Amber’s POV


    Before opening the letter, I immediately called Rafael to join me, inviting Mary as well, so that she could see how the envelope was sealed. Whatever results were within, we would read and learn together.


    I continued working until they arrived, then the three of us went into the only meeting room in the clinic


    to do this in private. I passed the sealed envelope to Mary, thinking as the skeptical one, she would want


    to be the one to read it. She did reach for it, but Rafael snatched it up first.


    Rafael tore the top of the envelope and then pulled out the single sheet of paper from within. His eyes


    darted down, reading in haste.


    I waited for him to tell me what it said, but Mary didn’t. Moving closer <i>to </i>him, she openly read over his


    shoulder.


    When they both got to the bottom, Mary scoffed, but Rafael smiled.


    He looked up at me with a bright brotherly love sparkling in his eyes. “Amber,” he said, and I already


    knew what he was going to say, happiness filling my heart. “You are my sister!”


    I couldn’t sit still and hopped out of my chair. Rafael did to and we hugged each other tightly.


    My brother… My brother!


    I couldn’t believe it.


    After being alone for so very long, I suddenly had family, and a ce where I belonged. A heritage. A lineage. A family history that I could track back, and also give to my daughter. Alice could know where


    she came from.


    “I thought you were dead,” Rafael said. “For so long…”


    “I didn’t know I had anyone,” I replied. “Now I have a whole family.”


    Mary gave us a moment to hug things out without interfering. I supposed I should have been grateful for that, because a minuteter, as we started to pull away, she sneered at the letter and said, “I don’t believe


    <b>it</b>.”


    Frustration rose up inside of me, but Rafael reacted quicker, seemingly even angrier than I was. He swiveled on Mary and said, “The results are clear, Mary.”


    “Maybe. If we can believe them.” She waved the paper with the results on it. “How do we know Amber didn’t tamper with this?”


    <b>“</b>It was sealed,” I said. “I didn’t touch it.”


    “Maybe you didn’t touch the envelope, but you could have had whoever sealed it write whatever they want. Or you could have tampered with the blood vials before they even went off for testing,” Mary said.” No. I don’t believe it, and I won’t ept it. I won’t ept her until I’m satisfied.”


    “And what would satisfy you, cousin?” Rafael asked.


    Mary straightened. She already had an answer, like she’d been hoping he was going to ask that. “I want this testing done again in a different clinic of my choosing. One away from Amber’s control.”


    “This is ridiculous.” Rafael said.


    I agreed, but to appease this woman and get her to ept me, I was willing to jump through these hoops.


    If I do this, you promise you will ept those results, no matter what they say?<i>” </i>


    “Do you?” Mary asked me.


    “Of course,” I replied.


    “Then yes, I will too,” Mary said.


    “Fine, then,” I said.


    “Good,” Mary replied.


    Rafael looked between us before his gaze settled onto me. “Are you sure about this?”


    “I don’t want there to be any room for doubt,” I told him.


    “In that case, I think we should disregard these findings today,” Mary said, interjecting herself.


    Rafael frowned. “We will keep them secret, but we will not disregard them. You might not believe the words there, Mary, but I do. Amber is my sister, and I’m sure of it.”


    I smiled at him, relieved he thought that way, even if our cousin was being more difficult. If we knew we were siblings that was all that really mattered.


    I knew I hadn’t interfered with those results, so Rafael was definitely my brother.


    I had nothing to be ashamed of, and soon Mary would see that too.


    Julian’s POV


    With Alice at her tutor’s today, I stood in the bathroom off my hotel bedroom, holding my pill bottle in my hand. I was standing over the toilet, debating on dumping the contents of the bottle down into the water. A flush would take it all away.


    I took another pillst night, to see if the feeling would persist, and it did. I still felt numb. Even focusing enough to stand here dong this took great effort.


    I hated not being able to feel my family. Without thefort of our bonds, I felt like I was awash at sea,


    lost and alone, without even a heading to know how to get home.


    I couldn’t stand it anymore.


    Tilting my hand, I started to turn the bottle.


    Then, before a single pill could fall, my phone began ringing.


    Strange, that I would receive a call and not a text. It had to be some kind of emergency.


    Distracted now, I lowered the pill bottle to the counter and walked out <i>to </i>find my phone where I had left it atop my mattress in my bedroom.


    I was surprised to see my Beta’s name on the screen. Immediately, I picked up the phone and answered it.


    “Hello?”


    “Alpha, thank the goddess,” he said, the relief in his voice palpable.


    “What is it?” I asked. “What’s wrong?”


    “Alpha. It’s your mother…”


    I knew what I had to do, but even through the numbness of the medicine, I felt worried about leaving Amber and Alice alone. They had already been through so much, and needed a protector.


    Though, with how Rafael seemed so willing to take them into his family, perhaps he would be willing to step into that role while I was needed elsewhere.


    I hated leaving it to him, as it just proved his doubts about me. I wanted to prove myself to him, his family, and to Amber, yet now, even before I could start, I had to leave.


    –


    Yet, there was nothing for it. I didn’t have a choice. With some serious things like this – life didn’t give us many options.


    Right now, I was needed more back home than I was here.


    Still, I wasn’t looking forward to this conversation with Amber.


    I waited to pick up Alice, wanting to speak with Amber alone. She seemed surprised when she walked into the hotel, not seeing Alice there, but that surprise cleared when I told her, “We have to talk.”


    I led her to the table where we sat down opposite each other.


    She watched me closely, but my face wasn’t doing anything to give anything away. With that medicine still pumping through my veins, I couldn’t show any emotion even if I wanted to.


    “I have to leave,” I told Amber. “I have to go back home.”


    Her eyes went wide with surprise but she recovered quickly. “Why?” She must have known I wouldn’t just walk away without good reason, especially after everything, including the challenge against Roman.


    “If I could stay with you, I would,” I said. “I don’t want to leave, but I have to.”


    “Help me understand,” Amber said. “Tell me what’s happening.”


    Meeting her gaze, I told her, “My mother is dying.”