Chapter 8 - The Truth Behind Isabella’s Betrayal
"You're too late."
The recording ended.
Nobody moved.
The words stayed in the air.
My father's last words.
Not a goodbye.
Not a warning.
A message.
A message that ended with Isabella's voice.
Cassian stood in front of the recording device.
His face was impossible to read.
But I saw his hands.
They were shaking.
Only slightly.
Most people would never notice.
I did.
Because I had spent two years watching him.
I knew the difference between anger and pain.
And this was pain.
"My wife..."
His voice was quiet.
Thomas looked at the floor.
Cassian turned slowly.
"She was there."
Nobody answered.
"She was there the night my father disappeared."
Thomas closed his eyes.
"Yes."
The answer hit him harder than any weapon could.
Cassian stepped back.
"So everyone knew."
My mother looked at him.
"Not everyone."
Cassian laughed bitterly.
"Everyone except me."
Nobody argued.
Because it was true.
The man who controlled everything had been the last person to know the truth about his own family.
I looked at the recording device.
"Play it again."
Everyone looked at me.
Cassian frowned.
"Elena."
"Play it again."
My voice surprised even me.
I wasn't asking.
I needed to hear it.
There had to be something.
A sound.
A clue.
Something my father wanted me to notice.
Cassian pressed the button.
The recording started again.
My father's voice filled the room.
"Elena."
I closed my eyes.
I focused.
"If you are hearing this..."
The same words.
The same pauses.
Then the moment.
The moment where Isabella spoke.
"You're too late."
I opened my eyes.
"Stop."
Cassian stopped the recording.
"What?"
"Before she said that."
I walked closer.
"Play the last five seconds again."
He did.
Static.
A door opening.
My father's breathing.
Then Isabella.
"You're too late."
I looked at Thomas.
"That isn't fear."
Everyone stared.
"What?"
I pointed at the speaker.
"She wasn't threatening him."
My mother looked confused.
"Then what was she doing?"
I listened again.
The tone.
The hesitation.
The sadness.
"She was warning him."
Cassian looked at me.
"You think Isabella was trying to help my father?"
"I don't know."
I looked at the photograph of Isabella on the wall.
"But I don't think she betrayed him."
Cassian was silent.
Because deep down...
he wanted to believe that.
A sound came from upstairs.
A crash.
Everyone turned.
Cassian immediately moved toward the stairs.
The basement door was still open.
His guards rushed in.
"Boss."
"What happened?"
One guard looked nervous.
"Someone entered the mansion."
Cassian's expression changed.
"How many?"
The guard hesitated.
"None."
That answer made everyone stop.
"What?"
"The cameras show nobody entering."
Cassian stared.
"Then why did you say someone entered?"
The guard swallowed.
"Because every door in the east wing opened at the same time."
Silence.
Thomas whispered:
"No."
Cassian looked at him.
"What?"
Thomas looked terrified.
"The old system."
Cassian frowned.
"What old system?"
Thomas looked around the basement.
"The one your father built."
My stomach tightened.
"Why would it open doors?"
Thomas didn't answer.
Because he already knew.
Cassian grabbed his weapon.
"Everyone stays here."
I stepped forward.
"No."
His eyes moved to me.
"Elena."
"If this is about my family, I'm coming."
"No."
"You don't get to decide anymore."
The words came out before I could stop them.
Cassian stared at me.
For a moment, I thought he would argue.
Instead, he looked away.
Because he knew I was right.
We moved upstairs.
The mansion was silent.
Too silent.
The kind of silence that meant something had already happened.
The east wing door was open.
Inside was a hallway nobody used.
Old rooms.
Covered furniture.
Dust.
A part of the mansion forgotten by everyone.
Except someone had been here.
The lights turned on one by one.
Automatically.
Cassian stopped.
"How?"
Thomas looked around.
"Your father."
Again.
Always his father.
Always another secret.
At the end of the hallway was a door.
A door I had never seen before.
Cassian approached.
There was a fingerprint scanner.
Old.
Damaged.
But still working.
The screen lit up.
"Identity required."
Nobody moved.
Then the scanner turned green.
I looked at my hand.
Because I knew.
The system recognized me.
The door opened.
Inside was another hidden room.
But this one was different.
It wasn't filled with documents.
It was filled with memories.
A small bed.
Children's drawings.
Old toys.
Photos.
My breath stopped.
Because the first photo I saw was me.
A little girl.
Maybe six years old.
Standing beside a young Isabella.
And beside her...
Cassian.
But Cassian was younger.
He was smiling.
Actually smiling.
I picked up the photo.
"When was this taken?"
Cassian took it from me.
His face changed.
"I don't remember."
Thomas looked at the picture.
"Because you weren't supposed to."
"What does that mean?"
Thomas looked at me.
"Before everything happened, your families were closer than you knew."
I looked at Cassian.
"You knew me?"
He stared at the photo.
"I don't remember you."
My chest tightened.
"Why?"
Thomas answered.
"Because someone erased that part of your memories."
Nobody spoke.
My hand moved to my head.
A strange pressure appeared.
A memory.
A sound.
A voice.
A woman singing.
My mother.
Then another voice.
A little boy.
"Don't worry. I'll protect you."
I looked at Cassian.
The memory disappeared.
But the feeling remained.
I whispered:
"You said that."
Cassian froze.
"What?"
"When I was little."
He looked at me.
"You said you would protect me."
The room went silent.
Cassian stepped closer.
"Elena..."
"I remember."
My voice shook.
"Not everything."
I looked around.
"But I remember you."
For the first time, Cassian looked lost.
Because he was discovering a past he didn't remember either.
Thomas walked toward a cabinet.
He opened it.
Inside was a folder.
On the front was one name.
"Cassian."
Cassian took it.
His hands tightened.
Inside were medical records.
Photographs.
And one document.
A memory restoration report.
Date:
Six years ago.
Subject:
Cassian Renzi.
The room became silent.
I looked at him.
"What is that?"
He didn't answer.
He was reading.
Then his face changed.
Because the final line said:
"Memory removal successful."
My blood went cold.
Someone hadn't just hidden the truth from Cassian.
Someone had erased it.
Cassian looked at me.
And before he could speak, the lights in the room suddenly turned red.
An alarm began.
Then the hidden computer on the desk turned on by itself.
A live video appeared.
A woman was sitting in a dark room.
Her face was covered in shadows.
But her voice was clear.
"Hello, Cassian."
He froze.
Because he knew the voice.
The woman leaned closer to the camera.
Then she said:
"I know you found the room."
A pause.
"And I know Elena is standing beside you."
The screen flickered.
The woman smiled.
Then she whispered:
"But there is one thing you still don't know..."
The camera moved closer.
Revealing her face.
May you like
And Cassian dropped the folder in his hand.
Because the woman on the screen was Isabella.
