**Blake's POV**

"Snow."

I frowned watching her back away. My cat, who normally ran to me when called,hissed and pressed herself against Evelyn Knox's legs.

This wasn't like Snow at all. She always jumped into her carrier when we traveled,eagerly following me everywhere. Now she looked at me like I was a stranger - worse, someone to fear.

Snow kept her eyes on me while staying glued to Evelyn's side. What happened to make her act this way so suddenly?

"Emma."

The woman crouched down and handed Snow to her daughter.

"Take Snow to the bedroom. Mommy needs to talk with Mr. Parker."

The little girl nodded. "Okay! I'll take Snow to the bedroom!"

What surprised me was how easily Snow went to her. My cat,who typically avoided strangers, settled comfortably in the child's arms. Snow even adjusted her paws around Emma's arm to make herself easier to carry.

Emma struggled a bit with Snow's weight but looked determined.

"Mommy, be careful," she warned, glancing nervously my way. "This man doesn't look very nice."

"I'll call Daddy and tell him to come back soon!"

She gave me one last nervous look before closing the door.

"Mommy, be careful!" she called out.

Now only Evelyn and I remained. She walked to the coffee table and poured tea without looking at me. "Since you found your way here, Mr.Parker, it seems you already know that Dr. Clarke has given the cat to me."

Her voice was flat, matter-of-fact.

"From today on, Snow is my cat and has nothing to do with you anymore."

I took a deep breath. "Mrs. Knox. You must have realized how much you resemble my ex-wife when you first arrived on Long Island."

"Dr. Clarke is elderly. When he saw your face, he mistakenly believed you were my ex-wife. That's why he gave Snow to you, thinking he was returning her to her rightful owner."

"But... you should know better than anyone that you're not Audrey Sinclair, and you're not Snow's true owner. You have no right to keep this cat."

She looked at me with a hint of mockery in her eyes. "I have no right?And you think you do, Mr. Parker?"

"I saw Snow's reaction to you quite clearly just now."

She set her cup down. "If you truly took good care of this cat, would she prefer to go with me and Emma, strangers to her, rather than with you?"

I didn't expect that line of questioning.

"That hiss she directed at you - you should know that's the sound cats make when they feel threatened."

Her voice cooled further. "You make her feel danger and fear.How can someone like you claim to be her owner?"

I stepped closer, my tone hardening. "Mrs. Knox, I believe with your and your daughter's status, if you wanted a cat, you could buy any breed,no matter how expensive or cute."

"Why are you so insistent on taking this particular two-year-old ragdoll cat from me? Her coat isn't even that nice, and her temperament is worse than most ragdolls. And after our interactions today, I'm certain you don't like me very much. So why would you fight so hard to take my ex-wife's cat from someone you dislike?"

She met my gaze. "I choose pets based on instinct. The moment I saw Snow, I fell in love with her. So when Dr. Clarke offered to give her to me,

I didn't hesitate. Is that wrong?"

Her answer sounded rehearsed. My suspicions grew stronger.

I moved toward her.

"Indeed,you fell in love with Snow the moment you saw her. After all, you're the one who named her."

I gripped her chin, forcing her to look at me.

"Audrey Sinclair, is it tiring to pretend you're someone else in front of me?"

**Audrey's POV**

I couldn't move.

Blake's fingers held mny chin firmly, forcing me to meet his eyes. How did he figure it out so quickly? We spent months perfecting my new identity as Evelyn Knox.

My heart pounded. I had to stay calm. He couldn't really know, he was just blabbing!

I bit my lip and looked up.

"Mr. Parker, I don't know what you're talking about."

**Blake's POV**

"You don't know?"

I kept my eyes on hers. The woman standing before me was definitely Audrey Sinclair.

"Audrey Sinclair, your acting is terrible. Your biggest mistake was rushing to adopt Snow as soon as you returned to the country!"

My grip tightened without me realizing it.

"Everyone knows Snow was Audrey's life. Even when divorcing me, she insisted on including a clause in our agreement specifically stating she would take Snow."

"That's why I deliberately brought Snow to Long Island, deliberately had Rachel take Snow to Dr. Clarke - it was all to test you."

I was lying. I hadn't planned any of this. But I needed to see how she'd react.

"Are you finished?" She tried pulling my hand away.

"Adrian was right about you. Mr. Parker, since you directly caused your ex-wife's death, you've been having hallucinations. Your mind is deteriorating.11

"What did you say?"

She laughed and stepped back. "I said your mental state is clearly problematic. Not only is your mind unstable, but you're not very intelligent either."

She stared coldly at me. "You used your ex-wife's cat to test me-didn't you consider what if I wasn't a kind person?"

"What if after Dr. Clarke gave me the cat, I didn't care and just abandoned her outside to become a stray? Long Island is huge. Do you think if I had just dumped that cat, you'd ever find her again?"

Her mouth curved into a mocking smile. "Blake Parker. Just to test whether I'm your ex-wife, you casually used this cat that was so important to her as a tool."

"Did you ever truly care about your ex-wife? Do you genuinely feel remorse for what happened?"

I frowned. She was deliberately turning this around on me.

"You seemn very concerned about my feelings for my ex-wife."

I leaned closer. "And you still claim you're not Audrey Sinclair? In this world, besides Audrey herself, who else would care whether I loved her or felt guilty about her?"

"Evelyn Knox, Mrs, Adrian Knox! These are just facades you created to escape your Identity as Audrey Sinclalrl"

My voice rose. "Audrey, since you didn't die, why did you pretend to be dead? Why only return now? Why still refuse to reveal your true identity?"

"Even Snow recognized you, and you've shown your hand. Why continue this charade!?"

Each time I spoke, her lips quivered. She kept her eyes down,avoiding my gaze.

"Audrey Sinclair!" Her evasiveness only convinced me more.

This wasn't Evelyn Knox standing before me. This was Audrey.

No way could two women have the same face and voice. Not possible.

And Snow? The cat practically worshipped her.

Too many coincidences. I wasn't buying it.

She had to be Audrey.

"Let go!"

A high-pitched voice broke through my thoughts just as my grip tightened on her neck. Sharp pan shot through my knee.

I looked down. Emma had reappeared from the bedroom, scissors in hand.The metal glinted with my blood.

The little girl had seen her mother in distress and acted. She'd found the only weapon she could.

Blood soaked through my pants leg. Emma's bravado faltered for a second when she saw the blood. She backed up a step, but kept the scissors pointed at me.

"Bad man!" she yelled, her voice shaking. "Get away from my mommy!"

"You're hurting her!"