Page 108 of Surrendering to the Obsession

Mia’s fingers tightened inside Liana’s hand. Seeing the expectant look in her eyes, Mia answered quietly, “My mom and dad… passed away in a car accident a few months ago.”

Liana froze. It was as if her heart stopped beating. Tears spilled from her eyes within seconds.

A soft gasp escaped her mouth. She covered her face and turned away from Mia, her shoulders shaking.

A servant arrived with glasses of water on a tray. Sawyer picked up a glass and offered one to Mia before walking to his mother.He handed her the other glass, rubbing her back gently in comfort.

Liana’s head fell against Sawyer’s stomach. Her body trembled lightly as tears kept falling in a constant stream.

Mia turned her head away. She couldn’t bear to watch Liana cry for her mother because it made it harder to hold back her own tears. Every time she spoke about the accident, the pain clawed back into her chest. Their death was so sudden… so cruel. She never saw it coming. And facing it alone had been the most painful day of her entire life.

When Ileana finally calmed a little, she wiped her tears, straightened her back, and tried to compose herself. Then she reached out and placed her hand on Mia’s head, touching her gently, her fingertips soft and trembling.

After several minutes, Liana finally stopped crying. She wiped her tears with her hands, straightened her posture, and looked at Mia again. Then she reached out, gently cupping Mia’s cheek and stroking it with soft fingertips.

Mia looked back at the woman in surprise. For a brief moment, she saw her own mother reflected in Liana. The resemblance—the warmth—made it easy to believe she truly was her mother’s sister.

“You look so much like Leah,” Liana whispered in a soft voice. “Like an exact copy.”

“Do I really?” Mia asked, surprise shining in her eyes.

Liana nodded with a small smile. “How else do you think Sawyer recognized you?”

Mia looked at Sawyer in shock.

Sawyer spoke quietly, “The last time I saw you, you felt strangely familiar. I knew my mom had a sister she lost contact with years ago, and I’d seen a few old pictures. But I never imagined I’d meet her daughter like this. When I looked at you, the resemblance was there… and your parents’ names matched what my mom used to mention. Still, I wasn’t completely sure—so I did a DNA test to confirm it.”

Mia’s voice trembled slightly as she turned to Liana. “My mom never told me about you…”

“When your mom and dad got together… my father didn’t approve of Ericson. He didn’t want Leah to marry him. At that time, your dad didn’t have much. He had just finished college, and so had Leah. Our family was doing well, running businesses, while your dad came from a middle-class home. But to my father, that was no different from being poor. He didn’t want my sister to ‘step down,’ even though it wasn’t poverty at all.”

Mia listened quietly, her chest tightening.

“Your mom left home one day to be with your father,” Liana continued softly. “She never came back. She never contacted us again. And after so many years, I had almost given up. So when Sawyer told me about you—how much you look like my sister, and your parents’ names—I wanted to believe it. But I couldn’t. It had been decades since I last saw Leah.”

Liana’s lips trembled into a weak smile as tears filled her eyes again.

“But I’m so glad we found you,” she whispered. “Even if it’s too late… I just wish I had met you sooner. I wish I had seen Leah one more time.”

A servant suddenly rushed into the house, breathless and pale. His steps were frantic, his eyes wide as he hurried toward the living room.

“Madam… the house—” he stammered, looking at Liana and Sawyer. “The house has been surrounded by some men. They even broke the main door… they’ve entered inside.”

Sawyer shot to his feet instantly. Liana and Mia gasped, rising in shock. Sawyer’s face tightened as he glared at the servant.

“The house is filled with security,” he said, his voice sharp. “How did—”

Before he could finish, the echo of fast, heavy footsteps thundered through the hall.

All eyes turned toward the sound.

A moment later, Alexander appeared, marching inside—tall, well-dressed, his expression set in a deep, icy anger. Several large, intimidating men followed right behind him, moving like a shadowy wall at his back.

Sawyer immediately stiffened. “Alexander Graves…?” he muttered under his breath.

Liana gasped quietly, eyes widening as she heard Sawyer’s quiet murmur. “He’s Alexander Graves? From the Empire Group? What is he doing here?”

But Alexander wasn’t looking at any of them. His eyes were locked straight on Mia.