Chapter 6 Untitled Chapter
Kendrix's voice cracked sharply through the office.
Neither of them moved for a second.
And strangely, Roberto looked exhausted. Not cold. Not dangerous. Just… tired. Like he already knew this moment would happen eventually and hated it anyway.
“You were never supposed to find that,” he said quietly.
Kendrix stared at him. Every weird thing suddenly came rushing back all at once.
The necklace. The comments. The way everybody already knew her name. The way Roberto looked at her sometimes like he was remembering something instead of learning it. Her stomach twisted painfully. “Oh my God…”
The words barely left her mouth. She looked back at the photograph again. Then at him.
“What did you do to me?”
Roberto went completely still. Something flickered across his face then. Something raw. Maybe pain. Real pain. But it disappeared so quickly she almost thought she imagined it.
. .
Miles away from the mansion, Maya sat alone at the dining table with trembling hands wrapped around a cup of untouched tea. The house felt emptier without Kendrix. Too empty. Antonio barely spoke anymore. But Maya couldn’t even look at him properly these days. Because every time she did, she remembered the lie they lived.
Her eyes drifted to the old storage cabinet near the kitchen wall. Twenty-three years locked. Twenty-three years of pretending.
Maya stood slowly and unlocked it with fingers that remembered the weight. Inside was a brown envelope she’d never let herself burn.
She spilled the contents on the table. Hospital discharge papers. A birth certificate with a name crossed out and rewritten. And beneath them, a photograph. Maya’s breath hitched.
In the picture, she was twenty, standing outside a hospital with a younger Roberto at her shoulder. His face was softer then. He wasn’t looking at the camera. He was looking at the baby in Maya’s arms.
Kendrix. One week old.
The back of the photo was in her own handwriting.
Keep her safe. I can't do it alone. -M
Maya’s fingers trembled. “No…” she whispered. “No, no… he can’t find you like this.”
She wasn’t talking about Antonio. Antonio already knew. He married her to give the baby a name, a cover. He thought he was saving her.
Her eyes fell back to the photo. The boy at her shoulder. Luca.
The memory came without warning.
Twenty-three years ago, Luca’s hand was warm on her shoulder, right before he said,
"If they find her, I’ll make sure they find me first.”
The promise still sat heavy in her chest.
“Don’t become him, Luca,” she whispered.
Because if Roberto stopped pretending to hate her, if he let Kendrix see how much he’d been watching… the man hunting them would know too. And everything would fall apart.
And this time, Maya wasn’t sure she could run again.
. .
Kendrix barely remembered leaving Roberto’s office. One second she was standing there staring at that photograph.
The next, she was back in her room with the door shut behind her and her thoughts tearing themselves apart. She paced across the bedroom for what felt like hours. Then stopped. Then paced again.
“No,” she muttered under her breath. “No, this is insane.”
None of it made sense. The picture. The necklace. Maya’s handwriting. And Roberto standing there acting like this was some horrible accident instead of something completely psychotic. Kendrix pressed both hands against her forehead hard enough to hurt. Had her parents lied to her?
No. Antonio definitely lied to her.
That part was obvious now. But Maya?
The thought alone made something twist painfully in her chest.
A soft knock landed against the bedroom door. Kendrix froze immediately.
“What.”
The door opened slightly. Skyler peeked inside first, which somehow annoyed her less than seeing Roberto would have.
“Can I come in?”
“No.”
Skyler sighed tiredly.“Alright. Fair.”
He still walked inside anyway. Kendrix stared at him.
“You people seriously have issues with doors in this house.”
Skyler gave a weak smile, but it faded quickly when he saw her face properly.
“You look terrible.”
“Thank you.”
“I didn’t mean…”
“I know what you meant.”
Silence fell awkwardly between them.
Skyler rubbed the back of his neck like he suddenly regretted coming here.
Kendrix crossed her arms tightly.“You knew.”
His eyes lifted slowly toward her.“That depends on what exactly you’re asking.”
“That Roberto knew me before all this.”
Skyler didn’t answer immediately, which was enough. Kendrix laughed once.Short and sharp.
“Wow.”
“It’s complicated.”
“Don’t say that.” Her voice rose instantly. “People say it’s complicated right before ruining somebody’s life.”
Skyler opened his mouth and closed it again. Honestly, he looked exhausted.
“Kendrix…”
“No, seriously, what the hell is wrong with everybody here?”
She started pacing again. Her emotions felt uneven now. Anger one second. Confusion the next. And underneath all of it was fear. Real fear.
“Did my mother know him?”
Skyler hesitated.
Kendrix stopped moving immediately.“Oh my God.”
“It’s not what you think.”
“Then tell me what it is!”
Her voice cracked louder than she intended.
Skyler looked toward the door instinctively like he wanted an escape route himself. Unluckily, Kendrix didn’t have one.
“You should talk to Roberto.”
She stared at him in disbelief.“That’s your advice?”
“He’s the only one who can explain everything properly.”
“He barely explains normal sentences properly.”
A tiny laugh escaped Skyler before he could stop it. Wrong timing. Very wrong timing.
Kendrix glared at him instantly.
“You think this is funny?”
“No… no, I just…” He exhaled sharply. “Look, this whole thing is messed up.”
“That’s the first honest thing anybody has said to me.”
Skyler leaned against the wall quietly. For a second, neither of them spoke.Then Kendrix asked softly.
“Am I even their daughter?”
The question hit the room heavily. Skyler’s expression changed immediately.Not shock but something worse. Sympathy.
Kendrix felt sick instantly.“No.”
Her breathing became uneven.“No, don’t look at me like that.”
“Kendrix…”
“Don’t.” She raised a palm to silence him, and stepped backward immediately.Her chest suddenly felt too tight. Too hot.
“Oh my God…”
Skyler moved carefully.“Kendrix, calm down.”
“Don’t tell me to calm down!”
The words came out louder than she expected. She turned away quickly, dragging both hands through her hair.
Everything felt wrong. Every memory suddenly felt suspicious now.Every childhood story. Every moment. Her throat tightened painfully.
“I need air.”
Before Skyler could stop her, Kendrix walked past him and shoved the bedroom door open. The hallway outside felt colder.
Good. Because her head felt like it was burning. She walked fast. Too fast honestly. Her shoulder slammed against somebody turning the corner. A hand caught her arm before she stumbled.