The Million-Dollar Heart by Rebecca Ryan

On the ride home, Vivienne leaned against Percival, her thoughts drifting from Leopold and Griffin to

the dinner plans for the next day.

Dawson’s aunt.

Vivienne chuckled to herself at the smallness of the world where you bump into an acquaintance with

each turn.

Percival meticulously removed a loose strand of hair from Vivienne’s coat, “Let’s bring a gift tomorrow.”

“Yeah, good idea,” Vivienne smiled at him.

As she looked up, she was met with Percival’s sculpted features.

So handsome.

Her eyes sparkled, and without thinking, she straightened up and pecked Percival on the lips.

Taken aback, Percival looked down at the beaming girl in his arms.

Before he could react, Vivienne leaned in for a deep, fervent kiss.

Perhaps it was all those sweet nothings she had heard from Griffin lately, but Vivienne felt a sugary

sweetness in her heart.

She wanted to devour her Mr. Wolf, leave nothing behind!

Percival cradled Vivienne’s head, pulling her even closer.

In the moment’s intimacy, the air in the bus was thick with a sweet, sultry tension.

Thomas, the driver, quietly drew the curtain, well accustomed to such displays by now.

Meanwhile, Anna, sitting in the passenger seat, gaped in speechless wonder.

What just happened?

Did they just start making out?

Help!

She was barely an adult!

After dropping Vivienne off at her complex, Percival left.

As Vivienne and Anna were about to enter the building, they noticed a familiar figure standing at the

entrance.

Vivienne paused before approaching. “Mr. Perez?”

Was he waiting for her this late?

Yuri Perez greeted her with a smile, “Vivienne, I’ve been waiting for you.”

Without beating around the bush and casting a glance at Anna, he said, “I need to speak with you

alone.”

Anna quickly excused herself, “Ms. Vivienne, I’ll wait for you inside.”

Vivienne nodded.

Once Anna was out of earshot, Vivienne asked, “Mr. Perez, what did you want to talk about?”

After a moment of silence, Yuri said, “Vivienne, I need a few strands of your hair, some saliva, and a

few drops of blood.”

Vivienne sighed. “You’re persistent, aren’t you?”

She knew without asking that they wanted to do another paternity test. She had already proven not to

be the Perez family’s lost granddaughter, but they were not convinced.

Yuri looked slightly embarrassed, “My father feels a strong connection to you. He’s convinced you’re

his granddaughter. I know this is forward, but please, do it for a man who’s sick with worry.”

Vivienne was silent momentarily before speaking, “You can have what you need, but it won’t change

anything. You should spend more time convincing Jasper.”

She did not want to keep doing paternity tests.

Her parentage remained a mystery, as did the identity of the mastermind behind GTO.

Surrounded by danger, giving out her DNA could be risky.

She would not have agreed for anyone else, but she could not seem to say no to Jasper.

“I’ve been trying,” Yuri said, then looked at her. “The main reason we need another test is that your

genes were altered. And someone broke into my father’s house recently, leaving a note with two words,

‘Appraisal, wrong!'”

He had not wanted to tell Vivienne about the note. However, he felt that since that person could sneak

into Jasper’s room without being discovered, that person would know who Jasper had been in contact

with.

He wanted to alert Vivienne to be careful, for fear that this person might hurt her.

Vivienne froze, realizing she had forgotten that her genes had been modified.

Thus, no matter who, including her birth father, would not have a matching result in a paternity test with

her.

The note – could the person who left it be the same one who had been messaging her? Could she

really be a Perez?

“Someone left a note, and we don’t know who. Just be careful, Vivienne. We’ll do the paternity test as

soon as possible,” Yuri said.

Vivienne hummed in acknowledgment, plucked a hair, and handed it to Yuri along with her saliva on a

swab. She then cut her finger with a tiny knife, letting a few drops fall into a plastic bag, and handed it

to Yuri, accidentally nicking him with the blade.

“Sorry,” she apologized.

Yuri waved it off and left.

Watching him go, Vivienne pondered the situation. Anna approached, asking about the knife, but

Vivienne dismissed her concerns, and they went inside.

Once home, Vivienne messaged Matthew: [Come over.]

She chatted briefly with her siblings, Dorian and Cordelia, then retired to her room.

At her desk, she carefully transferred the blood from the knife into a new bag, preparing for whatever

came next.

With a swift slice, she opened a small cut on her hand and let her blood drip into another pouch,

carefully labeling it with her name.

Moments later, there was a knock at the window.

It was Matthew.

Vivienne’s lips curled into a smile; of all the people in Emerald Mountain and the Nine Mystics Society,

only Matthew truly understood her.

She had sent a simple text, “Come over,” and Matthew instinctively knew she did not mean for him to

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Crossing the room, she opened the window, and Matthew slipped inside. “Vivienne.”

She handed him the pouch containing Yuri’s blood with a grave expression. “Take this to Frostfire

Intelligence Agency for analysis. I want your eyes on it every step of the way, no exceptions.”

Matthew’s demeanor shifted to one of solemnity. “Vivienne, did you find your family?”

Though she never spoke of it, he knew that finding her kin was something Vivienne yearned for deeply.

Dorian, kind as he was, loved her as his daughter.

But blood calls to blood, and one must know their roots.

However, Vivienne’s biological father was as elusive as a pebble lost at sea, without a trace to follow.

Not just Vivienne was anxious; Matthew felt the urgency on her behalf.

She shook her head. “It’s my mother’s side of the family, and I’m not sure. They’ve already done a test,

but my DNA was altered. Their results aren’t genuine. To prevent any manipulation, we’ll conduct our

own.”

Understanding dawned on Matthew. “Don’t worry, Vivienne. I’ll be on it like a hawk. I won’t miss a blink.

You’ll be the first to know the moment we have something.”

Vivienne nodded, a brief sound of acknowledgment. “Go then.”