Chapter 121 FEAR OF A PAST FATE

Chapter 121 FEAR OF A PAST FATE
Kelvin’s POV

The more I witnessed everything playing out right in front of me, the more wrong it felt. This wasn't how I thought any of this would be. This wasn't how I pictured it going.

Jaxon wasn't supposed to look this utterly miserable, and Nancy wasn't supposed to be entangled in any of it. They weren't even supposed to know each other—let alone have a child together.

That part still sounded so unbelievably surreal, yet it was undeniably true. And everything led back to my mother. Every single piece of this nightmare.

All this time, I spent my life hating Jaxon and my supposed father—blaming them for every single thing that went wrong in my existence—when it was my mother who had ruined me all along.

My gaze remained fixed on Nancy as she stepped up to hold Jaxon. Hating the sight, I ripped my eyes away from them.

“Ah... Troy,” the young girl—Isadora—called out to Jaxon’s assistant. “What’s going on between that beautiful lady and Jaxon?” she asked, half-excited and half-curious, a small smile beaming across her face. But beneath it lingered a heavy shadow of sadness.

“I’ll tell you later, Isa. For now, I think we should head inside and give them some space. Besides, we still have one more visitor who shouldn't be kept standing,” Troy said, his eyes shifting directly to me.

“I just hope Jaxon has finally found that one person who will love and support him,” Isadora murmured softly. “I just want him to be happy... and that’s only going to happen once Mom is gone.” She uttered the last part with profound pain before turning toward the house.

Troy turned to face me, his cold, unyielding gaze locking onto mine.

“Why are you here?” he asked bluntly.

“I want to see her. Tell me where to find her,” I demanded, not bothering to hide the sharp edge of anger in my voice.

“So you’re finally ready to listen,” Troy remarked with a scoff.

“I’ve heard and seen enough, and I really need to talk to her. So please... send me her address,” I said, holding his gaze to make sure he saw the sheer desperation consuming me right now.

“Show me your phone's GPS,” he instructed.

I handed it over. He typed in the location, saved it, and handed the phone back to me.

“I’d advise you to be careful,” Troy warned, his voice dead serious. “Mind what you say to her if you actually find her. She’s completely out of her mind right now, and I’d hate for you to be the second person to get their head smashed open with a bottle.”

With that, Troy turned and walked inside. Taking one last look at Jaxon and Nancy, who were still wrapped in each other's arms, I turned, walked out of the estate gates, and booked a ride.

The car arrived almost immediately. I gave the driver the address and leaned my head back against the headrest, exhaustion hitting me all at once alongside the million racing thoughts in my mind.

Jaxon's POV

I somehow managed to pull myself together and bring Nancy inside. I knew she had a critical reason to be here—something urgent had brought her all this way unannounced.

When we joined Troy in the living room, I immediately noticed that both Isadora and Mr. Randy were nowhere to be found.

“Where is Kelvin?” Nancy asked, beating me to the question.

“He insisted I give him her address. He looked like he was going to snap if I didn't hand it over,” Troy answered with a heavy sigh.

“And Isadora?” I asked, my voice coming out small and raspy.

I felt hollowed out. A dull, throbbing pain rattled through my head, but it was nothing compared to the suffocating ache in my chest—a heavy, crushing weight, as if a stone were resting on my heart while a blade twisted inside it.

“She left,” Troy said quietly. “She thinks you hate her. I tried to stop her, but you know how Isa is... she looked like she needed her own space.”

I simply gave a weak nod before dragging my eyes back to Nancy.

“What brought you here?” I asked, struggling to hold her gaze. “I know you came all this way for a reason. I'm sorry... I'm sorry I clouded your worries with mine.”

“I finally figured out who she is,” Nancy said, her eyes searching mine for any sign of a reaction. “You were right all along. She isn't your mother.”

Her gaze flicked from me over to Troy.

“She stole a life that was never hers,” Nancy continued, her tone chillingly calculated. “Her real name is Seraphina, and she’s the Lancaster daughter who was believed to have drowned at sea.”

Silence fell over the room. I couldn't bring myself to speak.

“...You already knew,” Nancy muttered, realization dawning on her. The color drained from her face almost instantly.

I watched her spiral from quiet shock into a bitter, pain-filled laugh, dragging a hand through her hair in pure disbelief.

“It turns out Jaxon's father was aware of the whole thing from the very beginning,” Troy interjected, his gaze meeting Nancy's. “He knew all along that the woman posing as his wife wasn't actually Jaxon’s mother.”

“So let me get this straight,” Nancy barked, her voice rising in sudden, furious outrage. “You're telling me his own father knew this monster wasn't his wife or the mother of his child, and he still let the entire world call his son a psycho?! He stood by and watched his child endure horrors no human should ever go through?! He locked his own son in a psychiatric facility knowing damn well he wasn't insane?!”

I instinctively reached out to touch her arm, desperate to calm her down, but she flinched away from my touch, her furious eyes locking onto mine.

“Aren't you tired of this?!” she choked out, tears streaming down her face. “Aren't you fed up with these people turning your life upside down just because they weren't satisfied with their own?! Aren't you?!”

I wanted to speak. I wanted to pull her close and hold her, but I was barely functioning. Yet through her rage, I could tell something catastrophic had happened back home.

“Nancy, please...” I rasped out, terrified of seeing her slip into the same dark abyss I was trapped in.

“I am done letting these people get away with every single thing they've done!” she cried out, her voice breaking. “Because this time... they crossed the fucking line!”

I grabbed both of her trembling hands, trying to anchor her. “Nancy, please tell me what happened. I don't understand what you're saying!”

She ripped her hands out of my grip, reached for her backpack, and unzipped it violently—turning it upside down and dumping a cascade of photos across the glass table.

I stared blankly at the pile of pictures until one slid off the edge and landed near my feet.

It was a photo of Renna, smiling brightly. My brain scrambled in complete confusion.

“A few hours after you left Hollowmere, a package arrived,” Nancy said, her voice dropping into a shaky, unnerving calm. “It was addressed directly to you, Jaxon. There was even a note that called her princess... just like you used to.”

“...I never sent her anything,” my voice cracked. I hadn't sent Renna a package.

“I know you didn't, Jaxon,” Nancy whispered, tears brimming in her eyes. “Because why on earth would a toy tractor with a timed bomb be delivered to my parents' ranch in your name?!”

The room spun.

A bomb? At her parents' ranch? In my name?

“Jaxon... I watched Renna turn that gift over with so much excitement,” Nancy sobbed, her voice fading into a horrified whisper. “Only for it to detonate right in front of my face...”

Her words echoed, distorting in my mind.

Suddenly, my vision blurred, replaced by the memory of Emmy and her mother.

My absolute worst nightmare was coming true all over again—this time with Nancy. I had brought my curse, my misfortune, straight to her door.

What was I thinking, believing I could keep her safe? What was I thinking, believing I could ever protect anyone I loved?

Everything went dead silent around me, replaced only by the sound of someone gasping for air—a harsh, desperate choking sound.

Then, a sharp sting pierced the side of my neck.

I blinked heavily, my gaze drifting upward to see Troy’s worried face hovering above me, while Nancy stood beside him, completely drenched in tears.

They were shouting something at me, but I couldn't hear a single word. The world was utterly silent, and my vision began to fade into dark static.

I reached out with a trembling hand, grabbing a tight fistful of Troy’s sleeve, silently begging him to listen. But when I opened my mouth to speak, no sound came out. I couldn't move a single muscle.

I was paralyzed.

And slowly, dark waves of unconsciousness pulled me under, consuming me completely.