Chapter 99
CHAPTER 99
THE TRUTH SPLINTERS
Adam POV
The silence of my apartment was deafening, even with the city humming softly beyond the glass walls. I sat on the edge of my couch, my phone in hand, thumb hovering over Aurora’s contact. How do you tell a woman you once tried to seduce that she's your half-sister?
How do you tell a woman, that you're in chort with her enemy that you're her half brother?.
This was the biggest dilemma I've ever faced.
I had practiced a thousand ways to say it. None of them felt right.
What if she hates me? What if this breaks her?
I sighed, rubbing my face. I didn’t even know what I expected. I had supported Tiffany blindly, craving validation from the only family I thought I had. And all this time… I didn’t know the truth.
But now, I know the truth.
Victor had laid it bare last night like it was just another power play.
“She’s your sister, Adam. Half-blood. Different fathers. Same mother. .”
I had laughed at first. I thought it was another mind game. But the seriousness in his eyes had killed the humor in my throat.
Aurora.
The girl I once flirted with.
The girl I wanted to destroy.
The girl I couldn’t stop thinking about.
And now? She was blood.
I opened the call log and pressed her name before I could change my mind. The dial tone rang. My heart thudded in my chest like a ticking bomb.
She picked.
“…Adam?”
Her voice was soft, surprised. Wary.
“Yeah,” I said, voice stiff. “Hey, Aurora.”
A pause.
“I didn’t expect your call.”
“I know. Look this isn’t easy. I need to see you. Face to face.”
“Why?” she asked, instantly on guard. “What’s going on?”
“It’s important. But… private. Please. Just you and me. No Tiffany. No Dominique. No one.”
She hesitated.
“Adam, I can't….”.
“Please,” I cut in. “You’ll want to hear this. I swear.”
She was silent for a beat. Then came the answer I didn’t expect.
“…Alright. But only for a few minutes.”
I exhaled, leaning back. Relief washed through me, tainted by fear.
“Thank you. I promise… you’ll understand everything soon.”
The line went silent.
I guess I'm telling her for real this time.
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DamianPOV
The warehouse was colder than I remembered.
I followed the call’s direction, fingers brushing the grip of my gun out of habit. Whoever wanted to meet me had been cryptic, but there was a chill to the voice that sounded… familiar.
The air shifted.
And then he stepped into the dim light.
“Alex?”
Aurora’s former best friend. The boy who stood with Aurora.
Aurora's ride and die, as she said.
She mentioned him been the most innocent soulbshe had ever seen.
Now a man with sharp eyes and a smile that could slice.
I froze. “You?”
“Miss me?” he asked, arms out.
“What the hell is this? You’re the one who called me?”
“Yes,” he said simply, then walked closer. “You love her, don’t you?”
My eyes narrowed. “This isn’t about”
“Oh, but it is,” he said smoothly. “Aurora. She used to be mine. Until she wasn’t. Until she betrayed me. Left me in that damned hole of a life while she played Queen.”
“You think she betrayed you?” I scoffed.
“I know she did,” he hissed. “But don’t worry. I don’t want her dead. I want her broken. Just like I was. And you… you can help me.”
I backed a step. “You’re insane.”
“No,” he said. “I’m justice.”
“Then find it elsewhere,” I growled.
He smirked. “You think Dominique deserves her? You think after everything, he’s the one? You could still win her. Be her savior. All you have to do… is help me. Just a little.”
My fists clenched.
He was manipulating me. Twisting pain and love into a weapon.
But a part of me dark and bitter wanted to agree. Wanted to believe that if I played along, I could stay close. Close enough to protect her. Close enough to take her back.
“You’re not touching her,” I said finally.
Alex grinned, satisfied. “Then don’t let me down,damian. Don't even think of it.”
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Victor POV
The silence in my office was suffocating. Tiffany sat across from me, legs crossed, wine in hand, her smile as deadly as ever.
“We’ll take the Blackwood Mansion in a week,” she said, swirling the drink. “But first Aurora. We take her. We break her.”
I said nothing.
“You’re awfully quiet, Father. Are you having second thoughts?”
“No,” I lied.
She stood and walked to the window. “You think she’s strong now? That little girl pretending to be a wolf? Please. Deep down, she’s still the same soft, whimpering girl begging me to stop.”
I studied her.
Her beauty had always been terrifying. But now… it was her conviction that scared me.
“Tiffany,” I began.
“Hm?”
“There’s something you need to know.”
She turned, brow raised. “What is it?”
I hesitated. I could still bury the truth. Let it fester.
But she would find out eventually. Maybe from Adam. Maybe in the aftermath of war.
Better it came from me.
“You and Adam,” I said slowly, “don’t share the same mother.”
She blinked.
“What?”
I stood. “You’re not full siblings. Your mother was Maria. While his mother was Stella Valeryk… Aurora's mother. He is Aurora's half brother. He carries the blood of the Valeryk.”
The silence stretched.
Tiffany’s expression didn’t change. Not at first.
Then the wine glass dropped, shattering on the marble floor.
“You’re lying,” she whispered.
“I’m not.”
Her hands clenched at her sides. “Why now? Why tell me this now? Why wait years to tell me the secret? Why now? How did you think I would take this?”
Her hands trembled.
“Because war is coming. And secrets destroy faster than bullets.”
“So what am I?”.
“You're my daughter…that's the most important thing”. I tried calming her down.
Her jaw trembled. “I need air.”
She turned and stormed out, leaving me with broken glass and the bitter taste of a truth too long buried.
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