A False Heiress's Guide to Love and Power

Chapter 218

Dawson, the butler, stood silently outside the bedroom door and closed it gently, shutting out every sound from inside.

“What’s wrong, Dawson?” York asked.

Dawson raised a finger to his lips in a hush gesture, glancing at the tightly locked door. York took one last look, then led Rex away.

Inside, the air was thick with tension.

Scott’s voice was cold and sharp. “I can’t believe I, of all people, could make such a mistake–bringing you back, when you turned out to be so utterly useless!”

If he hadn’t worried that a messy public reunion would tank the company’s stock, and if Ileana hadn’t always seemed more pliable and easy to manage than Alessia, with a temperament better suited for a marriage alliance–he never would have thrown away a real diamond in exchange for a cheap imitation.

“Tomorrow–no, tonight! Tonight you’ll pack your things and get on the first plane out of the country. I don’t want to see you again until you’re old enough for the marriage we arranged. That’s all you’re good for–your greatest contribution to the Tate family. If you care about keeping any of this luxury, you’ll do exactly as you’re told. Alessia isn’t even a Tate anymore and she’s still thriving. If you think you can do better, go ahead and try.”

to protest–she didn’t want to be sent abroad. She barely spoke a word of any other language,

one thing painfully clear: if she ever lost the Tate name, her life

bad. At least there, she could still hold her head high

made up her mind, Ileana didn’t resist Scott’s orders. That very night, she left for a foreign country. Unlike the grand estate where Max and York lived, her new home was just a

Still, Sp

entirely heartless; he’d arranged for a butler and two

she could, terrified someone might see what she’d been through. The front door was

1/2

Even her calls to the house’s butler went unanswered. Frustrated and exhausted, all she could do

curse under her breath. Dawn was breaking, and all she wanted was

opened. A white–haired, blue–eyed butler in a crisp

even reach for her luggage. Annoyed, Ileana shoved her suitcase in his direction, making

clasped behind his

her jaw forced her to shut her mouth, and she