Seraphina’s POV
The afternoon sunlight stread through the windows, casting warm shadows across our temporary sanctuary. I sat on the plush carpet, surrounded by shopping bags filled with new clothes and toys. The simple act of buying things for Theo had felt like a small victory, a montary escape from the chaos that seed to follow us everywhere.
Theo zood his new red sports car across the rug, making engine noises that filled the silence between us. His innocent joy was infectious, and for a brief mont, I allowed myself to believe that maybe, just maybe, we could have a normal life.
"Theo, sweetheart," I called softly, settling beside him on the floor. "Can we talk for a mont?"
He looked up at with those bright eyes that mirrored Julian’s so perfectly. "Are you going to tell about the castle again, Mama? I love living here!"
My heart swelled with both love and nervousness. "Actually, it’s about sothing even more important than the castle. It’s about Julian."
His face imdiately brightened. "Julian is the best, Mama! He showed all the secret rooms, and he promised to teach how to swim in the big pool!"
I reached out and gently touched his cheek. "He did all those things because you’re very special to him, Theo. More special than you know."
Theo set down his toy car, giving his full attention. "What do you an, Mama?"
Taking a shaky breath, I gathered all my courage. This mont had been building for so long, and now it was finally here. "Sweetheart, Julian isn’t just our friend. He’s your daddy."
The words hung in the air between us. Theo’s eyes grew wide as he processed what I’d just told him.
"My daddy?" he whispered, as if testing out the word. "I have a daddy like the other kids at school?"
"Yes, baby. You have a daddy, and it’s Julian."
The transformation on Theo’s face was like watching sunrise break over the horizon. Pure, unbridled happiness spread across his features, and my heart nearly burst from the sheer joy radiating from my son.
"Really, Mama? Really and truly?"
"Really and truly," I confird, pulling him into my arms.
But then his expression shifted slightly, confusion mixing with his excitent. "But Mama, if Julian is my daddy, why wasn’t he with us before? Why did we live in the tiny apartnt instead of this beautiful castle?"
The question I’d been dreading. How could I explain the complicated truth to a child? "Daddy was working very hard to make sure this place was safe for us. He wanted everything to be perfect before we could all be together as a family."
Theo seed satisfied with this explanation, his smile returning full force. "And now we can be together forever?"
"Forever and always," I promised, squeezing him tight.
He threw his small arms around my neck, his excitent bubbling over. "I’m so happy, Mama! Now I have a daddy just like everyone else!"
But then Theo pulled back, a new thought crossing his mind. "Mama, if Julian is my daddy, does that an Elena is my sister?"
My blood turned to ice. "Elena? How do you know about Elena, Theo?"
"Oh! Yesterday, when you went shopping, Uncle took to et her and her mama. They live in a pretty house with lots of flowers."
My hands began to shake. Roxanne. He’d t Roxanne. The woman who had tried to destroy everything I held dear had been alone with my son.
"Did... did Elena’s mother say anything to you?" I managed to ask, trying to keep the panic out of my voice.
Theo shook his head innocently. "She was nice, Mama. She gave cookies and juice, but I rembered what you always tell about not eating from strangers, so I said no thank you."
Relief flooded through so powerfully that I nearly collapsed. Thank God for the lessons I’d drilled into him about stranger danger. The thought of what Roxanne might have done if he’d accepted food from her made my stomach churn.
Before I could process this revelation further, my phone buzzed on the coffee table. The screen showed a private number, and my heart sank. I knew exactly who used private numbers to contact .
Part of wanted to ignore it, to grab Theo and run straight to Julian. No more secrets. No more gas. But curiosity and fear made reach for the device.
What I saw on the screen made the world tilt sideways.
dical records. My dical records from the day I gave birth to Theo. Every private detail laid bare, including information I’d never seen before. My eyes scanned the docunt frantically until they landed on words that made my vision blur.
"Patient delivered Twin A and Twin B..."
Twins.
The phone slipped from my trembling fingers. Twins. I’d given birth to twins, and sohow, I’d never known. The room began to spin as I tried to make sense of this impossible revelation.
My phone rang, jolting back to reality. Dorian’s na flashed on the screen.
With shaking hands, I answered. "What is this? What are you trying to do to ?"
His cold laughter sent chills down my spine. "The docunts speak for themselves, don’t they, Seraphina?"
"This is impossible," I gasped. "I would know if I had twins!"
"Would you?" he asked mockingly. "You were unconscious for most of the delivery. Amazing what can happen when soone’s not awake to witness it."
"I told Julian everything!" I shouted, hoping to scare him off. "He knows about you!"
"Perfect," Dorian replied, his tone shifting to sothing darker. "I was getting tired of hiding anyway. Ti for us to et face to face."
"Leave us alone, Dorian. Please, just leave us alone."
"You know I can’t do that, Seraphina. And now that we’re having such an honest conversation, let make sothing crystal clear. When I call, you answer. And if you breathe a word of this conversation to Julian, you’ll never see your daughter again."
The line went dead, leaving staring at the phone in horror.
Daughter. I had a daughter. Sowhere out there, Dorian had my baby girl.
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