Chapter 203: Amber’s demand
"Elias?" A smile appeared on her face. "You don’t need to knock before entering my office."
"I know." He walked toward her. "But I thought you might be busy."
He placed a lunch box on her desk. "You’ve been working nonstop." He gave her a pointed look. "You even seem to have forgotten that you are pregnant."
Elena chuckled. "I am taking care of myself."
"Really?" He arched an eyebrow. "I’ve been watching you since morning. Your secretary told me you barely ate lunch."
Elena opened her mouth to defend herself, but Elias had already stepped closer.
He leaned down and gently held her chin.
Elena’s breath caught. His closeness made her suddenly aware of his familiar scent and the warmth radiating from his body.
A shiver ran across her skin. Her heartbeat quickened.
Elias noticed her flushed cheeks. A teasing smile curved his lips.
"I brought you soup." He pushed the lunch box toward her. "I specifically asked the housekeeper to prepare something nutritious for you. Eat it."
He leaned down even closer. "Or should I feed you?"
Elena’s heart thudded inside her ribcage. Her body wanted his touch. She craved him. But then she recalled the doctor’s warning: ’No intimacy during the first trimester.’
She quickly placed both hands against his chest. "I can eat myself. Now leave."
"No." He pulled back and sat down on the chair across from her. "I won’t leave until you finish eating."
Elena shook her head. "You are impossible."
She opened the lunch box and began eating.
Elias remained there, watching her until she finished.
A few minutes later, Elena placed the spoon down. "I finished it. Now you can go and busy yourself."
"Hmm." Elias stood. "Don’t stay late. Go home early."
"What about you?"
"I’m going to the head office." He picked up his phone. "But I’ll be back before dinner. Wait for me at home."
He winked at her before leaving.
Elena watched the door close behind him. Her smile slowly faded. Her thoughts returned to the phone call.
’It’s perfect. I can go out now.’
She couldn’t let Elias know about the meeting.
She knew how much he hated the Sterlings. If he discovered that Amber Sterling was her biological mother, she was afraid his hatred for the Sterling family would extend to her.
More than that, she wanted to have this conversation with Amber alone. There were questions she needed answered, questions she had carried for years.
"I’m sorry, Elias. I have to keep this from you for now. I’ll tell you everything later."
She picked up her bag and left her office.
~~~~~~~~~
At the café...
The moment Elena arrived, she noticed Amber sitting at a corner table, calmly sipping her coffee. Her fingers tightened around the strap of her bag.
Years of resentment and hurt rose inside her all at once.
She took a slow breath and walked toward the table.
Amber glanced up when she approached.
"You are here. Take your seat." She gestured toward the chair across from her.
Elena sat down. "Mrs. Sterling wanted to see me so urgently. What’s wrong?" Her voice was cold. "How do you suddenly remember me?"
Amber’s expression stiffened, but she said nothing. Instead, she reached into her bag, pulled out a check, and pushed it across the table.
"Five million. Take it and withdraw the case against Vivian."
Elena looked down at the check. Then she let out a sarcastic chuckle.
"Five million?" She slowly raised her eyes to Amber. "Do you think I need your money? I donated five million to different NGOs just last month."
She leaned back in her chair and folded her arms.
"And you think you can buy me with that money?" she scoffed. "Vivian was punished because of her crimes. She killed someone. No one can save her from the consequences of what she did."
All the smugness disappeared from Amber’s face. Her expression turned desperate.
"She is my only daughter," she pleaded. "I can’t stand seeing her suffer. Mrs. Rowan, please help us."
Tears gathered in her eyes. "Elias is powerful and influential. If he wants, he can do anything. He can get Vivian out of jail. And he loves you. He will listen to you..."
Her voice trembled. "I can give you everything I have—money, property, shares... Whatever you want. Please, save Vivian."
Elena’s heart ached. But it wasn’t Amber’s desperation that hurt her.
It was one phrase.
’My only daughter.’
Those words echoed painfully in her mind.
’So, in her eyes, Vivian is her only daughter. I am nothing to her. She forgot the five-year-old girl she left behind.’
Elena smiled bitterly.
A foolish part of her had wondered if her mother ever remembered her. Maybe she had regretted leaving. Maybe, somewhere in her heart, she still thought about the little girl she had abandoned.
But now Elena understood.
Amber had erased that daughter from her life completely.
"For Vivian, you are willing to do anything," Elena said, pain lacing every word. "You don’t even care what crime she committed. A poor man’s life means nothing to you. For money and influence, you can sacrifice anything."
She paused. Her eyes remained fixed on Amber. "You can even abandon your five-year-old daughter."
Amber stiffened. Her eyes widened in shock.
"What?" Her lips trembled. "How... How did you know about her?"
Elena stared at her coldly.
"All these years, did you ever think about her?" she asked. "Did you ever wonder how she was doing? Whether she was safe? Whether she was happy? Whether she ever cried for the mother who left her?"
Amber’s fingers began to tremble. "I..."
Her mind suddenly filled with memories she had buried for years.
A tiny girl standing at the door, small hands reaching for her, a frightened voice calling and pleading with her not to leave.
Amber had forced herself not to remember those moments. She had convinced herself that leaving had been necessary, that she had deserved a better life.
But facing Elena’s questions, she suddenly realized she had been cruel to the little girl. That guilt tore her apart.
She had spent years enjoying the luxurious life she had chosen, while the daughter she had left behind had grown up carrying the wound of her abandonment.
Tears slipped down Amber’s cheeks.
"I..." she tried again, but her voice broke.
"No." Elena’s voice was sharp. "You never cared about her. You only wanted a luxurious life, money, and status. So you left your husband and your daughter to marry a wealthy man."
She leaned forward slightly.
"Now you are Mrs. Sterling. You achieved everything you wanted. You have the wealth, the luxury, and the status you dreamed of. So why can’t you use all of that to save your dear daughter?"
Tears threatened to spill over despite her effort to remain composed.
"Why did you come to me—the daughter you abandoned years ago?"