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  Her frail hands trembled in her lap, clutching the hospital blanket as if it were the only thing anchoring her to this moment. I sat there, stunned, trying to process the words she had just dropped on me.
    Triplets.
    I was one of three children?
    The weight of it crushed me, and I felt an unfamiliar pit in my stomach. Everything I thought I knew about my past… about myself… was shattering.
    “It’s okay, Mom,” I whispered, reaching out to smooth the strands of hair falling over her forehead. But even I knew it wasn’t okay. Not really.
    Anger simmered beneath my skin… not just because of what she had endured, but because she had kept this from me for so long. If I hadn’t found out on my own, would she have ever told me?
    “What did you do, Mom?” I asked, my voice barely above a whisper. “Did you agree to his deal? Did you give him your children?”
    She met my gaze, eyes full of sorrow, her voice cracking as she spoke. “No, Isla. I didn’t.”
    She coughed weakly, and I instinctively patted her back. She continued, her breath shallow.
    “He offered me money, promised I’d be sent back to Manila. Said you three would have a better life with him.” Her lips twisted into a humorless smile. “Only later did I realize the truth… Alera couldn’t have children. That’s why they wanted mine. She was barren.”
    I felt my stomach churn at the realization.
    “I refused,” she said, shaking her head. “I was furious. How could he just waltz in and demand to take my babies like I was nothing? But he didn’t care. He brought me to his house, and that’s when I met her.”
    Her gaze turned distant, her mind drifting far away as she relived the memory. “Alera hated me from the start. Despised everything about me. But I had no choice… I wanted to be with you three, so I stayed.”
    Mom exhaled shakily, rubbing her face with a trembling hand. “The arrangement was simple. I’d care for you, and when the time came, they’d pay me and send me back to Manila with a better life.”
    A bitter smile tugged at her lips. “My mother—your grandmother—was able to come to New York. I saved money and sent it to her, hoping one day we’d all be free.”
    Her breath hitched, and she lowered her voice to a whisper. “But when you were seven months old… Alera almost killed me.”
    My heart stopped.
    “Your father loved you,” she said suddenly, her gaze locking with mine.
    I frowned, confused. “Loved me?”
    A hollow chuckle escaped her. “He was still a selfish man. But he loved you three.”
    I stayed silent, letting her continue.
    “He was away on a business trip when it happened. I had been working in their house as a maid, taking care of you. Alera despised me. She called me names, spat at me, even burned me with an iron more than once.” Mom winced at the memory, absently touching the scar on her forearm. “She couldn’t stand that I’d been with her husband.”
    A chill ran down my spine.
    “That night, she came into my room while I was sleeping,” she whispered. “She pressed a pillow over my face.”
    My breath hitched.
    “I couldn’t breathe,” she said, her voice cracking. “I fought back, but she was strong. So, I did the only thing I could… I went limp. Pretended I was dead.”
    My hands clenched into fists, anger bubbling within me.
    “She left, thinking she had finished me off going on to call her driver to help dump my body on the roadside. And that was my chance. I ran.”
    Tears streamed down her face as she spoke, her voice raw. “I searched for you three, but I couldn’t find all of you. I only found you.” Her voice wavered. “I ran away, hoping, praying I’d be able to come back for the other two.”
    She coughed again, and I leaned in closer, desperate to hear the rest.
    “Because… because when they realized I had taken you… they sent the other two away. They sent them abroad.”
    A sharp pain clenched in my chest. Sisters. I had two of them.
    “I tried, Isla,” she whispered, her voice breaking. “I did everything I could to get them back. But your father… he was too powerful. I didn’t have any money. It was like fighting a brick wall. Every lead I found vanished before I could reach it.”
    My heart pounded. Two siblings—gone. Lost to me forever.
    Before I could respond, a soft knock at the door interrupted us.
    “Excuse me,” the nurse said, stepping inside.
    Mom stiffened, quickly turning her face away, her tears hidden from view. The nurse looked between us, sensing the tension but saying nothing.
    “Yes?” I asked, lifting my head, trying to compose myself.
    “Um, your husband is here,” she said gently.
    I blinked, my pulse quickening. “What?”
    “Mr. Blackwood,” she clarified. “He’s waiting outside.”
    My heart skipped a beat.
    “Oh my God,” I muttered under my breath. What is he doing here?
    Mom turned her gaze to me, her face unreadable. “Your husband?”
    I swallowed hard, the weight of everything pressing down on me. “Um… Mom?”
    She tilted her head slightly. “What is it, dear?”
    Before I could reply, the door opened.
    Alex stepped inside, his presence immediately commanding the room. His sharp suit and tailored slacks only accentuated his striking features. His cold eyes flickered between me and my mother before settling on me, and I couldn’t read what was behind his gaze.
    “Isla,” he said, his voice smooth but with an unreadable edge.
    “Hello, Grace,” he added, nodding at my mother.
    She nodded back, but her expression remained unreadable.
    I stiffened. What the hell? They knew each other?
    The air thickened with tension, and I felt it in the pit of my stomach. He had lied to me. He had said he wasn’t the one who had visited her before, yet here they were, standing face-to-face as if they were old acquaintances.
    As if sensing the shift in my expression, Alexander’s gaze flicked back to me, his eyes narrowing with quiet intensity.
    I let out a short, humorless laugh. “Of course.”
    He stepped closer, but I took a deliberate step back, shaking my head.
    “What is going on here?” I asked, my voice tight, the anger I had been suppressing bubbling to the surface.
    “Darling,” my mother said softly, “I’ve met him before. I told you… he was the one who…”
    She hesitated, glancing at Alexander.
    I smiled a sweet, fake smile. “Right. I’ll be outside.”
    I turned on my heel, but before I could take a step, Alexander’s fingers closed around my wrist, pulling me back just enough for our eyes to meet. The silent warning in his gaze made my blood run cold.
    I ignored it.
    Yanking free from his grasp, I stormed out of the room, my pulse thundering in my ears.
    I heard my mother’s voice behind me, but I ignored her.
    The hallway felt suffocating. I barely noticed the blur of nurses and patients as I walked past. One glance at the room where Mr. George, Celeste’s father, had been staying told me it was now empty.
    I stepped outside into the hospital’s back garden, the cold air biting at my skin as I sank into a swing chair.
    So, I was a twin. No… not just a twin. A triplet.
    The realization twisted inside me. All this time, I had suffered alongside my mother, believing we were alone in the world, but I had a father. A rich father. And two other siblings.
    A bitter laugh escaped me. What the hell am I even thinking?
    If I hadn’t met Alexander, I never would have known. Never would have discovered my true bloodline…
    I stared up at the sky, blinking hard.
    And then it hit me.
    Something warm slid down my cheek.
    I was crying.
    For what felt like forever, I sat there, lost in my thoughts, my heart breaking with the weight of all the lies. The birds twittered around the garden, oblivious to the storm inside me. The sun was sinking lower, casting long shadows across the grass—another day closing, another day of lies.
    “Isla! Isla!”
    I froze, the unmistakable voice I dreaded cutting through the haze.
    I wiped my tears hastily with the sleeve of my gown. I didn’t want to see him. Not now. Not ever. My chest burned with anger, and my hands clenched into fists at my sides.
    “Hey.”
    He reached me in a few long strides, grabbing my arm just as I was about to retreat further into the garden.
    “Hey,” he repeated, his voice now lower, more commanding. “Look at me. What was that about?”
    I kept my gaze down, but he wasn’t having it. His fingers caught my chin, tilting my face up to his. He brushed a strand of hair out of my eyes, his fingers grazing my skin with impatience.
    “You wouldn’t want to cause a scene now, would you?” I muttered, shifting my gaze behind him to the elderly patients nearby.
    “You wouldn’t want to taint your precious image, would you, Alexander Blackwood?”
    His brows furrowed. “What the hell are you talking about?” His grip tightened slightly. “What was that back there? Why did you leave your mom with me? What’s wrong with you?”
    I let out a sharp, humorless laugh. “Oh, what’s wrong with me? Everything, right? You’re always the right one. I’m always the one who’s wrong. The stupid one for asking too many questions. The idiot for wanting the truth.”
    He exhaled harshly, frustration seeping into his tone. “Isla—”
    “And you?” I cut in, my voice trembling with anger. “You’re perfect. The good, old, powerful Alexander Blackwood, who controls everyone and everything.”
    His jaw tensed, his eyes narrowing as if trying to decipher whether I had lost my mind.
    “What the fuck are you talking about?”
    I yanked at my arm, desperate to break free. “Let me go.”
    “Oh, no. I won’t,” he said through clenched teeth. “Not until you tell me what the fuck just happened.”
    I let out a bitter laugh, shaking my head. “Oh, now you’re using the F-word? Now you’re acting just like everyone else who worships the ground you walk on? How ironic.”
    His grip faltered for half a second, but I wasn’t done.
    “You brought me here,” I spat, my voice breaking. “You brought me here because I looked like someone. You couldn’t even—” My breath hitched. “How can you be so selfish?”
    His face hardened, but I saw it… a flicker of realization.
    “You knew,” I whispered, my voice cracking under the weight of my own words. “You knew I had a sister. And still, you brought me here—not as myself, but as a shadow. You killed her.”
    Silence. Thick, suffocating silence.
    Then, suddenly, his fingers uncurled from my arm as if I had burned him.
    “I don’t think I’m the one who should have told you about your identity,” Alexander said, his voice sharp as a blade. His glare was cold and unwavering. “That was your mother’s job.”
    I stiffened, my chest rising and falling in ragged breaths.
    “I’m guessing she just told you today,” he continued, his tone clipped. “And now you’re angry.”
    Then, he laughed, hollow, mirthless, a laugh that didn’t even reach his eyes.
    I ran a shaky hand through my hair, trying to process his words. “What… What are you talking about?”
    “Oh, come on now, Isla.” His lips curled into a cruel smirk. “Drop the act.”
    His words cut deep, sharper than any slap could have been.
    “You knew this,” he said, his voice unwavering. “You knew all along. That’s why you accepted the contract. You knew exactly what this was about. So why are you acting so surprised now?”
    My blood ran cold. My mouth went dry.
    “The fuck are you talking about?” I asked, my voice barely above a whisper. I was seething now, confusion mixing with rage.
    He scoffed. “Please. You’re just like your sister.” His gaze darkened. “You and Beatrice are exactly the same. Liars. Pretenders.”
    The words hit me like a slap to the face.
    So, I gave him one in return.
    The crack of my palm against his cheek echoed in the silence between us.
    But before I could even take a breath, his hand shot out, gripping my wrist hard.
    “I warned you about that, didn’t I?” His voice was low, deadly. “I told you not to lay your hands on me again.”
    Pain flared in my wrist as his fingers pressed into my skin.
    “You’re hurting me, Alex,” I gritted out, my breath ragged.
    But instead of letting go, he dragged me deeper into the garden, away from the prying eyes of the elderly patients nearby.
    “What the fuck are you doing?” I hissed, struggling against his grip. “Let go of me this instant! You won’t control me anymore. I don’t want this contract. I want out!”
    He didn’t even flinch. Didn’t react.
    He just shoved me back against the wall, caging me in with his arms.
    “We’re going to talk about this,” he said, his voice a quiet storm. “Whether you like it or not.”
    I glared up at him, my breath coming in short, furious bursts. “I don’t want to talk to you. I don’t want anything to do with this shitty, confusing mess you put me in.”
    “Oh, really now?” His voice was mocking. “It’s a mess, huh?”
    His jaw clenched, the muscles working beneath his skin.
    “Well, I’m sorry,” he bit out, his tone sharp. “But it’s not my fault.”
    I let out a sharp laugh. “Then whose fault is it?”
    His next words sent a chill down my spine.
    “Yours.”
    I froze. “The fuck do you mean?”
    He leaned in, his breath hot against my skin. “Oh, you think I didn’t know that you were fucking Drew?”