Chapter 9 - The Truth Hidden Before I Was Born
The old Russo estate was abandoned for twelve years.
But when Adrien opened the basement door, he found a room with my name written on the wall.
I stepped inside and saw a photograph of my family beside a folder marked:
"Helena Jenkins."
And I realized the person who planned Adrien’s nightmare had been watching me long before I ever met him.
The first thing I felt was not fear.
It was confusion.
A cold, heavy confusion that made it impossible to think.
My name was written there.
Not Adrien’s.
Not Russo.
Mine.
I stared at the folder sitting on the old wooden table.
The room smelled like dust and forgotten memories.
The walls were cracked.
The lights flickered above us.
But none of that mattered.
Because somehow, in a building connected to Adrien’s darkest secrets…
There was a record of my life.
"Helena."
Adrien’s voice pulled me back.
I looked at him.
He looked just as confused as I felt.
That was the only thing keeping me from breaking.
Because if Adrien had known…
If he had been part of this…
I wasn’t sure what I would do.
But his expression told me the truth.
He had no idea.
Mateo walked closer to the table.
"This doesn't make sense."
I opened the folder.
My hands were shaking.
Inside were documents.
Medical records.
Old photographs.
Bank transactions.
My entire life was organized in front of me like I was a stranger being studied.
Then I saw the first photograph.
It was me.
Not now.
Not as a nurse.
A child.
Maybe six years old.
Standing beside my mother.
I stopped breathing.
"Where did you get this?"
Nobody answered.
I looked at Adrien.
"I need to know."
His jaw tightened.
"I swear to you, I didn't know."
I believed him.
That was the terrifying part.
I believed him because I knew him now.
The man who once terrified me had become the only person I trusted.
I looked back at the documents.
The first page had a date.
Twenty years earlier.
Before I became a nurse.
Before Toby was born.
Before Adrien and I ever crossed paths.
At the bottom was a signature.
Luca Vieri.
The name made Adrien freeze.
"Luca."
Mateo nodded slowly.
"So he was involved."
Adrien grabbed the papers.
"No."
His voice became quieter.
"He wasn't just involved."
He looked at me.
"He was watching you."
A chill moved through my body.
"Why?"
Nobody knew.
Then we heard a sound.
A slow clap.
From the hallway.
Everyone turned.
A man stepped into the room.
Older.
Gray hair.
Calm.
Confident.
Luca Vieri.
The man everyone thought disappeared.
The man behind the message.
The man who had been hiding in the shadows.
He smiled.
"Finally."
Adrien immediately moved in front of me.
Luca noticed.
And smiled wider.
"Still protecting her."
Adrien raised his weapon.
"Where is Toby?"
Luca ignored the question.
His eyes stayed on me.
"You look exactly like your mother."
My body went cold.
"My mother?"
Luca walked closer.
"She was the first person who tried to expose your father."
Adrien looked at him.
"What are you talking about?"
Luca laughed softly.
"Your father wasn't the only person who created secrets."
I stared.
"Explain."
He looked at me.
"Your mother discovered what the Russo family was really doing."
I shook my head.
"My mother was just a nurse."
"No."
The answer came immediately.
"She was more than that."
He walked toward the table.
"She worked with people who were trying to bring down your father."
I felt dizzy.
Everything I knew about my family suddenly felt uncertain.
"My mother disappeared."
Luca nodded.
"Because she was trying to protect you."
I looked at Adrien.
Neither of us spoke.
Luca continued.
"Your mother found out about your father's plan."
Adrien’s eyes narrowed.
"What plan?"
Luca looked at him.
"The same one that created you."
Silence.
I understood.
This wasn't only about revenge.
This was about two families connected by secrets.
My family.
His family.
Both damaged by the same people.
"Where is Toby?"
Adrien asked again.
This time his voice was colder.
Luca finally looked at him.
"Safe."
I stepped forward.
"Where?"
"You’ll get him back."
Adrien’s expression darkened.
"What do you want?"
Luca smiled.
"The truth."
A pause.
"The truth about what your father did."
Adrien laughed bitterly.
"My father is already gone."
"No."
Luca looked at him.
"Your father was only the beginning."
The room went silent.
Adrien’s phone suddenly rang.
Everyone froze.
Unknown number.
He answered.
A voice came through.
A young voice.
"Tessa?"
No.
Wrong.
Not Tessa.
A recording.
Then Toby’s voice.
"Helena?"
My heart stopped.
"Toby!"
I grabbed the phone.
But only silence answered.
Then another voice.
"Come alone."
The call ended.
Adrien immediately took the phone.
"No."
I looked at him.
"He has Toby."
"You’re not going."
My eyes narrowed.
"Excuse me?"
"You heard me."
"Adrien."
"No."
His voice cracked.
Not from anger.
Fear.
"I have spent my entire life losing people."
He stepped closer.
"I will not lose you too."
The words stopped me.
Because behind the powerful man was the same broken person I met on that marble table.
The man who begged me not to leave.
But this time, I wasn't afraid.
I touched his face.
"You taught me something."
He looked at me.
"What?"
"That running away from fear doesn't make it disappear."
A tear almost appeared in his eyes.
Almost.
"I’m going with you."
He wanted to argue.
I saw it.
But he didn't.
Because he knew.
This was not about control anymore.
It was about trust.
One hour later, we arrived at the location Luca sent.
An abandoned warehouse near the edge of Chicago.
The same kind of place where people disappeared.
The same kind of place Adrien spent his life fighting.
He entered first.
I followed.
Inside, Toby was sitting in a chair.
Alive.
Unharmed.
"Toby!"
I ran toward him.
He looked terrified.
But when he saw me, he broke down.
"Helena."
I hugged him tightly.
Behind me, Adrien faced Luca.
"You used my brother to bring me here."
Luca shook his head.
"No."
He looked at me.
"I brought you here because Helena deserved to know the truth."
Adrien stepped forward.
"What truth?"
Luca looked at both of us.
"The explosion that killed your father's old life."
A pause.
"The betrayal that destroyed both your families."
Another pause.
"It wasn't your father."
Adrien froze.
"Then who?"
Luca looked at me.
And said:
"The person who started everything was the one person you both trusted."
My blood ran cold.
Because I knew exactly what that meant.
Someone close.
Someone we never suspected.
Someone who had been helping us search for the truth.
Mateo.
Adrien turned slowly.
Because behind us…
Someone had entered the warehouse.
May you like
And when I saw the face in the doorway…
I realized the final betrayal had been standing beside us the entire time.
