Chapter 21

A flicker of uncertainty crossed Rylie's face. She lowered the piano lid, rising from the bench. "Your sister? Me? You must be mistaken."

Marcus snapped out of his reverie and asked, "I am sorry. Maybe I have your name?" "Rylie Kirk," she replied calmly.

Rylie Kirk? He remembered that his grandfather was sitting in a hospitaI room, waiting anxiously for a DNA match. The name on those records was the same:Rylie Kirk.

All the signs lined up now. The way she played,the striking features- he couldn't shake the feeling that she was family. Even so, Brad's advice came back to him. No matter how convincing, they couldn't reach out until every detail was confirmed. A false step could destroy everything.

Carefully hiding his excitement, Marcus adopted a gentle tone as he drew closer. "Forgive me, Miss Kirk. I lost my head for a moment. You resemble my sister so much. That piece - I've never heard it before. Is it something you wrote?"

Rylie gave her head a quick shake. "No, it isn't original. I came across a ruined score and did my best to restore what I could."

That revelation left Marcus speechless for a moment.Pieces like that were often the remnants of great composers, their legacies nearly erased by time.Bringing one back required uncommon skill.

"You pieced it together yourself?"

She nodded. "I did. Is that strange?"

Marcus only smiled and shook his head. "Not at all.Actually, it's impressive."

Rylie responded with a quiet laugh, modest as ever,"I'm hardly impressive. If I stand next to you, Mr.Marcus Owen, I'd barely be noticed."

His eyebrows shot up in mild surprise. "So you recognize me?"

She released a gentle sigh, amusement in her voice."Do you really think anyone interested in music wouldn't?"

Their quiet exchange came to an abrupt end when a breathless student burst into the music room,invitation in hand. "Rylie! Mr. Dury sent this for you!"

The moment he noticed Marcus standing there,something about Marcus' commanding presence erased any hint of ridicule from his face. He offered the envelope to Rylie, then added, "There's a banquet at the Kirk residence tomorrow. They want you there to settle the issue with Mr. Dury- about your engagement.Attendance is required."

Rylie's brow furrowed. As if dealing with Stacey wasn't exhausting enough, now Fred had to step in as well. The two of them were making it painfully obvious that they wanted her out of the picture.

She let a sarcastic smile play on her lips and replied,"Message received."

Not daring to linger beneath Marcus' intense gaze,the messenger quickly bowed his head and made a hasty exit.

A note of concern crept into Marcus' voice. "You're still studying, but they expect you to marry?"

Shouldering her bag, Rylie started for the door,pausing only long enough to glance over her shoulder. "No wedding-just a cancellation."

The surprise on Marcus' face was unmistakable."Wait, so the Dury family is calling off the engagement? Anyone can see you're worth more than that," he retorted, his tone shifting fromn gentle to indignant.

There was something strangely comforting about a stranger speaking up on her behalf. Rylie's smile,though faint, was tinged with irony. "There's not much to it. I'm just the unwanted stand-in, so none of this should shock you. Anyway, if you want some time with the piano, go ahead. I have to be somewhere."

She didn't offer any further explanation. With that,Rylie slipped past Marcus and disappeared down the staircase, leaving her parting words echoing behind her.

Out of the blue, Kendrick's call came through,brimming with enthusiasm. "Marcus, the search is over - we've located your sister! Wrap up your concert and head straight to Crolens!"

A jolt of anxious hope surged in Marcus. "Is her name Rylie Kirk? She's enrolled at the medical university,isn't she?"

"That's right," Kendrick admitted, only to catch himself. "Wait, you already tracked her down? Why would you go ahead and find her before I'd even arranged a proper welcome?"

For an Owen, bringing a lost family member home was an occasion for the grandest reception. Marcus understood this tradition perfectly and quickly covered his tracks. "Until you told me, I wasn't sure if she is an Owen, so l didn't tell her anything about this. I did learn, though, that she's somehow tied to the Dury family through an engagement."

Kendrick's initialjoy turned to disbelief, his voice rising. "You're telling me she is engaged to that fool from the Dury family?"

Right then, Felix happened to be resting in his hospital bed as Kendrick spoke. Hearing the commotion, Felix chimed in, "From what I know,there's been a strong alliance between the Kirk and Dury families. When I heard about my sister's engagement, I gave the Dury family hundreds of millions to support their Crolens project as a wedding gift."

Marcus' response was grave. "The gesture was wasted. The Dury family doesn't see her worth.They're planning to call off the engagement-claiming she's not good enough for them."

Guilt and outrage mingled in Kendrick's chest. "How dare they! Who are they to look down on my granddaughter? Marrying into the Dury family would be a disgrace for someone of her standing!"

Felix's face tightened with frustration. "That was not the outcome I wanted."

With quiet conviction, Marcus added, "Having met her, I can say with certainty - she's anything but worthless. Rylie's talent speaks for itself."

Felix's tone hardened. "No one gets to trample on the Owen family. If the Dury family can't recognize her value, there's no need for us to continue any partnership with them."

Time flew by, and before long, the Kirk residence bustled with anticipation for the upcoming banquet.

The Kirk family pulled out all the stops, extending invitations to a throng of reporters in honor of Stacey's homecoming.

A picture of familial bliss seemed to fill the room-at least, for everyone but Nicolas, who was lying in the hospital bed.

Stacey shifted uneasily in her seat. "It's such a shame Nicolas couldn't be here," she murmured, a note of regret in her voice.

Her mother, Tessa Kirk, gently brushed her hair from her forehead, her tone soft but edged with disappointment. "I could never have predicted, after raising Rylie for so long, that she would end up harming her own brother."

Across the room, Stacey's father, Casper Kirk, spoke,his voice carrying a colder weight. "You can take a child out of poverty, but you can't take the poverty out of the child. Frankly, we've shown restraint by not pressing charges against her."

Leland's eyes lingered on his parents. Watching them rally behind Stacey, he opened his mouth as if to protest-then simply let the words die on his lips.

A shout broke the tension. "Rylie's arrived!"

All eyes turned toward the entrance, anticipation crackling in the air. The crowd parted, but instead of a poised debutante in formalwear, an unexpected sound cut through the chatter - a motorcycle's

deep-throated growl.

A matte-black bike tore into view, tires spinning into a dramatic stop just outside the banquet hall. Every head craned for a better look as Rylie coolly dismounted.

She removed her helmet, ran a hand through her wild hair, and strode forward - her black leather jacket and tailored pants setting her apart in a sea of gowns and tuxedos. That sharp pop of color on her lips,paired with her striking features, left more than a few young men momentarily speechless.

The gentlemen present, accustomed to the delicate manners of society's finest daughters, found themselves riveted. Here stood a woman who owned both elegance and defiance in every gesture,radiating a confidence that set her apart.

Fred, moments away from making the breakup official, found his attention completely captured by Rylie's entrance. He stared, caught off guard, until Stacey pinched his arm hard enough to snap him back.

Startled, Fred pasted on a reassuring smile for Stacey, but his mind was elsewhere.

Everyone remembered Rylie as the girl who hid beneath oversized sweatshirts. But tonight, she had shattered that image entirely - taking their breath away as she claimed the room for herself.

Rylie climbed the grand staircase, her leather jacket and fitted pants drawing every gaze in the hall-she was an undeniable outlier among the crowd of polished socialites. She nonchalantly blew a bubble with her gum, strolled right up to the Kirk family,and said, "I'll only be a couple of minutes. I need to grab something from upstairs."

Without waiting for a reply, she turned on her heel and disappeared into her old bedroom.

Tessa's composure snapped as she watched Rylie's retreating figure. "Just look at her outfit! This is the night Stacey's recognized as our daughter, and Rylie can't even pretend to act with dignity!"

But Phillip's focus wasn't on her clothes. He was squinting out the window at the motorcycle parked by the entrance, his voice sharp with suspicion."She's going too far these days. Where on earth did she get the money for a bike like that?"

Leland interjected, brow furrowing in warning,"Enough, Phillip. This isn't the time for wild accusations."

Phillip bristled, refusing to back down. "You clearly don't get it. That bike outside? It's a rare model -costs at least two million. Since she's no longer with the family, I'd like to know what trick she pulled to afford it."