[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-my-sister-stole-my-mate-and-i-let-her":3,"chapter-my-sister-stole-my-mate-and-i-let-her-my-sister-stole-my-mate-and-i-let-her-chapter-389":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"english","My Sister Stole My Mate, And I Let Her",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},764463,1010,"Chapter 389 LEVERAGE","my-sister-stole-my-mate-and-i-let-her-chapter-389",389,"\u003Cp>SERAPHINA’S POV\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The trees thinned until the forest gave way to a narrow stretch of coastal grassland, where the earth sloped toward the distant sound of waves.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The scent of salt hung in the air, sharp and clean, carried inland by a steady breeze that tugged lightly at my hair as I stepped out from beneath the shadow of the pines.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Catherine was already there.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She stood near the center of the clearing, her posture relaxed—one hand resting loosely at her side, the other holding a slim phone.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>From a distance, she might have been mistaken for a woman enjoying the cool evening air rather than the architect of the nightmare that had drawn us here.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even as I approached, she watched with quiet amusement, her gaze sweeping over me in slow appraisal, as if observing a particularly interesting specimen.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Unlike me, she looked entirely at ease.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Every instinct inside me remained alert, every sense sharpened by the knowledge that danger surrounded this woman like an invisible force field.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yet Catherine stood as if we had arranged nothing more than a casual meeting between acquaintances.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>When I finally stopped a few paces away, she smiled.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Seraphina,” she said warmly. “You’ve grown.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Her voice carried the same cold sweetness I remembered.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I did not return the smile.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Where is my mother?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Catherine tutted. “No greeting? No polite conversation before business?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“You’re holding my mother hostage,” I replied coldly. “We’re well past polite conversation.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The smile on her lips did not fade.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“You’ve become very direct,” she observed. “I suppose power tends to strip away manners. A shame; you used to be such a sweet girl.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I didn’t come here to talk about my personality,” I said through gritted teeth.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>For a moment, Catherine studied me, amusement in her eyes sharpening to something analytical.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Yes,” she murmured. “I can see that.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Her gaze drifted across the clearing, then returned to me. “You did come alone.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Her words sounded casual, but I felt the subtle pressure behind them, as if she were testing for something hidden.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Corin’s concealment held steady.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I could not sense the others, but I knew they were there, silent among the trees.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I told you I would,” I said.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Catherine nodded. “You look as though you’re expecting me to try something unpleasant.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I am.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She laughed softly. “I appreciate honesty.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>My patience was already wearing thin.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Where is my mother?” I repeated.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She waved away the question like it was a pesky fly. \"Oh, she’s fine.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I want proof.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Catherine tapped the phone lightly against her palm as though considering my request.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>For a long moment, she did nothing.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then, with a small sigh that suggested mild disappointment, she lifted the phone and swiped the screen.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“If you insist.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She turned the screen toward me.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The image flickered once before stabilizing.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>My breath caught.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Margaret Lockwood appeared on the screen.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She sat in what looked like a small stone room, the lighting dim but clear enough for me to see the exhaustion etched across her face.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Her hair hung loose around her shoulders, and though she was upright, there was a weakness in the way she held herself that suggested she had been confined there for days.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Mother!” I gasped.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Her head lifted, her gaze darting around the room. “Seraphina?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The sound of her voice struck somewhere deep inside my chest.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I’m here,” I said.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Although I didn’t know if she could see me, since the feed looked like it was from a CCTV camera.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>My mother sighed, dropping her gaze. “You shouldn’t have gone to meet her.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>My heart tightened. “I didn’t have a choice.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Her expression softened, a mix of relief and worry. “Are you safe?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I choked out a laugh. “I’m the one who should be asking you that.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She managed a small smile. “I’m fine, dear.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Catherine’s voice drifted into the conversation.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“You see?” she said. “Perfectly fine.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I ignored her.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Are you hurt?” I asked my mother.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She hesitated for the briefest fraction of a second before she said, “No.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But the pause told me everything.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Before I could ask another question, the screen went dark.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Catherine lowered the phone. “Time’s up.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The tension in my body surged, my hands curling at my sides, nails pressing into my palms as I struggled to contain my frustration.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“That was barely a minute.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Yes,” Catherine said with a shrug. “Real-time communication is such a fragile luxury. If you want to see her in person, you’ll need to come with me.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“To your experimental lab in the Maldives.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She didn’t look shocked that I knew about the experiments. She just smiled again.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Exactly.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I did not even consider the offer. “No.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Catherine’s expression shifted.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Not anger. Not even irritation.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Something closer to curiosity.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“You refuse?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“You abducted my mother and expect me to walk into your territory alone,” I said. “That’s not a negotiation. That’s a trap.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Her lips curved again. “Very perceptive.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“It’s common sense.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Catherine studied me with increasing interest, as though recalculating an equation after adding a new variable.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I didn’t realize you were so selfish,” she said.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I reeled. “Excuse me?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“You don’t want to risk yourself for your own mother?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I scoffed. “That’s not the issue.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She cocked a brow. “Then what is?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I don’t know what you’ll do to my mother once you have me,” I said. “For all I know, she’s only safe as long as you don’t have me.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Who says I won’t harm her simply because you refuse to cooperate?” she asked.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>My eyes narrowed. “Touch a single hair on her head, and any deal that can be made between us is dead.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Her eyes narrowed. “You’ve grown difficult.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I’ve grown careful.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A breeze moved through the clearing, stirring the grass around our feet.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>For a few seconds, Catherine said nothing, but I could practically see the gears in her mind turning.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She had expected something else.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Compliance.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Emotion.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Perhaps desperation.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Instead, she had found resistance.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“You’re not groveling,” she said slowly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“No.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Even though your mother remains in my custody.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I’ve confirmed she’s alive.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“And that’s enough for you?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“For now.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The words seemed to genuinely surprise her.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“You’re willing to wait.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I’m willing to see more good faith from you before I make any major decisions.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Her gaze sharpened again, though this time the amusement returned as well.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“How very strategic of you.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I did not answer.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>For a moment, the only sounds in the clearing were the distant roar of the ocean and the whisper of the breeze.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then Catherine sighed. “Well, this is not how I imagined our reunion.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Kidnapping tends to complicate things,” I said dryly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She laughed again, though the sound carried a faint edge now.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She watched me for a while, her expression shifting through several subtle calculations.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then she spoke again.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“You know,” she said thoughtfully, “I expected Margaret to be enough leverage.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Sorry to disappoint you,” I said derisively.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Catherine’s smile returned fully.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“That’s okay,” she murmured. “I like a challenge.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She tapped the phone lightly against her palm again, the gesture almost playful.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“In that case,” she continued, “perhaps I should offer you something more compelling.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>My attention sharpened. “And what would that be?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“If Margaret alone isn’t enough to convince you...”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She paused deliberately.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“...what about Edward?”\u003C\u002Fp>",1220,"2026-06-03T02:27:49.405Z",1,"novelbin.me","3e913e7a142d2a993e488a8204bf7b271efdf774718a4382aa7b19b56ebfa1f8","my-sister-stole-my-mate-and-i-let-her-chapter-390","my-sister-stole-my-mate-and-i-let-her-chapter-388",488,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fmy-sister-stole-my-mate-and-i-let-her-cover.jpg"]