The Daughter They Erased Was Gone ForeverChapter 3

For a while,

the backlash was everywhere.

Almost everyone was condemning the Bennett family.

They knew their biological daughter had been out there all these years,

yet instead of looking for her,

they had simply carried on with their lives as if nothing had happened.

Ethan Bennett stormed into my office and threw a newspaper onto my desk.

“Was this your plan all along?”

I looked down at the headline announcing that I was the Bennett family’s biological daughter.

“What are you talking about?”

“First, you rejected the house and the trust. Then you walked away as if you wanted nothing from us.”

His voice was tight with anger.

“And now, suddenly, every newspaper knows who you are.”

I looked up at him.

“You think I leaked it.”

“Who else would benefit from it?”

He stepped closer.

“You knew public pressure would force us to acknowledge you. You knew people would accuse Mom and Dad of abandoning their biological daughter.”

His expression filled with disgust.

“You made us believe you were walking away when you were really waiting for a better way to force yourself into the family.”

I stared at him.

So that was what he believed.

Even my refusal had become evidence of manipulation.

Even my silence was part of some plan to take Emily’s place.

“We offered you a house, a trust, and the same financial support Emily receives,” Ethan continued. “There was only one condition.”

“Pretend I’m not your sister.”

“Keep your identity private,” he corrected coldly. “You had nothing to lose.”

“Except my name.”

“You said you didn’t want the Bennett name.”

“I don’t.”

He gave a bitter laugh.

“Then why is the whole country talking about you as the Bennett family’s real daughter?”

Real daughter.

Not biological daughter.

Not another daughter.

In Ethan’s mind, acknowledging me could only mean replacing Emily.

He had never imagined that both of us could belong.

“You’ve already decided what happened,” I said.

“Because I know you.”

“No. You remember the woman who spent ten years begging this family to love her.”

His jaw tightened.

“You stayed because this family mattered to you.”

“I stayed because I hadn’t learned when to stop hoping.”

“And now you expect me to believe you suddenly want nothing from us?”

“Yes.”

His eyes hardened.

“You don’t walk away from a family you spent your entire life searching for.”

There it was again.

The certainty beneath every accusation.

He believed I could lie, manipulate the media, and hurt Emily.

But he could not believe I might genuinely choose to leave him.

“You keep mistaking my leaving for a strategy to make you chase me,” I said.

I met his eyes.

“It isn’t.”

Ethan went still.

Then his expression turned cold again.

“Emily already died because of you once. Now you’re trying to take away the only life she has left.”

“The only life she has,” I repeated quietly. “Is that my name?”

“You know that isn’t what I mean.”

“No. I know exactly what you mean.”

I pushed the newspaper back toward him.

“You believe I still want your house. Your name. Your parents. So every time I say no, you assume I’m only demanding more.”

I held his gaze.

“You don’t know me, Ethan. You only know the woman who once refused to leave you.”Ethan was about to respond when someone suddenly rushed through the door and stepped between us.

Professor Hayes spread an arm in front of me.

“Mr. Bennett, Claire is my student. I know her character.”

“She would never do something like this.”

Ethan gave him a cold once-over.

“You're her professor?”

“Then you can't be much of a mentor if you tutored someone this…”

“Mr. Bennett.”

Professor Hayes cut him off sharply.

“Watch your mouth.”

I looked at Professor Hayes standing between us, and my anger slowly faded.

“Professor, I've got this.”

Then I turned back to Ethan.

“If you don't have proof, please leave.”

The tension hung in the room for several seconds.

Then there was a knock at the door.

My assistant peeked inside.

“Dr. Morgan, we found the surveillance footage you asked us to check.”

“There was another unauthorized visitor at the institute two days ago.”

She glanced at Ethan.

“He came in right behind your family.”

Ethan's expression froze.

He took the visitor log from her and read through it.

At last, it became clear.

My identity hadn't been leaked by me.

The Bennett family's business rivals had done it.

Ethan's expression shifted several times before he finally spoke.

“I'm sorry.”

He avoided my eyes.

“I was wrong about you.”

I remained calm.

“Now that you've found the truth, Mr. Bennett, please leave.”

Ethan stood there for a moment.

This time,

he didn't ask me to come home.

The next day,

he came back.

But he didn't enter my office.

He stood outside the conference room and watched me lead a project meeting.

Several senior researchers gathered around me, discussing the latest data.

Someone raised a concern.

I immediately proposed a solution.

When the meeting ended, Professor Hayes patted my shoulder.

“I'll leave tonight's classified transfer to you.”

“Got it.”

Ethan had been standing outside the entire time.

When I finally walked out, he spoke quietly.

“You're leading this project?”

“Yes.”

He was silent for a long time.

“I went home and looked through your records with Mom and Dad.”

His voice was strained.

“Your papers, your awards, your position. We had no idea.”

He paused.

“Mom and Dad were proud when they found out.”

“They want you to come home.”

I said nothing.

Ethan lowered his eyes.

“I also saw the dates on everything.”

“You won those awards without us.”

“You published those papers without us knowing.”

“You built this entire career on your own.”

His voice dropped.

“The Bennett family had nothing to do with any of it.”

“But when we finally found you,”

“The first thing we did was ask you to keep hiding who you are.”

He looked up at me.

“So Mom and Dad thought we should at least make it up to you.”

“We'll transfer a house into your name.”

“Emily can stay at home, and you can live there.”

“You won't have to deal with each other.”

“That way, things will be fair to both of you.”

I looked at him.

“Fair?”

Ethan nodded.

I held his gaze.

“Then why don't you make Emily move out?”