Chapter Seven
I was still unsure of what to say or do when he came closer and pulled me into his
embrace.
His expensive cologne filled my senses, and for a moment, I let myself sink into the warmth of his arms. It felt unfamiliar but comforting, like something I had unknowingly longed for my entire life.
“I don’t know what I would have done if something happened to you. I’m sorry I let Rebecca treat you so poorly all these years,” he murmured as he held me tighter.
And then, something snapped in me. I pulled away from his embrace as if repulsed. The warmth I had felt a second ago vanished, replaced by a suffocating wave of resentment
“So you knew?” My voice trembled with disbelief. “You knew all this time and you
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did nothing?” I yelled.
“I’m sorry, my darling. It was part of the deal. I couldn’t show up even though I wanted to,” he tried to explain, to touch me, but I flinched at his attempt.
I could see the regret in his eyes, but it wasn’t enough, not after everything I had been through. Life was so unfair to me!
“Part of the deal?” I scoffed, shaking my
head in disbelief.
“So what was I, then? A pawn? Some sacrifice for whatever arrangement you had with my mother?”
His lips parted as if to answer, but nothing
came out.
I didn’t stop. I couldn‘ t.
“You knew she hated me,” I continued as my voice trembled.
“You knew she let me suffer, and you just let it happen?”
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“I had no choice, Lena,” he said quietly.
“She would never have let me take you. And at the time, I thought…” He exhaled, rubbing his temples as if trying to gather his words. “I thought keeping my distance would protect you.”
I laughed bitterly. “Protect me? From what? The life I had? The nights I cried myself to sleep, wondering why my own mother despised me. The way she made me feel like I was nothing?” My breath hitched, but I swallowed the lump in my throat. I refused to break now.
“All that time, she made me feel guilty for surviving while my twin brother, the child she wanted so much, died. And you never
tried to save me from that.”
David and Asher stood nearby, watching the heated conversation. Asher had his arms folded, observing quietly. David, on the other hand, looked at me with quiet sympathy.
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“I know I failed you. If I could take back the hands of time, I would do things differently.” Mr. Farleigh admitted, his voice filled with guilt.
“And I don’t expect you to forgive me right away, but I swear to you, Lena, I never stopped caring. I never stopped wanting to be in your life.”
I clenched my fists. “Well,
congratulations. You got your wish. I’m here now. But I don’t know if I can just forget everything and act like we’re some happy family.”
Mr. Farleigh’s shoulders dropped slightly, but he nodded in understanding. “I won’t ask that of you. But please, give me a chance to make things right.”
I didn’t say a word, I just let the anger in me flow through my tears. I hadn’t expected this outburst so soon.
Before I could say another word, Asher cleared his throat. “Dad, maybe we should
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Chapter Seven
take this inside. Lena‘ s been through enough today.”
I exhaled shakily and nodded. “Yeah… I need a moment.”
Mr. Farleigh gave me one last, lingering look before stepping aside, allowing me to
pass.
I wiped my tears as I headed straight to the garden. My chest ached, not just from the
argument, but from the realization of how much I had buried inside me. I hadn’t
expected this outburst, but now that it was out, I couldn’t take it back.
For the first time in a long time, I wasn’t just sad.
I was angry.
And I didn’t know how to let it go.
Asher followed me quietly to the garden.
He stood by the entrance, watching me
ord before he finally spoke.
ybe
“Come, let me show you something,”
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I hesitated but agreed. I had no right to be mad at him too. He was just as much a victim as I was, he had just been dealt a better fate.
He led me up the stairs to the private quarters where the bedrooms were. Opposite Mr. Farleigh’s was a door I hadn’t entered yet.
When I first toured the house, it had been locked. But Asher had the keys now.
He unlocked the door and stepped aside, allowing me in first.
I froze the moment I stepped inside.
The walls were covered with photographs.
They were all pictures of Asher, taken at his birthdays, from when he was just a baby to the present. But what stunned me the most was that next to Asher, in every single one, was a picture of me.
I turned to Asher, my throat tightening.
“Dad always loved you,” he said quietly.
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“He made sure to include you in every birthday I had. It was his greatest wish to reunite with you.
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