The Devil's Favourite Obsession

Cixi could not stand any longer. The weight of the belly had begun to pull at her lower back, and although she knew very well that the burden was not truly what everyone believed it to be, the exhaustion it caused felt real enough to make her patience thinner than usual. She lowered herself onto the couch with careful annoyance, adjusted the fabric over her stomach, leaned back against the cushions, and exhaled as though the simple act of sitting had saved her from collapsing in front of Emily.

That was better, she told herself, allowing her shoulders to sink into the softness behind her.

Emily, who had been standing restlessly, irritated by someone who wanted to continue arguing but did not know which subject to attack next, sat opposite her and looked at Cixi’s belly with a strange mixture of curiosity and suspicion. ”Are you all right?”

”Yeah,” Cixi breathed, pressing one hand lightly against the roundness. ”This thing is very heavy.”

Emily’s eyebrow lifted. ”Thing?”

Cixi glanced down at her stomach as though the answer should have been obvious. ”Yes. This alien baby is heavy.”

”Alien baby?” Emily repeated, her expression turning sharper with disbelief.

Inside the study, where Cassian had been listening longer than either woman knew, the corner of his mouth curved before he could stop it. Of all the ways Cixi could have referred to the child everyone believed she carried, alien baby was perhaps the most ridiculous, and yet it sounded painfully like her. It carried the same strange mixture of innocence, irritation, and absurd courage that made it impossible for him to listen to her for too long without reacting.

”You call your baby an alien baby?” Emily demanded a possible explanation, still staring at her.

Cixi did not want to explain why she had used that word. The explanation was too tangled, too dangerous, and too close to the truth she was already exhausted from hiding. Instead, she shifted on the couch and chose the safer path of changing the subject before Emily could begin tearing apart the phrase until something slipped from her mouth. ”How are you planning to stop Rafael?”

Emily’s gaze lifted from the belly to Cixi’s face.

Cixi pretended not to notice how quickly Emily became alert. ”Even if Cassian comes back, he will take over the empire again, won’t he?” she added, trying to make the question sound casual, though curiosity had already sharpened inside her. She wanted to know how far Emily could go when something she valued was threatened. Setting every other thought aside, could Emily have been involved in Cassian’s accident? The idea appeared abruptly, dark and unpleasant, and Cixi rejected it almost as soon as it formed because Emily was sharp, arrogant, and difficult, but she did not feel like the kind of person who would quietly arrange another person’s death for a position.

”I would still prefer Cassian over Rafael,” Emily answered without hesitation.

This time it was Cixi who raised an eyebrow. ”You mean Cassian is easier to work with?”

In the study, Cassian’s fingers paused against the arm of his chair before resuming a slow, quiet tap. His head tilted slightly, and his eyes narrowed with faint amusement. Did she forget he was close enough to hear their conversation, or did she simply believe walls had enough loyalty to protect her words?

”Yes,” Emily replied, and there was no shame in her admission. ”Because Cassian never interfered much with what I did. He allowed me to lead as long as the results pleased him. His attention was always divided, and most of it stayed with his illegal activities, anyway.”

Cixi’s eyes widened despite herself.

Emily noticed the reaction and gave a dry smile. ”Do not look so surprised. The illegal side earns more in a week than Crown Empire earns in six months.”

Cixi’s lips parted. She tried not to look impressed, but the thought came too fast to be hidden.

How rich was Cassian exactly?

The question must have shown on her face because Emily leaned back and answered before Cixi could ask. ”Cassian is extremely rich, Cixi. He does not need the Crown Empire. He simply wants every Crown member to remember that he is the boss. That is all.”

”So it is a power play,” Cixi murmured.

Emily gave a short laugh, though there was no real amusement in it. ”It is always a power play. Everywhere. In business, in families, in marriage, even in the simplest relationships. One person wants to dominate, and the other either allows it or fights back. Everyone preaches about equality because it sounds civilised, but in real life people keep testing each other until one side bends.”

Cixi did not answer immediately because, against her own wish, she understood what Emily meant. She had seen that truth in smaller, uglier ways long before entering the Crown family’s world. In cafes, in rented rooms, in unpaid favours, in the way people smiled while taking advantage of someone weaker. Power did not always come dressed in wealth and titles. Sometimes it came in the form of a landlord, a manager, a family member, or even a friend who knew exactly when to make someone feel indebted.

”You said you believe Cassian is alive,” Emily suddenly remarked.

Cixi was caught off guard so badly that her fingers tightened over the fabric covering her stomach. ”Y-yes,” she answered, and she hated the small break in her voice because Emily was precisely the kind of person who would notice such things.

Emily did notice.

Her gaze remained fixed on Cixi’s face with unsettling attention. ”I hope so, too. If he comes back, Rafael will not be able to walk in and take everything so easily. Rafael’s mother, Tamara, will never allow me to keep my position once Rafael becomes president after his engagement. And his fiancee, Tatiana...” Emily’s mouth twisted with immediate dislike. ”That girl looks like a complete bitch. Tatiana and Tamara will never let me remain in the company. Even their names begin with T.”

Cixi watched her carefully.

The frustration in Emily’s voice was real this time. So was the helplessness behind her eyes, no matter how proudly she tried to cover it. Emily was older than Cixi, more experienced, better educated in the ways of wealth and power, and certainly more capable of frightening people into silence. Yet fear was fear, whether it lived inside a palace or a cafe. Cixi knew helplessness too well not to recognise it in another woman. She knew what it felt like to stand in front of a situation that was larger than her and still be expected to survive it with dignity.

Slowly, she sat straighter, ignoring the tired pull at her back. ”Cassian will come,” she stated. Emily’s expression changed only slightly, but Cixi saw the shift. ”I believe it,” Cixi continued, her voice becoming firmer because she needed Emily to stop looking as though everything had already been taken from her. ”You do not have to worry about anything. Cassian will come back, and when he does, Rafael, Tamara, Tatiana, and whoever else thinks they can take over will have to face him.”

The certainty in Cixi’s voice did what comfort alone could not.

Emily’s mind reeled. She had come to the room frustrated, angry, and desperate for some sign that Cixi knew more than she was saying. Now she had found it, not in the words themselves, but in the way Cixi spoke them.

There was too much confidence in her tone, too much assurance behind her eyes, as though she did not merely believe Cassian was alive but knew it and was hiding the truth from everyone else.

Emily’s lips slowly curved. ”I believe you,” she said softly.

Cixi relaxed a little, mistaking the smile for acceptance.

From the study, Cassian listened to the exchange with quiet satisfaction. Emily had done exactly what he expected her to do. She had pressed, circled, complained, and won Cixi’s sympathy in all the right places until emotion made her careless.

Cixi, with that reckless heart of hers, had not revealed everything, but she had revealed enough.

Cassian leaned back, his smirk deepening as his gaze remained fixed in the direction of the women’s voices.

Emily had come for confirmation.

And Cixi had just handed it to her.