Chapter 277
The security guards at the front gate called up to the apartment. Mira was going to deny them entry, but Rachel stopped her. “If you don’t let them up, they’re just going to keep blowing up your phone.
“Might as well have security let them through. Let them see for themselves that you’re thriving without the Mercer family.
“It’ll give you a chance to shut them down to their faces, so they stop bothering you p>
Whatever. Let them come up.
Adrian, Lacey, Ethan, and Julian Mercer arrived together.
When they walked in, Mira didn’t bother greeting them as family. Rachel directed them to the sofa and poured everyone a glass of water.
They used to be her employers, after all. She didn’t want to make things entirely uncivilized.
“Did you buy this place?” Julian asked, taking in the surroundings.
It was a spacious, four-bedroom apartment with excellent natural light, well over a thousand square feet, located in a prime school district.
“Yes p>
“I had no idea you were this capable p>
This was nothing. She owned a commercial plaza worth hundreds of millions of dollars.
But Mira couldn’t be bothered to explain that to him.
She sat across from them, her expression perfectly neutral, yet she exuded an aura of authority that easily rivaled Adrian’s.
Julian almost thought he was hallucinating.
Power changes a person’s demeanor. Mira had been sitting in the CEO’s chair of a massive conglomerate for quite some time now, and her commanding presence was entirely natural.
The Mercer family also recognized the Iron Wolves sitting nearby. Mira’s
bodyguards clearly weren’t the type of muscle you could just hire off the street.
Though they weren’t standing directly behind Mira, they were seated close enough to intervene.
Julian knew that if anyone made a sudden move, those two would be on them in a heartbeat.
In just a few short months, Mira had completely transformed.
Mira looked at them coolly. “What do you want? Say it p>
Lacey frowned, staring at this daughter who felt both familiar and completely alien. She couldn’t find her voice.
Truthfully, it was Lacey who had insisted on bringing Mira home.
It was almost the holidays, and as a mother, her heart couldn’t settle knowing one of
her children was missing from the table.
They were mother and daughter.
The girl sitting across from her used
to be the little dashe
her arms. How had things
cradled in
deteriorated to this point?
Lacey felt a wave of dizziness wash over her.
Adrian stared at Mira as well, remaining silent.
He was the one who had kicked her out, fully intending for her to suffer so she would realize just how harsh the world was without the family’s protection.
But his plan had failed spectacularly, and now she felt like a total stranger.
He refused to blame himself. If anything, it was Mira’s fault for failing to get along with Mara.
Seeing Mira’s icy demeanor, Ethan knew she had no intention of coming back, but he still had to try.
“Mira, the whole family is waiting for you to come home for the holidays p>
A cynical smirk tugged at the corner of Mira’s mouth. “Don’t you realize how ridiculous that sounds?
“When I lived there, you all treated me like a punching bag, acting like I owed you my life, treating me like an enemy.
“Now that I’m gone and completely out of your hair, you keep showing up, demanding I come back.
“The only reason I let you up here today was to tell you face-to-face: I’m never going back. Not in this lifetime.
“You can see for yourselves—I’m doing phenomenally well. I don’t need your charity.
“We’ve gone our separate ways. I expect you to stop bothering me p>
Ethan took a deep breath. “Understood. We won’t bother you anymore p>
He realized he no longer had the right to ask anything of her. As long as she was happy, that was enough.
He stood up and gently guided Lacey toward the door.
“Mira, your mother loves you,” Lacey sobbed, wiping away tears. How could her child be so cold-hearted?
“I don’t need it anymore p>
Julian stared at the scene in utter shock. How had things escalated to this?
His personality was straightforward
and rough around the edges. He
spent most of his time away, racing. cars competing, or hanging out with his friends.