chapter 104
Lucas's POV:
The mild-mannered man who'd always deferred to his wife had vanished, replaced by someone harder, more resolute.
"Elena is doing very well now," he said, each word measured and deliberate. "Sebastian treats her well. Whatever you two might have had in the past—if you missed it, you missed it. Let it go, Lucas. Stop bothering her."
His fingers drummed once against the table, then stilled.
"If you truly care about her as you claim, then wish her happiness from afar. That's what people do when they genuinely love someone."
The words stung more than I cared to admit.
I studied his face, searching for any crack in his resolve, but found none.
"At least let us meet face to face," I said finally, letting a note of weary resignation color my voice. "Let me hear from her own lips that she's happy. Give us both closure, Robert. Otherwise, I'll keep wondering, keep... disrupting her life, as you put it. One conversation, and I'll have my answer. Surely that's better than this endless circling."
He studied me for a long moment, weighing my words.
I could see the conflict in his eyes—the desire to protect his daughter warring with the pragmatic understanding that I wouldn't simply disappear.
After what felt like an eternity, he sighed. "Fine. One conversation. But it happens here, in public, and she brings security. Those are my terms."
"Agreed," I said immediately, not wanting to give him time to reconsider.
The call was brief, his voice carefully neutral.
I sipped my coffee and waited, my pulse quickening despite my outward calm.
Three years of searching, three years of that stolen life gnawing at my insides, and finally—finally—I would face the woman who should have been mine.
When Elena entered the café twenty minutes later, flanked by one of Sebastian's ubiquitous bodyguards, I had to suppress a sharp intake of breath.
Pregnancy had only enhanced her delicate beauty, though shadows of fatigue darkened her eyes.
She moved with unconscious grace, one hand protectively over her swollen belly, and when her gaze found mine, the wariness in those depths hit me like a physical blow.
"Dad?" she said softly, not looking at me. "What's wrong?"
The bitter taste in my mouth intensified. She couldn't even bear to acknowledge my presence directly.
"Elena," I said, keeping my voice gentle, non-threatening. "Please, sit down."
Her entire body tensed, but Robert gestured to the chair beside him. "Sit, sweetheart. Lucas seems to have something he needs to say to you."
She lowered herself carefully, still avoiding my gaze.
The bodyguard positioned himself strategically nearby—close enough to intervene, far enough to give an illusion of privacy. Sebastian's paranoia at work, no doubt.
I'd rehearsed this moment countless times, but now the words felt thick on my tongue. Pride was a luxury I couldn't afford.
"Vivienne deceived me," I began, watching her face carefully. "She stole your identity, but you deserve the truth."
Her eyes finally met mine, surprise flickering through the wariness.
"I pressed on, weighing each word carefully. 'Years ago, after my accident, I lost my sight for six months. During that time, someone stayed by my side—a young woman who guided me through the darkest chapter of my life. When my vision finally returned, there was Vivienne, insisting she had been that one.'"
Elena's expression shifted subtly—understanding beginning to dawn.
"It wasn't until recently, when Henry's case came to light, that I learned the truth," I said simply. "You were the one who cared for me all along. Vivienne stole your place, just as she stole your designs. The engagement that should have been yours became hers."
"So that's why Vivienne hurt Henry," Elena whispered, her hand flying to her chest. "To stop him from telling you the truth."
Her face had gone pale, disbelief and horror warring in her eyes. "In the end, Henry's death was still because of me..."
"Don't," I said quickly, leaning forward. "Don't blame yourself for this. It has nothing to do with you—Vivienne is simply that vicious, that calculating."
I watched her struggle with the weight of this revelation, then pressed on, my voice gentle but insistent. "But we can go back to how things should have been, Elena. We can reclaim what was stolen from us."
Silence stretched between us. Elena's hand had stilled on her belly, her face carefully blank. When she finally spoke, her voice was steady. "No."
The single word cut deeper than any elaborate rejection could have.
She shook her head, a bitter smile touching her lips. "I only went there regularly because Henry would sneak me food when I had nothing to eat. Out of gratitude—and perhaps guilt for taking his charity—I was kind to the boy he was caring for. But it was never about romantic feelings, Mr. Ashton. I'm grateful for your company during that difficult time, truly, but that's all it ever was."
"Impossible." The word came out harsh, desperate. I leaned forward, my carefully maintained composure cracking. "You're lying. Nobody would spend that much time with a blind man—reading to him, being so patient, so gentle—if they didn't care. You must be lying to me."
Elena's expression remained maddeningly calm. "I have no reason to lie to you, Lucas. "
"But the one I love is you," I said, the words raw and honest despite myself.
She tilted her head, studying me with those perceptive eyes. "Do you? Then what about Vivienne? Were all those years of feelings between you two just a lie?"
The question caught me off guard, and for a moment I found myself at a loss for words. I stared at her, my carefully prepared arguments suddenly scattered.
She sighed softly, and there was genuine pity in her voice when she continued.
"You don't care about me, Lucas. You care about a memory—about someone who represents a specific moment in time when you were vulnerable and someone showed you kindness. I was just... a vessel for that experience. That's not love. "
Her hand moved unconsciously to her belly again. "Look forward, Lucas. "
"You reject me so easily," I said, unable to keep the bitterness from my voice. "Tell me—is Sebastian Vane truly irreplaceable to you?"
Something flashed in her eyes. "What does this have to do with Sebastian?"