Chapter 52 The House of Glass

Chapter 52 The House of Glass

Scarlett

The rain hadn’t stopped. It was as if the sky was trying to wash the city clean of all the lies that stained it. But some sins went too deep for cleansing. Some sins were carved into the soul.

The wipers dragged rhythmically across the windshield as I drove. My reflection flashed faintly on the glass, pale skin, red-rimmed eyes, lips set in a hard line. Maria’s my dead mother's spirit which always visits but no one knows about. The coordinates blinked on the dashboard like a pulse, leading me toward a part of town I hadn’t visited in years.

Every mile closer felt like losing a piece of myself.

When I finally pulled up, the world seemed to hold its breath. The house stood behind a wall of glass and steel sleek, expensive, soulless. It suited her.

I stepped out of the car, the rain soaking through my coat in seconds. My hands trembled, not from the cold, but from what I was about to do.

I hadn’t planned this confrontation. There was no script. Just a lifetime of resentment and the heavy knowledge that Damien had stood in this same rain for her.

By the time I reached the door, my heartbeat was so loud it drowned out the storm.

I didn’t knock. I didn’t have to. The door opened before I could touch it.

And there she was.

Maria Vale — flawless as ever. Her golden hair fell in soft waves over her shoulders, her silk robe clinging delicately to her frame. She looked like time had forgotten her. Like guilt couldn’t touch her.

But when her eyes met mine, the mask faltered.

“Scarlett.” Her voice was careful, almost gentle. “You shouldn’t be here.”

“Neither should you,” I said.

She sighed, leaning against the doorway as if we were having a conversation that wasn’t about betrayal and blood. “I suppose Damien told you.”

The name burned. “He didn’t have to. I saw it.”

Maria’s brows lifted slightly. “You saw what, exactly?”

I stepped forward, my voice cutting through the air like a blade. “You. Him. Together.”

Her lips parted just for a second then curved into a faint, mocking smile. “Ah. So you’ve finally started watching the tapes.”

Tapes. Plural.

My stomach twisted. “How many are there?”

“Enough,” she said simply, and for the first time, I saw the glimmer of satisfaction behind her calm. “You really think Damien came to me for comfort, don’t you? That’s what you want to believe. But you’re wrong, Scarlett. He came to me for the truth.”

I laughed low, bitter. “Truth? You wouldn’t know the truth if it stared you in the face.”

“Wouldn’t I?” she asked softly. “You think you’re the only one who lost everything when your father died? You think you were the only one who loved him?”

The words struck like a slap. “Don’t you dare talk about love.”

Maria took a slow step closer, her perfume heavy in the air roses and smoke. “Your father and I built something together. And when he was gone, I was left to clean up the mess, his debts, his secrets, his enemies. Including Damien’s father.”

My pulse stuttered. “What are you talking about?”

She smiled faintly. “Did he never tell you? Damien’s father destroyed your father’s company. He left us with nothing. Your father made one final deal to protect you. And when he died, Damien inherited both the guilt and the leverage.”

“No.” My voice cracked. “You’re lying.”

“Am I?” she whispered, leaning closer. “Why do you think Damien found you that night? Why do you think he’s kept you so close? He’s been paying his father’s debt, Scarlett. With you.”

The world tilted.

Her words sank like shards into my chest, sharp, deliberate, cruel.

“He loves me,” I whispered.

Maria’s smile deepened. “Does he? Or does he need you to feel safe with him long enough to finish what his father started?”

I took a step back, shaking my head. “No. No, you’re twisting everything.”

“Am I?” She cocked her head. “You of all people should know men like him don’t change. They inherit their sins, just like we do.”

The rain outside grew heavier, thunder rolling through the distance.

And in that moment, I saw her for what she truly was, not the beautiful mother I’d spent years hating and yearning for, but the mirror of everything I feared becoming.

A woman so desperate to win that she’d destroy her own child to do it.

I swallowed hard. “You’re wrong about him. About everything.”

Maria tilted her head, eyes glinting. “Then why are you here, darling? Why bring a weapon?”

My fingers froze around the small pistol in my coat pocket.

I hadn’t realized I’d taken it until she said it.

Her voice softened, dangerously sweet. “You see? Even now, you’re more like me than you want to admit.”

My throat tightened. I took another step back, the air between us buzzing with tension. “I’m nothing like you.”

She smiled slowly, knowing. “Keep telling yourself that.”

I turned to leave. I didn’t trust myself to stay another second. But before I reached the door, Maria’s voice followed me quietly, cutting.

“Damien will choose me again, you know.”

I froze.

Her tone was light, almost amused. “He always does. Men like him always return to the ones who made them. You were just the reminder he needed.”

The rage hit before I could stop it raw and blinding.

I spun around, and in one swift motion, the gun was in my hand. “Say that again.”

Maria’s smile didn’t fade. “You won’t shoot me.”

“Don’t tempt me.”

“Because deep down,” she murmured, stepping closer until we were face-to-face, “you’re still that frightened girl who wanted her mother to love her.”

My hand trembled, but I didn’t lower the weapon.

Her eyes softened. “And I do, Scarlett. In my own way.”

Lightning flashed across the room, casting both of us in silver light. For a second, it looked like we were reflections of each other, same eyes, same defiance, same brokenness.

And I hated her for it.

The gun shook once, then fell from my grip, clattering to the floor.

Maria didn’t flinch. She just reached out and touched my cheek. “You’ll understand one day.”

I stepped back like her touch burned. “If that day ever comes, I’ll make sure you regret every lie you told.”

Then I turned and walked out into the storm, into the chaos, into the truth I wasn’t ready to face.

I didn’t remember driving back. I just remember the city lights blurring through tears. I refused to let fall.

When I finally stumbled into my apartment, the world felt too quiet. Damien’s jacket still hung on the chair. His scent lingered faintly in the air.

I wanted to hate him. I wanted to erase the way his voice used to sound when he said my name.

But all I could do was collapse onto the floor, the rain outside echoing the sound of my breaking heart.

That’s when I noticed the light on my computer.
Orion was on.

A single line glowed on the screen:

> “She is lying.”

My breath caught. “What?”

> “Maria Vale falsified data. Evidence available.”

I moved closer, trembling. “Show me.”

The files opened encrypted images, audio clips, and transcripts. Proof that Maria had been manipulating records, altering timelines, creating her own narrative.

And in one of the recordings faint, distant, but unmistakable was her voice saying:

> “If she believes he’s been lying, she’ll destroy him herself.”

My knees buckled.

It was all a setup.

Every whisper, every doubt, every seed she’d planted all meant to turn me against Damien.

And I’d almost let her.

I sank to the floor, tears mixing with the static glow of the screen. “What have I done?”

> “Correction,” Orion’s voice replied softly. “What will you do next?”

I lifted my gaze, heart pounding.

And that was when I knew this wasn’t over.

Not by a long shot.