Rising From Ashes: The Untouchable Zillionaire Heiress

Ava walked briskly down the marble-floored corridor. Her silk gown trailed heavily behind her, but she didn't care.

She passed by a row of antique portraits. She scoffed internally. Stephen Sinclair had bought them at auction, a desperate attempt to buy Old Money pedigree to mask his newly-rich insecurities.

Lydia Vance stepped out of a side parlor. She held a glass of champagne, laughing loudly with a group of sycophantic socialites.

Lydia spotted Ava. She immediately put on a mask of maternal concern. "Ava, darling! Are you alright?" she called out.

Ava's stomach churned violently. The sound of the woman who orchestrated her mother's death made bile rise in her throat.

Without breaking her stride, Ava pretended not to hear Lydia over the ambient noise of the party. She kept her eyes locked straight ahead.

Ava ducked into a narrower servant's hallway. The dim lighting provided immediate cover, allowing her to completely bypass Lydia and her followers.

She paused briefly in front of a gilded mirror hanging on the wall. She took a deep, shuddering breath to steady her racing heart.

Ava stared at her youthful, unblemished reflection. She touched her cheek, feeling the soft skin. She whispered a solemn promise to her mother that things would be different this time.

She pushed open the heavy side doors. She stepped out into the cool evening air of the estate grounds. The sudden drop in temperature sent a shiver down her spine.

The sprawling front lawn was filled with luxury vehicles, meticulously parked by the valet staff.

Ava kicked off her restrictive high heels. She picked them up in one hand so she could run faster across the manicured grass.

The damp grass chilled her bare feet. The cold sensation grounded her in the physical reality of her second chance at life. She was alive. She was here.

In the distance, the imposing wrought-iron gates of the Sinclair estate loomed under the harsh glare of the security floodlights.

Ava heard the faint sound of an argument carrying over the gentle evening breeze.

She quickened her pace. Her heart pounded relentlessly against her ribs. Fear gripped her chest—the fear that she might be too late to stop the humiliation that had severed her from her true family.

As she got closer, she spotted the flashing amber lights of a private security vehicle blocking the main entrance.

Seraphina was standing near the security booth. Ava’s mind raced back to the banquet hall: she remembered how Seraphina had wrapped up her conversation with the Hollywood producer quickly after Ava left, slipping out the main exit before anyone could notice. She had clearly been out here for some time, setting up her trap.

Seraphina was speaking to Officer Miles, the head of estate security. She was pointing an accusatory finger directly at the gates.

Ava hid behind a large, decorative marble fountain. The splashing water masked the sound of her breathing. She needed to observe the situation before intervening.

Through the thick iron bars, Ava saw the familiar, sleek silhouette of a black Maybach Pullman idling on the street.

An elderly man with a silver-tipped cane stood outside the car. His posture was rigid with suppressed fury.

Augustus Carlisle, her maternal grandfather, was arguing with the security guards who stood on the other side of the bars, refusing to open the gates.

Griffin Carlisle stood beside him. His face was a mask of cold, corporate rage. He was dialing a number on his phone, his jaw clenched tight.

Seraphina told Officer Miles in a loud, clear voice, "Those men are known fraudsters. They are trying to crash my sister's party."

Officer Miles hesitated. He looked at the obvious wealth of the men outside, the custom tailoring of their suits, and the multi-million dollar vehicle.

"It's a rental car," Seraphina insisted, biting her lip to look innocent. "My father said no uninvited guests. You will be fired if you let them ruin tonight."

Officer Miles nodded nervously. He wiped sweat from his forehead and reached for the manual override switch on the console to lock the gates permanently.

Ava realized Seraphina's true motive. She was intentionally trying to alienate the Carlisles to isolate Ava from her true family and their massive power.

Ava dropped her shoes onto the damp grass, leaving them behind as her eyes blazed with absolute fury. She stepped out from behind the fountain.