Isabella's fingers curled tightly, her knuckles turning white as her face drained of color.

Emily spoke up, her tone sharp. “Isn't it just a little too perfect? You just happened to save Benjamin Gomez's daughter. You two know each other, and he was the one who took you to the hospital. Since his daughter got into that accident, I started watching Benjamin Gomez closely. Even when you were overseas, I had someone keeping tabs on him."

"At first, you were always by his side, wearing a mask. I couldn't think of anyone else who could stay that close to him and still need to hide her face. It had to be you. That's when I first suspected you were Isabella Austin. Then, after you took off your mask and I saw your face, I actually doubted myself for a while. You looked completely different, like a different person."

"But I couldn't let it go. I decided to look into the women around Benjamin Gomez anyway. I got close to you on purpose, watched you carefully,” Emily said, her eyes never leaving Isabella's. "Why don't you guess what finally convinced me Juliana Silva was actually Isabella Austin?"

Isabella's jaw tightened. "Just spit it out."

Emily leaned back a little. "It all started with your family background. Honestly, that's the main reason I'm here today."

Isabella's eyes flickered with wariness. "What do you know about my family?"

Emily's gaze was steady. "I know you're not your parents' biological daughter. I know who your real parents are."

Isabella's whole expression shifted. She stared at Emily, her voice trembling. "How do you know that? How could you possibly know?"

“Does it really matter how I found out?" Emily replied. “What matters is that I know the truth about who you really are."

Isabella forced herself to stay calm, her voice low. "Then say it.”

Emily continued, "Your adoptive parents' biological daughter was born on the exact same day as you."

Isabella's eyes narrowed. "What are you trying to say?"

Emily's voice stayed cool and even. "Your birth mother and your adoptive mother were in the same hospital. Both of them gave birth that day. Your birth mother always wanted to move up in the world, and when she noticed how wealthy your adoptive parents were, she waited for the nurses to look away and switched you with their daughter."

Isabella looked like she'd been struck. Her eyes were wide, her breathing shallow. She bit down on her lip, staring at Emily.

"I know your birth mother," Emily went on. "She's my mom's sister. Emma George's sister. Adelaide George."

Isabella's mouth fell open. Her breath came in short, shaky bursts. All the color had left her face. "That's not possible. That can't be true... You're lying. You have to be lying!"

Cousins with Emily? No way. Absolutely not.

Isabella shook her head, voice barely holding together. "There's no way I'm related to you by blood."

"You're right," Emily replied calmly. "We're not related. I'm also adopted. I'm not my mom's biological daughter either. So, there's no blood relation between us. But that's not really the point."

Emily's eyes sharpened. "I don't just know who your birth mother is. I know who your birth father is too."

Isabella wanted to protest, but curiosity got the better of her. "Who?"

Emily took a breath. “Tate Vargas. He was my mentor when I started my career. He used to be the general manager for the Eldoria region at a Fortune 500 investment firm, but he's retired now. He asked me to help him find his missing daughter. That search led me to you."