Chapter 1

I grew up in the projects. Eighteen years of it.

Then the Whitfields found me and told me I was their real daughter.

Now I'm halfway through my welcome-home dinner, and Derek Whitfield suddenly stands up and points straight at me.

"Nora, you're not my sister. You're nothing but a fraud."

His voice leaves no room for doubt.

"When the kidnapper took my baby sister eighteen years ago, I secretly switched her back before he noticed. So Mia is my real sister."

Right on cue, Mia's eyes fill with tears.

"Nora, I get that you want the Whitfield life. But you can't just pretend you're family."

Every head in the hall turns toward me.

I'm about to fire back.

Then, suddenly, I hear my cat's voice inside my head.

[Derek and Mia already paid off a witness. They've got fake evidence ready to drive you out of the Whitfield family.]

[And here's the kicker. Derek isn't a Whitfield by blood either. The real Whitfield son is the older brother you grew up relying on in the projects.]

I freeze.

I see the suspicion in Mr. and Mrs. Whitfield's eyes. I keep my voice calm:

"You're right. I'm not your biological sister."

"My real brother is still back in the projects."

……

The words are barely out of my mouth.

Derek immediately raises his voice:

"She admitted it herself!"

"I told you all along, I switched Mia back that night. Mia's the real Whitfield daughter."

"She spent eighteen years in the projects and wormed her way in here for the money!"

Mia sighs helplessly:

"I can understand you envying the Whitfield life. But you can't lie."

The guests' whispers explode instantly.

Mrs. Whitfield covers her mouth, looking at me in disbelief:

"Did we really bring home the wrong girl after all?"

Derek's lips curl into a faint smirk.

"If you know you're a fake, do the smart thing and get out of this house."

I clench my fists and lift my eyes to Mr. and Mrs. Whitfield:

"I only said Derek isn't my biological brother."

"I never said I wasn't the Whitfields' daughter."

No one says a word.

Every head snaps toward me.

Mr. Whitfield frowns:

"What are you saying?"

Derek's tone carries a flustered panic:

"What are you talking about?!"

"I just told the truth about you being a fake."

"How does that turn into you accusing me of not being a Whitfield?"

Mia chimes in:

"You can't just make things up about my brother because you're hurting."

"He's given everything to this family for years."

"How could he not be Mom and Dad's son?"

Mrs. Whitfield's face darkens too:

"Derek is the son I raised for over twenty years."

"You can't just throw words like that around."

Just then, the cat's voice comes back into my head:

[The whole thing was planned by Mrs. Garrett, the family nanny.]

[She had a son and a daughter of her own. She swapped Derek in for your real brother, then sent her daughter in to replace you. ]

[Derek and Mia are both her flesh and blood!]

Hearing this, a chill crawls up my back.

I look Mrs. Whitfield straight in the eye:

"Raising someone for twenty years doesn't make them your biological child."

"Mom, did you really never notice anything off?"

Derek's tone turns vicious:

"Mom and Dad raised me for over twenty years. And now you're making up a whole story about where I came from? What the hell are you trying to pull?"

I let out a cold laugh:

"Mrs. Garrett swapped out both Whitfield children with her own hands and slipped her own son and daughter into this family."

"You and Mia. Both of you are her biological children."