As looked at me, and in his eyes, I saw a hint of sadness. "That was just the version you heard."


    He continued, "They gave you that story in a deliberate attempt to confuse you. That''s why I''ve been reminding you that you need to trust me."


    My mind did a quick flip. He was right. The false Ste was the one who told me about Annalise the first time.


    "The truth is, when the real Ste was sent to that orphanage, she wasn''t called Ste anymore. She was given the name ''Annalise''," As said with certainty.


    "So Celine changed her name when she sent her there," I deduced.


    "Yes, that''s right. So even though we searched every orphanage, we couldn''t find Ste."


    "When did you find her?" I was having trouble understanding the intricacies of the situation.


    "Perhaps it was fate. Just as I found the lost little girl, we discovered an orphanage. We went to inquire, and when Cody came back, he told me they had someone named Ste there. Overjoyed, I ran out to see her, but they wouldn''t let me. Instead, they kept me and questioned me about my situation. Something felt off, so I ran away."


    "Was it because they had received some orders?" I asked, connecting the dots.


    "I couldn''t care less at that moment. I just wanted to see Ste. We went around the orphanage, trying to find a way in. Later, I decided to climb over the outer wall from a slope, and Cody waited outside. "Once inside, I saw you there among a group of children, looking dispirited. I was ecstatic; it was the first time I''d seen you in two years. You were so thin. But I didn''t dare approach you because the caregivers were also there. I waited anxiously for an opportunity to get you out.


    "Maybe it was because I''d been inside for too long, but Cody got worried when I didn''te out, so he came to find me. Before he entered, he hid the little girl outside. She was scared and cried while she waited.


    "When she didn''t see us after a while, she ran out crying, which resulted in her being discovered. Themotion outside drew all the children to see what was happening. You stayed there, unresponsive, while I ran over quietly. When you saw me, you were utterly shocked. You just stared at me without moving."


    As paused, his eyes filled with tenderness. Then he kissed me lightly and chuckled, "You looked so dumbfounded. I didn''t dare say a word; I just grabbed you and ran. You didn''t make a fuss and just followed me.


    "Cody carried us over the wall to a tree, and we quickly escaped. But then, we realized that the little girl was missing. Later, he climbed onto the wall to check inside and said she had been caught and taken back in. We were afraid of being discovered, So we had to leave with you first."


    "She reced Annalise that way?" I sighed helplessly, feeling a bitter sorrow in my heart. It was unfair; she shouldn''t have died. But it happened because Ste had died.


    "We didn''t want to give up on her. We were afraid you would be captured again, so we nned to hide and find an opportunity to get her outter. But we were toote. When we wanted to get her gut, we received news of her death, iming she fell off a cliff."


    "What happened exactly? Why did Ste push her off?"


    "After you came out, you told us there was another Ste inside, and you called her Annalise. That''s when I realized Celine had orchestrated a switch.


    "Many yearster, when I


    investigated the situation, I foundN?velDrama.Org: text ? owner.


    out the reason. They said that the child kept crying, and insisted she


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    wasn''t Annalise when she was caught and taken back. Later, she escaped again, wanting to find us. She insisted on leaving with us that day because she was being abused in that house, and she had injuries on her body."


    I choked up, closing my eyes. I felt an overwhelming sense of guilt.


    "What was her name?"


    "I only know she was called Kylie," As said heavily. "Her death weighs heavily on my conscience too."


    "It was an unjust death," I said, sniffing.


    "After she was captured and brought back, the imposter Ste began to suspect her. It''s unclear how Ste managed to push her off when they ran away together. No one knows the details, and maybe only Ste herself knows."


    As As spoke, I fully understood his previous deliberate distance and feigned indifference. He didn''t want me to be involved in this tragic past.


    "Ste used her death as an excuse. She imed that she didn''t die from falling off a cliff, but was just disfigured. Celine took her for treatment and she underwent stic surgery, creating the entirely new Ste we see now."


    "I still don''t understand one thing. Wasn''t Ste in the Pierce family at that time? Why did she appear in the orphanage again?" I was puzzled by the sequence of events.