Chapter 190

Chapter 190
Madilyn’s POV

The room was so quiet it felt like it was holding its breath. Johnson was frozen, staring at Ariana’s necklace like it held all the answers to his past. His eyes showed confusion, pain, and something even deeper that he couldn’t hide.

Ariana, still smiling, tried to pull her necklace from his cufflink.

“Oh! Sorry!” she giggled. “It got stuck! This necklace is special. My mama gave it to me, and her mama gave it to her. It’s from our family!”

She didn’t notice Johnson’s shocked face. She didn’t realize what she had just revealed.

Even though Mason had changed the colors a little, the symbol on the necklace was still clearly Johnson’s family emblem.

“Ariana, come here,” I said quickly. My voice sounded calm, but there was urgency behind it.

Ariana smiled and let go of the necklace. “Mama!” she called happily as she ran to me and wrapped her little arms around my legs.

Johnson continued to stare. His eyes were wide, and his face pale. Slowly, he looked up at me. There were so many questions in his eyes, and for once, not a single word came out of his mouth.

“Ariana…” he finally whispered. The name sounded like he was trying to believe it himself.

I held his gaze firmly. “It was my mother’s middle name,” I said clearly.

Johnson looked even more uneasy now. He seemed afraid of what I would say next. Still, he asked in a low voice, “What was her first name?”

“Regina,” I answered. Just saying her name made my chest tighten with emotion.

Silence filled the room again.

Johnson slowly lowered himself into the nearest chair like he had lost all strength in his body. “Regina,” he repeated, barely more than a whisper. The name came out full of memory and pain.

He looked at me again. “How… how is this possible? Are you… are you her…”

“Yes,” I said before he could finish. “I’m her daughter. She gave birth in Bloodmoon. After that, we were separated. My twin brother, James, was taken back to her homeland—Riverdale.”

I paused, remembering everything James had shown me when we reunited. He had brought me to meet someone who had been close to our mother. She had told me everything I needed to know.

Regina came to Bloodmoon as part of a peace mission. But she got attacked by rogues and was badly hurt. Johnson found her, saved her, and nursed her back to health. That was how their story began.

They were true mates. They fell deeply in love. My mother was so sure about him, she stayed in Bloodmoon.

But her parents didn’t trust him. They thought he just wanted her for her royal blood. So my mother made a promise—she would never tell Johnson who she really was. She believed their love would be enough.

But it wasn’t.

Johnson’s family had already chosen someone else for him to marry—Amanda’s mother, a woman from a powerful family. His parents told him to leave my mother. Instead of ending things, Johnson tried to keep both women at once.

When my mother found out, she was crushed. She had been so happy to tell him she was pregnant with twins. But before she could, Amanda’s mother came and told her the truth.

My mother realized Johnson had never truly planned to choose her. So, she left without telling him she was pregnant. She even rejected their mate bond.

She never returned to Riverdale. She was too hurt and afraid. In the end, she died alone in a hospital, scared and broken. When her cousin finally found her, it was too late. I had already been taken away, and James was all that remained. Her cousin had to protect him and never told him the full truth—until years later.

That’s why I grew up far away from my twin. That’s why I stood here now—facing the man who caused all that pain.

“She gave birth in Bloodmoon?” Johnson whispered. His voice was shaky. When the truth hit him, he looked horrified.

“Yes,” I replied. “She gave birth after rejecting you. After she found out what kind of man you really were. After she realized you were never going to marry her because you thought she was just a normal woman.”

“She must’ve believed you didn’t deserve to be the father of her children.”

Johnson’s hands curled into fists. His face showed real pain.

“I didn’t care about any of that,” he whispered. “I was going to leave everything for her. I only told my family I would marry someone else to stall for time. I wanted to run away with her. But she rejected me and disappeared. Can you… can you take me to her?”

He looked desperate. For a second, I felt a flicker of sympathy.

But then I remembered the way he treated me.

How he ruined my name just to protect Amanda.

How he made my life in Bloodmoon a nightmare until I was forced to leave.

“Take you to her?” I said, my voice cold. “She’s gone, Johnson. She died giving birth. She was too weak. And even if she had lived, I doubt she would have wanted to see you.”

“She was the princess of Riverdale. She gave everything for you. But you were too much of a coward.”

My voice trembled, and a tear slipped down my cheek. So much had been lost because he didn’t stand up for her.

But I had made a promise—I wouldn’t cry over things I couldn’t control anymore.

“If you don’t believe me, contact Everest Labs,” I told him. “They keep test records for five years. I did a DNA test when I saw the emblem on the necklace my mother left me.”

“You’ll see for yourself. But don’t worry—we don’t want anything from you. Not me. Not James. We just want you out of our lives.”

Johnson’s shoulders slumped. He looked like a man who had finally lost everything.

Maybe he did love her. Maybe his regret was real.

But it didn’t matter anymore.

It didn’t change what he had done.

I picked Ariana up and started walking toward the door. Before stepping out, I looked at him one last time.

“You want to expose the plan? You want to protect Leila and Jayden? Go ahead. But I’m not that helpless girl from three years ago.”

“I have Mason. I have my daughter. I have James. I carry our mother’s blood.”

“I will survive. I will win. And I will never forgive you.”

Then I turned and left, leaving him behind.

Third Person POV

In his quiet office, Johnson sat alone, holding a glass of bourbon. The lights were dim. In front of him lay the DNA test results.

They confirmed everything.

Madilyn had told the truth. She was his daughter.

Which meant, when he betrayed her years ago for Amanda’s sake… she already knew who he was.

He didn’t need the paper. He had seen it in her. In the way she walked away, proud and strong.

Just like her mother, Regina.

The woman he had loved more than anyone.

His eyes stung as he closed them tight. He had never stopped carrying Regina’s photo in his wallet. It was still there, years later.

The thought that she died scared and heartbroken… thinking he had betrayed her… tore his heart apart.

He knew he had become someone she would’ve hated. Power-hungry. Cold. A man who spoiled one daughter and destroyed another.

Now all he had left was regret.

But regret was useless now.

He looked at the clock.

Almost midnight.

If Leila and Jayden were going to sneak in and mess with the detector—it would be now.

He could ruin everything with just one phone call.

But for the first time in his life…

He couldn’t.

He couldn’t hurt Madilyn again.

He left the phone alone.

Instead, he pulled out Regina’s photo, stared at it, and kissed it softly—full of sorrow, full of love.