Chapter 544

Isabella's lips curled into a triumphant smirk. "Absolutely genuine! Mr. Lancaster is currently at the Whitmore estate. He'll be taking me back to Metropolia soon."

Her manicured fingers produced the matte black card with gilded edges that Henry had given her.

"Use this," she instructed the salesgirl, whose eyes nearly bulged when she spotted the embossed surname - Lancaster - gleaming on the reverse side.

The boutique staff erupted in hushed excitement. "Oh my God, it's Mr. Lancaster's personal card! She really is the heiress!"

"Imagine - shopping with the wealthiest man's daughter! I'm absolutely posting this on my Insta. This moment will define my career!"

Isabella soaked up their fawning admiration like sunlight. Vanity had always been her weakness, and now she reveled in being the center of attention.

Then Penelope's voice cut through the chatter. "Harrison? What are you doing here?"

Isabella spun around to find Harrison standing near the entrance with Rosalind. Those piercing emerald eyes locked onto Isabella with unsettling intensity.

The sight only fueled Isabella's gloating. Her smile widened.

"What a coincidence! Daddy gave me his unlimited card last night. Since we're old acquaintances..." She waved a hand at the luxury displays. "Pick anything you like. Consider it my treat."

Penelope tittered. "Always so generous, Isabella!"

"Of course," Isabella purred. "Think of it as... philanthropy."

Victoria playfully swatted her arm. "Must you phrase it that way? You'll hurt Harrison's feelings!" She turned to Harrison with mock sympathy. "But really, darling, life's unfair isn't it? All those years studying at Westfield, becoming Dr. Sinclair... yet here you are, still working for money while Isabella inherits billions. Such is fate."

Her words dripped with venomous amusement.

Rosalind's fists clenched, but the undeniable truth remained - Isabella was now untouchable. "Your birthright saved you, Isabella. Without it..."

"Exactly!" Isabella chirped. "With Daddy's protection, no one dares cross me."

Penelope added smugly, "Oh Harrison, Mr. Lancaster personally assured Grandmother Margaret last night - the Whitmores are under his protection now. Any thoughts of avenging your father? Forget it."

Rosalind's nails dug into her palms.

Then Harrison spoke. "Rosalind."

Silence fell.

Harrison stepped forward, her gaze boring into Victoria. "How did my father really die?"

Victoria's crimson lips twisted into a cruel smile. "So persistent! Very well, since you insist..."

She leaned in, her whisper carrying the weight of a death sentence.

"Benjamin was poisoned. Edith - I mean Margaret, Theodore, Frederick, Cassandra and I were all there. We held him down together."

Harrison's hands trembled at her sides.

"He fought like a cornered animal. Then Margaret arrived... and she personally poured the poison down his throat."

Victoria's voice dropped to a theatrical whisper.

"Such devotion! Even as he died, his eyes stayed open, calling your name - 'Harrison... Harrison...' Over and over until the end."