Celeste’s POVGenevieve was pinned to the ground, breathing hard, her hair wild around her face.I saw her eyes lock onto Damien’s face—and for a split second, sheer panic flashed across her face. She certainly hadn't expected him.And just like that, the desperation slid beneath a thin mask of vulnerability."Damien..." she murmured, her voice trembling, her eyes wide with feigned hurt. "why are you here ... you are going to help me, right?”Her voice cracked on the last word, and for a brief moment, she looked like a lost traveler had found her way home. “I didn’t even realize what was happening.” she stammered, eyes darting from Damien to the crowd, back to him. “It was Celeste—she tricked me and trapped me!”Tears streamed down her face, but beneath the trembling facade, I could see the frantic calculation in her eyes.“I never meant to hurt anyone, ” she whispered, almost to herself now. I stood a few feet away, clutching my shoulder. Blood still dripped down my arm, but I didn
Celeste’s POVShe was barely standing, but still clinging to that smug little smirk like it was armor.“So what?” Genevieve said, her voice hoarse but laced with arrogance. “Even if I go to jail, it won’t last. You don’t get it, do you?” Her eyes burned into mine. “The Lancasters don’t let their own rot behind bars. My father, my mother—they’ll bury this so fast, you won’t even find a whisper left. And Michael? He’d burn down the system for me if he had to.”I stared at her, trying to understand the madness wrapped in her certainty.“You really think your family’s going to save you,” I said slowly. “Even after they hear what you’ve done?”Her laugh came sharp and unhinged. “Of course they will. They’ve cleaned up worse for our name. They’ve paid off reporters, shut down investigations, made people disappear. You think a little arson and a dead nobody is going to shake the Lancasters?” She took a shaky breath, but that cruel light in her eyes never wavered. “Michael would never let me
Genevieve’s POVI staggered, my body aching from the blow she’d delivered, pain ricocheting through my shoulder like a live wire. A wave of dizziness washed over me, blurring the edges of my vision.I was still standing—barely—but the world tilted with every blink. My dagger had skidded across the platform, too far to reach without crawling. And I wasn’t about to crawl.What the hell just happened?I stared at the figure across from me, as I was swaying slightly, my pulse pounding in my ears. She was supposed to be dying. Bleeding. Gasping for her last breath. Not standing tall as if I hadn’t pushed a knife into her chest. She reached up and wiped her face with the back of her sleeve, smearing away grime and dirt in one swipe. Then she tugged off the cap, and a mess of hair fell loose around her shoulders. The filthy jacket came off next, followed by a strange-looking vest—thick, crudely stitched, and marked with shallow slashes.My stomach turned.“You’ve got to be kidding me,” I mu
Genevieve’s POV“Creepy, dark, and abandoned,” I muttered, stepping onto the crumbling platform of the train station ruins. “Just perfect for my plan.” I clutched my coat tighter around me, the chill seeping through the fabric.Just then, a movement caught my eye. At the far end of the platform stood a woman in a cleaner's uniform, her posture hunched, face obscured by a tattered cap. Grease and grime stained her clothes, and her hands were hidden in oversized gloves.I approached cautiously, stopping a few feet away. Jordan is a woman? A small smile formed on my lips. Good. I could take this female janitor easily. The stench hit me before I could say a word, though. I instinctively took a half-step back, wrinkling my nose. That was when she looked up, and our eyes met. “Are you Jordan?” I asked in a clipped voice. She nodded slowly, head tilting. “And you’re… AnonymousUser413?”I offered a hesitant smile. “Yeah… I was at the orphanage a long time ago. I heard about the fire and—
Damien’s POVI didn’t look at her.Couldn’t.My hands were still trembling from what I’d just seen. My throat burned from the breath I hadn’t released. And then came the soft thud of her footsteps in the hall—her presence drawing closer, and with it, the unbearable weight of everything I’d destroyed.“Damien?” Her voice rang out from behind me, casual, unaware. “I forgot my sketchbook. I just—”I turned too quickly, nearly knocking over the chair. “I was just leaving,” I blurted.Her brows drew together. “What?”“I have something to do,” I added, stepping past her before I could give myself time to think. “Important. Time-sensitive. I—I’ll call you.”She stared at me, looking quite bewildered. “You look pale. Are you okay?”No. God, no.But I nodded anyway. “I’m fine.”Her hand twitched, like she was debating whether or not to reach out. “Is this about earlier?”I stopped at the door.If I told her now—if I showed her the video, the truth—would she even believe me? Would it matter? Or
Damien’s POVThe video was already paused in the first frame. My fingers hovered above the keyboard, hesitant.I didn’t want to see it again. But I had to. I needed answers. Just the plain truth.With a deep breath, I pressed play.There it was.My gut twisted the moment I saw her. Celeste. Or the woman who looked exactly like her.Her laugh. Her hair. The angle of her jaw. Even the way she tilted her head when the man whispered something into her ear. It was identical. Painfully identical.And then the kiss. I forced myself not to look away. Not this time.God, it hurt. The same way it had hurt the first time I saw it—like someone had grabbed my lungs and wrung them dry. Especially when they began to touch each other. But I tried to keep my attention on just the woman. Her hair and skin, or at least all the exposed parts in the video. And the way she moved. Shaw had been right. I couldn’t go off instinct. Couldn’t keep believing what I wanted to believe. Maybe there’s something we’