Chapter 10 - THE LIE THAT KEPT US ALIVE
"Tell me the truth."
My voice was quiet.
Too quiet.
Stellan stood in front of me.
The man who controlled an empire.
The man who made other people afraid.
But right now...
he looked like the one who was afraid.
"Selene."
"No."
I shook my head.
"Not another excuse."
Fern moved in my arms.
Unaware.
Innocent.
While every adult around her had been fighting a war she never asked for.
"What did the first blood test say?"
Stellan didn't answer.
That was all I needed.
My heart sank.
"You knew."
He looked down.
"Yes."
I felt betrayed all over again.
"You knew she wasn't listed as yours."
"Yes."
"And you still believed she was?"
His eyes lifted.
"Because I knew the test was fake."
My anger stopped.
"What?"
Stellan took a breath.
"The original blood sample was switched."
I stared.
"How do you know?"
"Because I was there."
The room went silent.
"You were there?"
He nodded.
"The night Fern was born."
My hands tightened around her.
"Then why didn't you come?"
His expression broke.
"Because I saw what they did."
"Who?"
"My father's men."
A cold feeling moved through me.
"They came to the hospital."
I froze.
"What?"
"They were looking for Fern."
Stellan's voice became darker.
"They knew about her before I did."
I couldn't speak.
"How?"
He looked at Mrs. Thornbury.
She lowered her eyes.
"I found out too late."
Stellan continued.
"Someone inside the hospital was working with them."
My mind raced.
"So the test..."
"Was changed before you ever saw it."
I remembered that day.
The doctor.
The papers.
The nurse who avoided eye contact.
The strange feeling that something wasn't right.
"But why?"
Stellan looked at Fern.
"Because if they proved she was my daughter..."
A pause.
"They could use her against me."
I whispered:
"So they erased you."
"Yes."
"And you let me believe Adrian abandoned me."
Pain crossed his face.
"I thought Adrian was dead."
I froze.
"What?"
His voice became low.
"After my father took me away from you, I tried to find you."
My breathing stopped.
"But someone intercepted me."
"Who?"
His eyes became cold.
"Theodore."
I looked at him.
"But you said he was dead."
"He is."
"Then who?"
Before he could answer...
The mansion lights went out.
Complete darkness.
A second later...
emergency lights turned on.
Red.
Like blood.
Everyone reached for weapons.
Then a phone started ringing.
Not Stellan's.
Mine.
I froze.
Nobody had my number except a few people.
Slowly...
I pulled it out.
Unknown number.
Stellan looked at the screen.
"Don't answer."
I stared.
"Why?"
His face was serious.
"Because whoever is calling knows exactly where you are."
The phone kept ringing.
Once.
Twice.
Three times.
Then I answered.
"Hello?"
Silence.
Then breathing.
A familiar voice.
Not Adrian.
Not Stellan.
Someone else.
A woman.
"Selene..."
My blood ran cold.
Because I knew that voice.
"Mrs. Thornbury?"
Everyone froze.
The voice continued.
"I'm sorry."
I couldn't speak.
"You need to listen carefully."
My grip tightened.
"Where are you?"
A shaky breath.
"Far enough away that they can't find me."
"Who are they?"
Silence.
Then she whispered:
"The people who created Fern."
My heart stopped.
"What does that mean?"
Her voice became desperate.
"Selene, Fern was never just a child to them."
I looked down at my daughter.
"She was a plan."
The room went silent.
"A plan for what?"
Mrs. Thornbury started crying.
"To destroy Stellan Cross."
I looked at Stellan.
Then she said the sentence that changed everything.
"But the worst part..."
A pause.
"Fern was never supposed to survive."
The phone almost fell from my hand.
"What?"
Mrs. Thornbury whispered:
"Someone inside this mansion helped them."
I looked around.
At the guards.
The walls.
The people around me.
Then her final words came through the phone.
"Selene..."
"Trust nobody."
The call ended.
And at that exact moment...
someone behind me whispered:
"Too late."
I turned.
May you like
And saw one of Stellan's most trusted men holding a gun.
Pointed directly at Fern.
