The morning sun filtered weakly through the tall glass windows of Roman’s mansion, casting soft golden streaks across the marbled floors and illuminating the silence that had fallen like a shroud over the house.
The scent of brewed coffee lingered faintly in the air, yet it brought no comfort to Tessy as she sat, tense and unmoving, in one of the chairs in the dining room. Unlike before, she hadn’t gone straight to her room or tried to retreat into solitude. Not this ti. This ti, she wanted answers, and she wanted them now.
She had stopped briefly in the living room, arms crossed stubbornly, refusing to take even one more step deeper into the house until every question burning in her mind was t with nothing less than truth.
Roman had stood opposite her, his presence as commanding as ever, yet laced with an unfamiliar gentleness as he persuaded her to move into the dining room. He knew that the things they were about to discuss needed privacy, away from eavesdropping ears and wandering eyes.
Reluctantly, Tessy had agreed. But she still hadn’t softened.
Now, across the glossy mahogany table, her sharp, questioning gaze pierced into him. She sat with her back straight, her legs crossed at the ankles, fingers locked tightly in her lap, composed on the outside, but barely holding it together inside. Her jaw was clenched so tight it ached, but she didn’t care.
Roman sat directly across from her, hands steepled, the shadow of guilt clouding his otherwise stoic features. There was an ache in his eyes, a weariness, as though he had carried a burden too heavy for too long. And now that it was finally ti to unload it, he was almost unsure where to begin.
He let out a slow breath and leaned forward.
"I’m sorry it took your leaving and losing our baby for you to get to know everything I am about to tell you," Roman said, the words falling like stones between them. He watched her face closely, and saw the flicker of pain in her eyes.
Tessy didn’t respond imdiately. Her breath caught in her throat. She was fighting not to show emotion, but her chest rose and fell a little too fast. Roman saw it, and it only deepened the remorse etched into his face.
"I never wanted it to be like this. I just needed you to be strong enough ntally to handle the entire truth about your life," he added, his voice low, almost apologetic.
Tessy let out a laugh, a short, sharp, and humorless one. It echoed strangely in the stillness of the large room, bouncing off the high ceilings like a cruel joke.
"About my life?" she asked, each word laced with disbelief, like they tasted foreign in her mouth. The words he spoke didn’t even sound right in her ears.
She shook her head, bitter amusent tugging at the corner of her lips. Still, she didn’t walk away. She didn’t interrupt again. She simply tilted her chin up defiantly.
"Alright then. Since you know more about than I do about myself, go ahead and get to the point already."
Roman nodded once, his jaw tightening as he prepared himself. This was it. No more half-truths. No more shielding her. She deserved to know it all.
"Your na is not Tessy Curt, as you initially were called. Your na is Tessy Carlo. Your father’s na is Carlo Bandara, the sa man whose head you were running with in your dream," Roman began carefully.
Tessy’s brows furrowed. Her mouth parted slightly as she stared at him. He wasn’t stopping.
"Mrs. Curt is your mother’s twin sister. She told herself that your mother died when you were a baby. And unlike what you thought, she is only half human. The other half is... a werewolf."
Roman’s voice trailed off slightly at the end, watching her reaction closely. And it ca.
Tessy’s frown deepened. Her hands, once calmly folded in her lap, now gripped the edge of the chair’s arms. Her wide eyes searched his face for any sign he was joking. He wasn’t.
"My mother is half human? Half werewolf?" she asked, her voice almost hollow.
"You don’t seem to be listening to . She isn’t your mother," Roman corrected gently.
Tessy swallowed hard. Her pulse thundered in her ears. She nodded once, slowly, as though her brain needed ti to catch up.
"The woman I grew up with is part werewolf and part human?" she asked again, more to herself than to him.
Roman nodded. "That is very correct."
Tessy blinked, then gave a short, breathy laugh, her tone light, but not amused.
"I’m assuming her twin sister,who allegedly is my mother, is also not fully human?" she asked, trying to sound sarcastic, but the tremor in her voice betrayed her.
"Correct again. Your mother is also a hybrid half human, half werewolf."
"What does that make then?"
"You are only one over three human," Roman said to her, his voice completely void of jest, serious and grounded in a heavy truth.
"Huh?" Tessy looked at him, completely confused.
"Yes," Roman nodded. "You are not a hybrid like your mother. You are a tribrid—part human, part werewolf, and part witch. Carlo Bandara was a witch before he died. The leader of a very dangerous coven. The sa coven whose mbers are doing everything possible to kill you currently."
He said it all with such finality, with such certainty, that Tessy had no choice but to let it wash over her. Her heart pounded in her chest. Her mouth was dry. But she refused to believe it blindly. She needed more. She deserved more.
"I hope you don’t expect to believe anything you are saying right now without proof," she snapped, folding her arms. "You have to prove to beyond reasonable doubt that what you are saying is the truth."
Roman watched her with a pained expression, understanding the resistance but also knowing ti was running out. She had a right to demand proof, and he was ready to give it.
Still, one question hung in the air—one Tessy couldn’t let go of, no matter how much sense the rest might make.
"How am I part werewolf when I have never experienced changing into a wolf? Aren’t werewolves supposed to change into wolves or sothing like that?" she asked, the confusion etched so clearly across her face it almost made her look like a child lost in a sea of unfamiliarity.
Roman didn’t answer right away. He sat back slightly, his fingers flexing on the table as he considered how best to explain sothing even he was still trying to piece together.
"The secrets surrounding your life are deep and vast," he said finally, his tone grim. "And I am yet to unravel it all. But I don’t want to wait until they succeed in hurting you before I tell you what I already know. Despite how hard this is to believe, it is the truth, Tessy. The witch and the werewolf parts of you were kept buried since you were a little kid, through dark magic. They are yet to be unlocked, even as we speak."
He paused, then added, "But according to Williams, so of your powers from your witch side spilled when you fell into that first coma."
Tessy shifted in her seat, the word "coma" striking a nerve. She rembered the strange dreams, the strange occurrences and the uncontrollable emotions. Things she had brushed off before now ca crashing back with alarming clarity.
"You said you have proof to back up your words. I need to see the proof before I believe anything you just said," she said firmly.
Roman nodded slowly, his back straightening as he sat upright. His eyes bore into hers, not with challenge, but with conviction. He wasn’t bluffing. He was ready to give her what she asked for.
"Your aunt, Mrs. Curt, is still alive and currently in this house as we speak," he said evenly.
The reaction was imdiate.
"What?!" Tessy exclaid, her voice rising in pitch and disbelief. Her breath hitched, and her pulse galloped. "If you ant it to be funny, then you better stop, because it’s not funny," she snapped, half-rising from her chair in frustration.
But Roman didn’t even flinch.
"I’m not trying to be funny. I’m telling you the complete truth. Unlike what they made you believe, I didn’t kill her. She ca here alright—but her intention was to kill you. That was why the drama they sent to you in that video happened."
Tessy sat back down slowly, her body moving like she was in a daze. Her mind was a whirlwind of confusion and fear and doubt.
"You’re lying," she whispered, the words the first thing that ca to her mind. She was trembling now, and no amount of willpower could stop it.
"Co with and you’ll see for yourself," Roman said simply, as he rose to his feet.
He extended his hand toward her, not forcing her, not rushing her, just offering her the truth, if she was ready to face it.
Tessy stared at that hand for a long mont. But she soon reached out, her fingers brushing his. If what he said was true, her entire life would have been a lie.
Reviews
All reviews (0)