyway. She glanced around the office with a

look of cool indifference. "If you're smart, I can help you out-give you a fresh start, a real chance to rebuild. That's not entirely off the table."