The Day I Walked Away My Empire Began novel Chapter 291

Bria jabbed a finger at Lucie, her whole body trembling, heartbreak written all over her face.

“So, in your eyes, she’s still his mother, isn’t she?”

“You think I’m not good enough to be his mom. You think I can’t raise him right, is that it?”

Steven felt a sharp pang in his chest. He tried to calm her down, speaking gently. “Bria, you’re overthinking this.”

“You’ll always be his biological mother. Nothing will ever change that. It’s just that Cody’s sick right now, and he did live with Lucie for three years.”

“Come on. Let me take you outside. You need a little space to cool off.”

Bria yanked her hand away from his, tears rolling down her cheeks. “Don’t touch me.”

“If there’s something to say, let’s just get it all out right here, in front of Ms. Anderson.”

Steven’s frown deepened. He looked helplessly between the two women.

Bria’s voice was cold as ice as she locked eyes with Lucie. “Ms. Anderson, I appreciate how well you took care of Cody and Steven before.”

“But that was then. Now, Cody is my son, and Steven is my man.”

“You’re smart, well-educated, from a good family. I’m sure you know what decency and boundaries are. Isn’t it pathetic to hang onto someone else’s husband and child?”

Lucie hugged Cody tighter, her face just as frosty.

Even though her throat burned, she shot back, her voice cold. “You and Steven are the pathetic ones. The two of you schemed together, tricked me into a fake marriage. And now you have the nerve to call me pathetic? Give me a break.”

“Fake marriage?”

Bria’s voice shot up. She looked like she’d been slapped. “Lucie, you stole my place. You lived in my spot for four years. The real wife is back now—shouldn’t you be the one to leave the Heath family?”

She sneered, eyes flicking to Cody in Lucie’s arms, her words laced with poison. “You think holding that kid changes anything? He’s a Heath—he’s got nothing to do with you. So what if you carried him for nine months? You were just a tool, just doing the job for me.”

Lucie felt a dull ache in her chest. “Bria, let’s get this straight. Legally, I am his biological mother.”

“Even if you and Steven get married, you’re just a stepmom. What gives you the right to act so high and mighty in front of me? If I fight for custody, there’s no way I’d automatically lose.”

“And if you ever treat my child badly, I can sue you for abuse.”

She had honestly been ready to give up all rights to Cody.

But seeing Bria act so entitled, turning herself into the victim when she’d gotten everything she wanted, Lucie just couldn’t stay quiet.

Bria’s nerves snapped, and she got even angrier. “So, what, you’re saying you want to fight us for the kid?”

Lucie’s voice was icy. “Whether I fight or not has nothing to do with you.”

“If there is a fight, it’s between me and Steven. You don’t get a say.”

And it was true.

Legally, Lucie was Cody’s real mother.

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