The divorced military queen awakens novel

Chapter 393 The Necklace Chapter 393 The Necklace It had to be a coincidence - just another trick of fate . After all , imitation flooded every market stall ; someone could have lifted the Fane family's necklace and reproduced it , stone for stone , chain for chain . The original piece - last seen fifty years ago - vanished the same night Everett's younger sister disappeared into the dark . For half a century , the Fane family had scoured continents , hunting both the woman and the necklace that bound her story to theirs .

The logic was simple : find the jewels , and just maybe they would find the girl , Violet Fane , whose absence still hollowed every family gathering . Legend said Lady Margaret Fane had intended the ruby necklace as part of her dowry , but Violet had fallen in love with it - clutching the glittering thing until the matriarch fastened it around her own neck . Its design was bespoke - a singular commission no jeweler had ever duplicated , at least not officially . Laura stood behind Quinn , fingers gentle against the chain .

" Wait a second , Quinn , I think there are some words etched on the link right here . It's tiny - can't quite tell what it says ." " It's the word ' Gurney , " Quinn said , smiling slightly . " My granddad found my mother wearing this necklace the day he discovered her - so they used that character as her surname ." " I see ," Laura murmured , remembering that Quinn's mother had grown up an orphan . Orphans were heartbreakingly common in those years , yet Arlene had been spared a life of wandering thanks to the Bridger family's open door .

Across the room , Serena overheard the exchange, and a storm detonated behind her poised expression . The name ' Gurney '- of course . That was Lady Margaret Fane's maiden name . Which could mean only one thing . The necklace before her eyes was the very heirloom the Fane family had chased for generations . And Quinn's mother ... could she be Violet ? Color drained from Serena's cheeks , replaced by a sickly gray .

If that were true , then Leander Fane would become her biological cousin , and the Quinn she O 1/3 15:29 Mon , Sep 15 Chapter 393 The Necklace disdained would rise overnight to Fane royalty . Everett had never married , had fathered no heirs . +10 Free Coins Ironically , the Bridger siblings might prove the closest blood successors to the entire house . Once a DNA test confirmed it , the hierarchy would shift forever . Her own dreams of leveraging Leander's influence would vanish , and Quinn would have every right to stand on the very pedestal Serena coveted . No.

She could not , would not , allow that future to unfold . She had to find a way to erase the necklace - erase the evidence . Meanwhile , Leander's gaze lingered on Quinn , radiant in her evening gown , the ruby necklace burning against her skin . For an instant , another figure overlapped hers - a girl in a simple flowered dress , laughing warmly at him and his toddler sister , the same rubies glittering at her throat . " Is it beautiful ? " the voice asked . " Beautiful , " the little boy who had once been him murmured . The present crashed in .

A white - hot throb exploded behind his temples , as if an unseen dam had cracked and memories were surging for release . " Ugh ... " Leander clasped his skull with both hands . Beads of sweat gathered on his brow , rolled down , and vanished into his collar . In the vision , he was no longer a man but a gangly adolescent , standing on scorched earth that still smoked from artillery . His mother knelt amid the rubble and pressed a ruby necklace into the palm of a foreign soldier .

Even then , he understood - the necklace was her dearest possession , proof of who she truly was , a slender thread that might one day lead her back to the parents she had never met . Yet desperation had forced her to trade that last fragment of identity for a sack of bread and a vial of medicine . In that moment , the boy vowed that someday - somehow - he would reclaim the necklace for her . " Rowan ! Rowan , talk to me . What's wrong ? " Quinn's frantic cry drowned every other sound . He gritted his teeth against the stabbing inside his skull and pried his eyes open .

Through the haze , he saw her skidding to her knees beside him , concern etched in every line of her face . It was Quinn - his sister . " I ... I think pieces are coming back , " Leander murmured , staring at the pendant . " I remember 2/3 15:29 Mon , Sep 15 Chapter 393 The Necklace Mom wearing this . Quinn , luckily , you recovered the necklace ." 26 +10 Free Coins " You remember ? Do you really remember ? " Quinn froze , hope flaring so bright it almost hurt . " Yes - some of it , " Leander said , wrapping her in his arms . " I'm sorry . I forgot too much . I came home far too late .

" He had arrived so late that he missed their parents ' burial , late enough that , before that , he had kept denying who he was . Late enough that his sister had stepped in front of a bullet meant for him - while he had done nothing to protect her . " Too late ? No , never . " Quinn buried her face against his chest , tears of joy soaking through his shirt . " You're here now , and memory or no memory , you'll always be my brother . " As long as her brother was still alive , that was enough for her . Serena stood nearby , her expression curdling as she watched the reunion .

She clenched a silent vow : Quinn would never be allowed to claim the Fane bloodline . Night had settled over the apartment when Laura eyed the evening gown Quinn had just hung on the wardrobe door . " Your brother is amazing . The instant he realized you loved that dress , he bought it for you on the spot . " Quinn smiled . Rowan truly did treat her well , and today , the sight of their mother's ruby necklace had coaxed a few more fragments of his past back into the lig