Chapter 17: Seraphina Cross

**Seraphina**

The morning sun crept through the wide windows of the penthouse, painting the marble floors in soft gold. Sera sat cross-legged on the oversized couch, a steaming mug of tea cupped in her hands. She wore one of Damon’s hoodies—it was far too big for her, but it made her feel safe, like she was wrapped in something solid, something unyielding.

The three men were scattered across the room. Zayn lounged on the armrest of a chair, his laptop balanced on one knee as he scrolled through data. Liam sat nearby with his legs stretched out, flipping through a medical journal. Damon, as always, stood near the window, one hand in his pocket and the other holding a glass of water, his sharp gray eyes scanning the city skyline.

But the silence in the room wasn’t peaceful. It was heavy. Tense. Something unspoken hung in the air, and Sera could feel it pressing against her chest.

She set her mug down carefully on the coffee table and cleared her throat.

“Did you… did you find anything about me?” she asked softly.

All three men froze.

Zayn’s fingers stopped moving over his keyboard. Liam looked up from his journal, his face tightening with something that looked a lot like guilt. And Damon—he turned away from the window, his storm-gray eyes locking onto hers.

The silence stretched on until Zayn finally broke it with a sigh, running a hand through his dark hair. “Sera… we did.”

Her stomach twisted. “And?”

Damon stepped forward then, his presence commanding the room as he walked slowly toward her. He sat on the edge of the couch across from her, his elbows resting on his knees, his gaze steady.

“Sera,” he said quietly, his voice low and deliberate. “Your last name isn’t Lane.”

Her breath hitched in her throat. “What?”

“It’s Cross,” Damon continued. “Seraphina Cross. Your parents—Elizabeth and Nathaniel Cross—were highly respected in government intelligence. Your mother was a top cybersecurity analyst, and your father worked as a field agent.”

Sera’s hands trembled as she clutched the edge of her hoodie sleeves. “But… but I was adopted. My—he told me I was adopted.”

Damon’s jaw tightened, and Zayn spoke up from the side. “You weren’t adopted, Sera. You were taken. Kidnapped when you were three years old.”

The room felt like it was closing in on her. Her breathing quickened, her vision blurring slightly as her chest heaved with shallow breaths.

“No… that can’t be…” she whispered.

Liam moved closer, kneeling beside her. “Breathe, Sera. Look at me.” His voice was calm, steady. “You’re safe. Right here, right now, you’re safe.”

Her breathing slowed slightly, and Damon reached across the coffee table, his hand hovering over hers before gently covering it with his own.

“You don’t have to process this all at once,” he said softly. “But we need you to know—you didn’t belong in that house. None of that was supposed to happen to you.”

Sera’s lip trembled, and she blinked rapidly to stop the tears from falling. “What… what happened to them? My real parents?”

Damon hesitated, and Zayn filled the silence.

“They died in a car crash shortly after you disappeared,” he said carefully. “But the circumstances around it… they don’t add up. It wasn’t just an accident. Someone wanted them gone.”

Sera’s shoulders slumped as the weight of the revelation settled into her chest. Her whole life—everything she thought she knew—felt like smoke slipping through her fingers.

“And… I was just left there? With him? Like I was nothing?” Her voice cracked on the last word.

“No,” Damon said firmly, his grip on her hand tightening slightly. “You were never nothing, Sera. You were stolen. *Hidden*. But you were never worthless.”

The silence that followed was heavy, filled with too many emotions to name. Sera’s mind was spinning, fragments of her childhood flashing in her mind—her mother’s faint laughter, her father’s drunken rage, the bruises, the broken glass, the shattered remnants of a life she was never supposed to have lived.

**Later That Day**

Sera sat at the dining table, staring into her mug of tea, her thoughts a tangled mess of confusion, grief, and something she couldn’t quite name. The guys gave her space, hovering nearby but not crowding her.

Zayn eventually plopped into the chair across from her, spinning his laptop around and pushing it toward her. “Here.”

She blinked, looking up at him. “What is this?”

“Your parents’ profiles. Their careers. Their lives. Photos—of them, of you as a baby. Their story.” He gestured to the screen. “It’s all here. When—*if*—you’re ready to look.”

Her hands hovered over the laptop before she pulled them back into her lap. “Thank you, Zayn.”

He gave her a faint smile before standing and heading toward the balcony, leaving her alone with the screen.

That evening, Sera found herself on the balcony, wrapped in a blanket, staring out over the glittering city lights. The breeze was cool, and the faint hum of distant traffic filled the silence.

Damon stepped out, his sharp silhouette illuminated by the soft glow of the interior lights. He held two mugs of tea and handed one to her without a word.

They stood in silence for a long while, the night wrapping around them like a shroud.

“Do you ever feel like… your whole life is just a series of broken pieces?” Sera asked softly, her voice barely audible above the wind.

Damon turned his head slightly, his steel-gray eyes catching hers. “I used to.”

“How did you stop?” she whispered.

“I didn’t,” he admitted. “I just learned how to pick up the pieces and make something out of them. Even if the edges were sharp. Even if it hurt.”

Sera swallowed hard, her green eyes glistening. “I don’t know if I can.”

“You can,” Damon said firmly. “And you don’t have to do it alone.”

She looked up at him then, their eyes locking in the quiet darkness. His presence was steady, solid—like an anchor in the middle of a storm.

“Thank you, Damon,” she said softly.

He nodded, his voice low and resolute. “Always.”

As they stood side by side under the stars, Sera realized something—she wasn’t alone anymore. For the first time in her life, someone was standing beside her, ready to fight whatever darkness came next.

And for now, that was enough.