Chapter 625

Victoria clung to Isabella's hand desperately, her gaze brimming with fragile hope. In this moment, Isabella was her only lifeline. She truly believed her daughter would be her salvation.

Isabella met Victoria's eyes and murmured softly, "Mother."

Victoria immediately pulled her into a crushing embrace. "Yes, my darling?"

Isabella didn't resist. She allowed the embrace but her voice carried an undercurrent of tension as she confessed, "Henry is beginning to question my origins."

"What?" Victoria froze, her pulse stuttering. "Why would he doubt your background?"

"Because I went to plead your case. I begged him to release you, but he insists you're a murderer who can't be freed. I groveled at his feet, but he said you're just my adoptive mother—not my real one. That's when the suspicion started."

Isabella's voice fractured with barely restrained frustration and something darker—guilt.

Victoria was profoundly moved. "You... you actually did that for me? I thought you'd written me off."

"Never! At the hospital, when I accused you of killing Father, it was just survival—a temporary act. I could never truly abandon you. But now I've failed to free you, and Henry's suspicions are growing. Mother, what do I do?"

Her fingers twisted in Victoria's sleeves. "If I lose my identity as Lancaster's heir, the Whitmores and Lancasters will discard me. I'll have nothing. My entire life, I've been superior to Harrison. She'll trample me into the dirt if I fall. I can't live like that!"

Tears spilled down Isabella's cheeks, silent and rapid. "You're my real mother. You'll help me, won't you? You're all I have left."

Victoria's heart shattered at the sight. She cupped Isabella's face. "Don't cry, my love. I'll find a way."

"But how? Henry won't stop until you confess, and now he's unraveling everything! Unless..."

"Unless what?" Victoria whispered, dread coiling in her stomach.

"Unless you vanish from this world."

Victoria recoiled as if struck. "Vanish?"

Isabella stepped forward, her expression glacial. "It's the only solution. You must shoulder all the blame and end it. That's how you save me."

Victoria's breath came in shallow gasps. "You came here today... to ask me to kill myself? You never pleaded for me at all, did you? This was all an act! Even your tears—they're lies!"

Had she seen through the ruse? Isabella had intended to manipulate Victoria into a willing sacrifice, but the facade was crumbling.

Coolly, Isabella wiped her tears away and dropped the pretense.

"Correct. I never begged for you."

"How could you?" Victoria's voice was raw with betrayal.

"Why wouldn't I? Begging for you would only expose me. Henry's already suspicious. Do you want me ruined? You're the one who made me Lancaster's daughter. You orchestrated this. Now that I'm here, I refuse to fall. Is that so terrible?"

Isabella's tone was steel, unrepentant. Victoria's face drained of color as the truth settled over her.

This was her own making. She'd forged Isabella into this.

"You taught me to climb, to crush people like Harrison beneath me. Wasn't that your lifelong lesson? I've grown accustomed to luxury, to power. I won't surrender it! You're my mother, and you're condemned for murder. There's no escape. Shouldn't you protect your daughter one final time?"

Isabella's grip on Victoria's shoulders tightened, her nails biting into flesh. "Mother. Do this for me."