Chapter 39 The File With My Name
My hands were shaking.
Not slightly. Not subtly.
Actually shaking.
The kind of trembling you can’t control no matter how hard you try to steady yourself.
Because this wasn’t just a file.
This wasn’t just some random document hidden away in a locked drawer.
This had my name on it.
My full name.
Lenora.
Printed clearly across the tab like it had always been meant to be found… just not by me.
I swallowed hard and opened it.
The first page wasn’t what I expected.
It wasn’t a birth certificate.
Not school records.
Not anything normal.
It was a report.
Typed. Structured. Official looking.
And right at the top…
Subject: Lenora
My breath caught.
“What is it?” Adrian asked quietly behind me.
I didn’t answer right away.
Because I didn’t understand what I was reading.
Not fully.
But enough to know something was very wrong.
“Psychological evaluation…” I whispered under my breath.
Adrian stepped closer. “What?”
I flipped the page quickly, heart pounding harder.
Another document.
Another report.
Dates. Notes. Observations.
Like someone had been… watching me.
“No,” I muttered. “No, this doesn’t make sense.”
There were entries.
Detailed ones.
About me.
My behavior.
My reactions.
Even things I barely remembered myself.
“She shows heightened emotional response under stress.”
“Displays strong attachment patterns.”
“Unaware of full background. Recommend delayed disclosure.”
My chest tightened so hard it hurt.
“What the hell is this?” I breathed.
Adrian didn’t answer immediately.
Which told me…
He was trying to figure it out too.
I flipped to the next section.
Photos.
Old ones.
Not from school.
Not recent.
Younger.
Much younger.
Me as a child.
Standing in places I didn’t recognize.
With people I didn’t remember.
My stomach dropped.
“Adrian…”
He leaned closer.
And for the first time since I met him…
He looked serious.
Not amused.
Not teasing.
Concerned.
“Where were these taken?” he asked quietly.
“I don’t know,” I whispered.
And that terrified me.
Because how do you not recognize your own past?
My fingers moved faster now, flipping through the file, panic rising with every page.
Then I saw it.
A document that made everything stop.
Guardian Transfer Authorization
My breath hitched.
“What…?”
I read it again.
Slower this time.
Carefully.
Names.
Signatures.
Dates.
My father’s name.
And another one.
A name I didn’t recognize.
“This doesn’t make sense,” I said, my voice breaking slightly.
Adrian took the paper gently from my hand, scanning it quickly.
His jaw tightened.
“This isn’t a normal document,” he said.
“I can see that,” I snapped, panic creeping into my tone.
“No,” he said, more firmly now. “Lenora… this looks like a transfer of custody.”
Everything inside me went still.
“What?”
His eyes lifted to mine.
“This says you were placed under guardianship.”
My ears rang.
“No,” I said immediately. “That’s not true. That’s not—”
“Look at the date.”
I did.
And my entire world tilted.
I was too young to remember.
Too young to question.
Too young to know.
My father…
Wasn’t my father.
The thought hit me like a physical force.
I stumbled back slightly, my breathing uneven now.
“No…”
Adrian reached out instinctively, steadying me before I could lose balance.
“Hey—”
“I don’t remember this,” I said, my voice shaking harder now. “I don’t remember any of this.”
“That doesn’t mean it didn’t happen,” he said gently.
I shook my head, backing away from the desk.
“No, no, no… this isn’t real.”
But it was.
Because it was right there.
In my hands.
In black and white.
Every piece of it real.
And suddenly…
Everything Lilibeth said made sense.
Your family isn’t what you think it is.
My stomach twisted painfully.
Kylen knew.
He knew this.
And he didn’t tell me.
The hurt that came with that realization was sharp.
Immediate.
A door slammed downstairs.
Both of us froze.
Footsteps.
Fast.
Coming closer.
My heart jumped into my throat.
“They’re not supposed to be back yet,” I whispered.
Adrian’s expression sharpened instantly.
“Too late,” he said.
The footsteps reached the hallway.
Then stopped.
Right outside the office door.
My pulse pounded so loud I was sure it could be heard through the walls.
And then—
The door swung open.
Kylen.
Standing there.
Breathing hard.
Eyes scanning the room.
Then landing on me.
On the file in my hands.
And everything in his expression…
Dropped.
“You weren’t supposed to find that like this,” he said quietly.
My chest tightened painfully.
“Like what?” I demanded.
His gaze flicked to Adrian.
Then back to me.
“Not like this,” he repeated.
Something inside me snapped.
“You knew,” I said.
He didn’t deny it.
Didn’t even try.
And that hurt more than anything else.
“Tell me the truth,” I said, my voice shaking but firm.
Silence.
“Now.”
Kylen stepped into the room slowly.
Closing the door behind him.
And the look in his eyes…
Told me everything was about to change.