02 The Beginning Of The n
Meanwhile, at the Walters‘ house.
Ste had just stepped out of the car, dragging her small suitcase behind her, when the front door burst open.
Her mother came rushing out, as if she’d been standing guard all morning.
The way Alicia’s face pinched with worry instantly made Ste’s stomach twist.
Ste opened her mouth, ready with a cheerful, “I’m home, Mom,” but she didn’t get the chance.
“Ste, why are you only arriving now?” Alicia blurted, eyes wide and frantic. “I thought you wereing back yesterday. Last night, your
father came home and was looking for you. He is worried about you…”
Ste froze mid–step. Those words hit her like ice water down her back.
‘Dad… came back? And he looks for me? Did I hear the best joke ever?‘
Her father hadn’t asked about her in months, maybe years. He barely came home anymore, iming illness recovery and endless
business trips.
Thest time he’d sat at the family dinner table, she couldn’t even remember.
She’d told herself it was because of thepany’s struggles. The stocks are plummeting, shareholders are breathing down his neck, and
the disaster of that stalled project is what everyone whispers about. He was supposedly “too busy.”
But now?
Now her mother said he’de back and asked for her?
A bitterugh almost slipped from her lips, but Ste bit it back.
She knew better. She knew the truth now. Evelyn had told her the truth about what was really happening.
Her father’s “absence” wasn’t due to work, illness, or stress. It was due to his fondness for Lana, his mistress.
And worst of all? Her strong, elegant mother had known for years, Known and endured the humiliation in silence and endured the
sadness, the betrayal, and all of it for her sake.
Ste gritted her teeth silently.
Her chest burned with questions she couldn’t voice.
“Mom, why did you carry that pain alone? Why didn’t you tell me? Why let me believe in him when he didn’t deserve it?” But all those
questions<b>, </b>she swallowed them all down.
She couldn’t speak the truth yet.
Instead, she noticed the sharp lines on her mother’s face, the way her once–bright eyes seemed dimmer, and how her figure had grown thinner over the past year. Every detail was like a knife carving into her heart.
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102 The Beginning Of The n
Without warning, she stepped forward and wrapped her arms around her mother, pulling her close.
Alicia stiffened at first, surprised that her daughter hugged her tightly, but then melted into the embrace.
“You silly girl,” Alicia muttered against her shoulder, tapping her lightly on the back like scolding a child. But her voice trembled.
“Why didn’t you call me? I rang you so many times, and you only answered once. Once! Do you want me to report you as a missing
person, Ste Walters?” Alicia asked.
Ste pulled back slightly,ughing through the sting in her eyes.
“Mom, I’m sorry. I extended one more day. But look, I’m alive, see?” She spread her arms, trying to show that she was fine.
Then she changed the topic, “Mom, I’m starving. I skipped breakfast before flying back… I was in such a rush.”
Alicia chuckled, shaking her head.
“Honestly, you’ll give me a heart attack one day<i>.</i>” She swatted at Ste’s arm and then turned quickly toward the door. “Come inside.
Change your clothes. I’ll make you something simple to eat. You need real food, not airne snacks.”
“Thank you, Mom,” Ste said softly, watching her retreat to the kitchen.
And thank God her mother hadn’t asked any more profound questions. Not about where she’d stayed. Not about why her return was
dyed.
Because if her mother pressed, she might slip. She might reveal Evelyn’s name, their meeting in Grayenfall, and their fragile secret.
It wasn’t time yet.
She smiled as she followed her mother, but as soon as she stepped out of the kitchen doorway, her smile faded.
The sadness she’d been suppressing spilled out, reced by growing anger.
Anger at her father for shattering their family. Anger at Lana for daring to exist in their lives.
And anger at her mother, too… for quietly enduring instead of fighting back.
Her fists clenched at her sides as she walked upstairs.
In her room, Ste dropped onto her bed and stared at the ceiling.
She let herself rey her mother’s words over and over, each one scratching deeper. Her father had asked about her.
“Why? To soothe his guilty conscience, knowing Lana sent me to meet that bastard?‘
‘Or, did he get mad because I failed to get the contract signature and instead injured Lewis Harrison?”
The thought made herugh, a sharp, humorless sound that echoed off her bedroom walls. If her mother heard it, she’d probably scold her for “losing her manners.”
Ste sat up, pushing her hair off her face. Humor was the only shield she had against the rage boiling inside her.
“Well, Dad,” she muttered to the empty room, “Hope you’re ready for the fireworks.”
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102 The Beginning Of The n
Because this time, she wasn’t the na?ve little girl waiting for scraps of attention.
This time, she knew the truth, and she wasn’t alone. Evelyn was with her, and together they would ensure her father and Lana paid for
every hurt they caused. 1
Right after Ste changed her clothes, she could hear her mother calling her name from downstairs.
“Coming, Mom!”
She forced her anger back down, tucking it into the corner of her heart where it would burn quietly until the right time.
Then she bounded down the stairs, the good daughter again, the one whoughed and ate her mother’s cooking and asked about her
day.
As Alicia set a steaming te on the table, fussing over portion sizes and vitamins like always, Ste reached out and squeezed her hand.
“It smells amazing, Mom. Just what I needed.”
Her mother smiled, exhausted yet sincere. For that fleeting moment, Ste allowed herself to be a daughter once more.
“Hurry up and finish your meal… Your father knows you’reing back. He said he’ll be home soon.”
Ste smiles, but deep inside, beneath her smile, her anger still burns. And her father’s return marked the beginning of the n.
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Sara Lili
<strong>Sara Lili</strong> is a daring romance writer who turns icyndscapes into scenes of fiery passion. She loves crafting hot love stories while embracing the chill of d’s breathtaking cold.