Hunter put his hands behind his head, "I don't understand. You guys don't have the same biological parents, but you grew up in the same family. Why is she so evil while you are so kind? Didn't you guys receive the same education?"
Sydney smiled, "Yes, but we are different people."
Sydney glanced at Madeline and said, "Her mother, Kaylie, is not a kind woman. She used tricks to get pregnant and marry my dad. And Kaylie... Anyway, with a mother like Kaylie, how could Madeline be good? Even if we had the same education, our genes are different."
"Interesting." Hunter nodded, "No wonder you are looking for a good male candidate to select a good gene for Madeline's kid. You wanted Madeline to have a kind child, didn't you?"
Sydney nodded slightly, "Yes. The kid will be the heir to my family, so I need to be careful. I don't want the kid to be as evil as Madeline."
"You're thoughtful." Hunter reached out to pat her on the shoulder. But as his hand neared her shoulder, something occurred to him. His fingers clenched and he withdrew his hand, a look of loss on his face. Hunter tucked his hand in his pocket nonchalantly and asked, "Madeline has done so many nasty things to you. Why will you raise her child?"
Sydney shook her head, "I'm not doing it for her. I'm doing it for my family."
She rubbed her temples, "Even though I grew up in the family, I'm not my dad's real daughter. Madeline poisoned my dad and did other evil things. She's bound to end up in jail for the rest of her life. She can't get married or have children. And I don't want Madeline to get married. Any man who marries Madeline is ruining his life. But Madeline has to leave an heir to the family. I have no choice."
Hunter showed a complicated look in his eyes. "Actually, you feel guilty if you or your kids inherit everything from the family because you are not Harry's daughter. Am I right?"
Sydney looked up at Hunter. Her lips parted. After quite a while, she admitted, "Yes, you're right. I don't like to take things that don't belong to me, and I don't like to owe people favors. I could have inherited everything from the family if I didn't know I wasn't my father's daughter, and I wouldn't have made plans to let Madeline have children. My children could inherit everything in the family. That's not a problem. But I'm not Daddy's daughter, and even if I had the right to inherit everything from Dad, I couldn't do that."
Then Sydney sighed, a sad look in her eyes, "Daddy brought me up, and I'm grateful for it. I could never repay him. If I inherited everything from the family and gave it to my children in the future, in a few generations, who would remember that it all belonged to the Raines? So I want Madeline to have a child and let the child inherit the family’s fortune, so I could give everything back to the Raines family. It's the only thing I can do for Dad."
"I understand." Hunter looked at Sydney, "But I don't think you need to feel guilty. Even though you're not your father's biological daughter, he always thought of you as his. In your father's mind, you're his own daughter, and you get to inherit everything in the family. You're also a Raines. Blood doesn't always matter, but the family name instead is what matters."
Sydney smiled, "I know, but I've made up my mind. I don't want to change my mind anymore."
"But do you think it’s fair?" Hunter frowned, "You've worked so hard to run Skylight, but you have to give it to Madeline's child in the end. Don't you have a little resentment in your heart?"
Sydney shook her head, "No, I never wanted to run the company. I grew up wishing to be a painter. I love painting. I've never told anyone about my dream, except Julien."
"Oh?" Hunter's eyes lit up, "So I'm the second person you've told?"
Sydney smiled, "Yes, you're the second person. I didn't even tell my dad or Luke."
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