They Chose The Real Princess Not Knowing I Am The QueenChapter 1

As the sole designated heir to the Ashbourne family, everything I was taught had one purpose.

Preparing me to take over Ashbourne Holdings.

The people I grew up around were the heirs of New York’s old-money families and major financial empires.

My father, Richard Ashbourne, and my mother, Helena Ashbourne, had also selected three orphaned boys through the family foundation and placed them in the Ashbourne leadership program.

They were Julian Prescott, Tristan Rhodes, and Nolan Mercer.

The plan was simple.

On my twenty-eighth birthday, I would choose one of them to marry.

He would stand beside me and help me run Ashbourne Holdings.

Then Livia Ashbourne appeared at our door.

That was when my parents discovered that two babies had been switched at the hospital twenty-eight years earlier.

Overnight, I went from being the sole Ashbourne heir to a woman with no blood ties to the family.

Just as I was about to explain that the succession plan had not changed, I overheard Julian and the others talking outside the room.

“Now that Livia, their biological daughter, is back, is one of us still expected to marry Camille?”

Tristan gave a cold laugh.

“Of course not.”

“Livia is the real Ashbourne daughter.”

“Camille is just the child sent home with the wrong family. Sooner or later, she’ll be thrown out. Why would any of us marry her?”

Julian nodded.

“For old times’ sake, we could buy her an apartment on the Upper East Side.”

“One of us could keep her discreetly as a mistress and give her a monthly allowance. She’d have enough to live comfortably for the rest of her life.”

I quietly closed the door and abandoned any intention of explaining the truth.

What they failed to understand was that only the newly rich treated blood as the sole measure of succession.

Old-money families that had survived for generations chose their heirs based on ability.

Blood could give Livia the Ashbourne name.

It could not place her in the chairman’s seat.

If they could not understand something that simple, I would choose someone who truly understood power and loyalty.

Someone worthy of standing beside me when I took control of Ashbourne Holdings.

...

I turned away from the door and called a familiar number.

“From now on, you’ll assist me with the company and the family trust.”

There was no hesitation on the other end.

“Understood.”

Over the years, I had developed my own circle of trustworthy executives outside of Julian and the other two.

Elias Hartwell was the quietest among them.

He was also the most capable and the most reliable when it came to getting things done.

The next day, my parents arranged a joint board and family trust meeting that I was supposed to chair.

They intended to formally announce that I would remain the designated heir to Ashbourne Holdings.

Livia would receive a five-percent stake in the company’s common stock.

I arrived at Ashbourne Holdings’ Manhattan headquarters on time.

The moment I reached the conference room, two security officers stepped into my path.

“Ms. Ashbourne, Mr. Prescott has revoked your access to headquarters.”

“We can’t allow you into the conference room.”

I let out a quiet laugh.

The succession decision had not even been formally announced, yet Julian was already desperate to force me out of the company.

They appeared to have forgotten something.

When they were children living at a youth center supported by the Ashbourne Foundation, I was the one who selected them from dozens of candidates.

I arranged their education and training.

I brought them into Ashbourne Holdings and helped place them in the positions they held today.

Now they were using the power I had given them against me.

I did not waste time arguing with security.

I called Julian directly.

“Tell them to let me in.”

He clearly had not expected to hear from me.

“What are you doing at headquarters?”

“I’m here for the share transfer and the board meeting.”

The line went silent for a moment.

“Camille, today’s meeting is to announce to the directors and shareholders that Livia will be taking over Ashbourne Holdings.”

“You no longer have any connection to the Ashbourne family. There is no reason for you to attend.”

“Are you sure about that?”

Tristan took the phone from him.

“Camille, we aren’t trying to humiliate you.”

“Livia is the rightful Ashbourne heir.”

“Even if you dedicated twenty-eight years to this family, you need to accept that you don’t have Ashbourne blood.”

“Leave now, while you still have some dignity.”

He spoke as though everything had already been decided.

I glanced at the security camera above the hallway and smiled.

“So I’m supposed to thank the three of you for not throwing me out yourselves?”

Before he could respond, I heard Livia’s voice in the background.

“Julian, which dress do you think I should wear?”

“I’m still nervous. Will those directors and shareholders really listen to me?”

“Should I prepare some gifts so I can make a good first impression?”

Julian deliberately raised his voice.

“Only someone who doubts she deserves the position needs gifts to buy support.”

“Livia, you are the real Ashbourne daughter.”

“You could say nothing, and they would still have to obey you.”

I knew those words were meant for me.

I did not argue further.

I turned around, got into my car, and told the driver to leave headquarters.

I wanted to see how they planned to conduct a succession meeting without the person authorized to chair it.

The car had barely left the building when the board secretary called me.

His voice was strained with panic.

“Ms. Ashbourne, where are you?”

“The meeting is about to begin.”

“Without your authorization and signature, neither the share transfer nor the trust amendment can proceed.”

My voice remained calm.

“Julian revoked my access to headquarters.”

“If that is how he wants to handle this, let him chair the meeting.”

I ended the call.

Less than a minute later, a notice appeared on the company’s internal network.

[The share transfer and successor confirmation meeting scheduled for today has been postponed. A new date will be announced.]