Chapter 47: DISCLOSING THE REALITY

It was a crushing hush.

With my heart thumping against my ribs and the echoes of my father's incarceration still lingering in the darkened room, I stood motionless. After being hauled away by the security team, his angry yells faded into the darkness. But his words were still there despite his absence.

"You don't think I'm aware of his actions? The lies? "The manipulation?"

With an irregular heartbeat, I turned to Damian. His face was a flawless mask, unreadable and icy, but I could see the barely contained rage in his stance and the tension in his jaw.

Say it's not true, I muttered.

His eyes darted, for only a moment. That was sufficient.

I felt a searing pain in my chest.

Oh God.

I stepped back, the distance between us feeling unexpectedly wide.

"You knew this was going to happen, didn’t you?" My voice wavered. "You desired for him to fall. It was something you planned.

With a leisurely exhale, Damian combed through his hair. "Lyra—"

"Don’t," I interrupted, out of breath. "Damian, be honest with me. Not another half-truth. Not another game.

He was silent for quite a while. Then he finally said something.

He said, "Yes," in a forceful yet quiet voice. "I made sure your father lost everything."

It made my stomach turn.

Damian was brutal, as I had known. I had been aware of his destructive potential.

But I had told myself—lied to myself—that he was different from me.

"Why?" My voice was hardly more than a whisper when I asked.

Damian's face remained unchanged as he said, "Because he took something from me first."

A chill went through my body. "What do you mean?"

Something unintelligible flashed behind his eyes, darkening his stare. You are unaware, Lyra, of how your father was connected to my past. I didn't want to tell you in certain ways.

My heart was pounding. "Then tell me now."

He was hesitant. A long moment later, he let out a sigh.

"Your father," he started, "was one of the men who duped my father."

My lungs were empty of air.

I blinking. Just once. Two times.

"What?" My voice was hardly audible.

Damian's jaw became tense. The deal that destroyed him was planned. John Ashford was involved as well. I was unable to breathe.

My dad had... tricked Damian's dad?

No. No, it's not possible.

Damian must have noticed my denial because he said something cruel after that.

"You ever wonder why your family’s wealth suddenly disappeared" The remnants of my delusions were sliced through by the sharpness of his voice. Because he was later betrayed by the same individuals that attempted to destroy my family. Lyra, he struck the wrong kind of bargain. And they let him decay because they could no longer use him. the same way they treated my.

I was dizzy.

This did not make sense. All of this is not possible.

And yet...

I knew in my heart that Damian wouldn't tell lies about this.

"That’s why you married me," I said, my voice sounding empty. "That’s why you wanted me."

Pain flashed across his face. "At first, yes." I felt helpless. Damian grabbed my wrist with an unwavering grasp as I staggered back.

Brusquely, "But then you changed everything," he protested. This isn't about retaliation anymore, Lyra. It has been a long time since then.

I retreated from him, my thoughts racing.

Everything that had happened between us all this time had begun with a lie.

Right then and there, I should have left. I should've told him that I didn't want to interact with him.

But I was unable to.

Because despite the pain and my desire to detest him, I still loved him.

The realization came to me suddenly.

I had a deep affection for him.

My father was destroyed by a man I loved.

I had fallen in love with the man who had kept me in this marriage.

The saddest part is that I understood him despite everything.

I was hardly able to speak. "What happens now?"

Damian walked slowly in my direction. As if he was afraid I would vanish, his fingers moved tentatively across my cheek. "That depends on you."

I scanned his face, searching for the truth hidden below all the masks.

Would I be able to forgive him? Could I look to the future and accept the past at the same time?

I was unaware.

I was aware, however, that I wasn't prepared to let go.

Not yet.

I gasped and looked into his eyes. "Then I guess we find out together."

His jaw flexed a muscle. "Lyra—"

He was silenced as I put my fingers to his lips.

"No more lies," I said in a whisper. "There are no longer secrets. If we attempt, if I stay, it must be genuine."

Strong and solid, his hand clamped around mine. "It is real."

And I gave in to my belief for the first time.

I couldn't get rid of the feeling that the past wasn't finished with us, though, as his arms around me and held me tight.

And that there was yet the worst to come.