Chapter 2

Those words made my heart skipped a beat, but I laughed softly. 

“Only when they give me a reason to.”

For the first time that evening, his smile reached his eyes.

Interesting.

Very interesting.

“Then I hope I never give you one.”

Too late, Adrian. You already gave me a reason five years ago. And I had spent every single day since then preparing to make you pay for it. 

Makalipas ang tatlumpung minuto, nasa balcony ako ng hotel, hawak ang isang baso ng champagne na hindi ko pa man lang natitikman.

Kailangan kong makakuha ng access sa mga business records ng Monteverde Group.Kailangan kong malaman kung saan nakatago ang mga dokumentong magpapatunay na sila ang may kagagawan sa pagbagsak ng aking ama.

At higit sa lahat, kailangan kong makuha ang tiwala ni Adrian.

That was the plan, so why did I feel as if he was the one studying me?

“Beautiful night, isn't it?”

Napapikit ako sandali bago humarap sa pamilyar na boses.

Adrian.

Nakatayo siya sa may pintuan ng balcony, nakalagay ang isang kamay sa bulsa ng kanyang pantalon.

“Very,” sagot ko.

Lumapit siya sa railing at tumingin sa mga ilaw ng lungsod.

“Do you believe in second chances, Alessandra?”

I frowned slightly.

“It depends. What kind of second chance are we talking about?”

“The kind where someone gets to correct a mistake.”

I stared at him.

“Some mistakes cannot be corrected.”

“Even if the person regrets making them?”

“Regret doesn't bring back the dead.”

Biglang tumahimik si Adrian. For the first time that night, nawala ang bahagyang ngiti sa kanyang mga labi.

“That's true,” he said quietly.

May kung anong bigat sa boses niya na hindi ko maipaliwanag.

But I refused to care.

I turned away from him.

“Excuse me, Mr. Monteverde. I need to return inside.”

“Alessandra.”

Huminto ako.

“There's something I want to ask you.”

I looked over my shoulder.

“What is it?”

His gaze was steady.

“Are you married?”

I blinked.

Of all the questions he could ask, that was the last thing I expected.

“No. Why?”

“Good.”

My eyebrows drew together.

“Excuse me?”

He took a step toward me.

“Because I have a proposition for you.”

“I'm listening.”

He reached inside his jacket and pulled out a small black envelope.

He handed it to me, I opened it. Inside was a document, a marriage proposal. My eyes scanned the first page, then the second. And by the time I reached the final paragraph, I could barely believe what I was reading.

One year of marriage, a financial arrangement. Mutual benefits, complete confidentiality and a clause that would give me access to the private business affairs of their family. 

Everything I needed, everything I had spent five years trying to obtain. 

Slowly, I lifted my eyes to his.

“Are you asking me to marry you?”

“Yes.”

“Why me?”

“Because you're intelligent. You're ambitious. And unlike most people in this room, you don't seem particularly interested in pleasing me.”

I almost laughed.

If only he knew.

“And what do you get out of this arrangement?”

His expression hardened.

“Control of my family's company.”

There it was, his own ambition and his own secret war. We were more alike than I had expected. I looked down at the contract again, forcing myself to appear thoughtful instead of triumphant. 

“And if I refuse?”

“Then I'll find someone else.”

He said it so calmly that I wanted to slap that confidence off his face.

Instead, I smiled.

“Give me twenty-four hours to think about it.”

“Take your time.”

He started walking toward the door, but stopped before leaving.

“One more thing, Alessandra.”

I looked up.

“Don't accept this proposal unless you're prepared to live with the consequences.”

I held his gaze.

“I'm not afraid of the consequences, Mr. Monteverde.”

His smile returned.

“Good. Neither am I.”

And then he left.

I stood alone on the balcony, clutching the contract against my chest.I should have felt victorious.Instead, a strange sense of unease crept into my heart.

Because for the first time since I began planning my revenge, I had the terrifying feeling that someone else had been planning something, too.

Someone who knew exactly where I would be, someone who knew exactly who I was. 

11:47 P.M.

Pagkauwi ko sa apartment, agad kong inilapag ang envelope sa mesa at tinawagan si Mikaela.

“Tell me you got it,” bungad niya.

“I got something better.”

“What?”

I stared at the marriage proposal.

“He wants to marry me.”

Silence.

Then—

“WHAT?”

Napailing ako sa lakas ng boses niya.

“Keep your voice down.”

“Serena, are you insane? You're going to marry the man you've been planning to destroy for five years?”

“Exactly.”

“You do realize that living with him means risking everything, right?”

“I know.”

“And what if you fall for him?”

I laughed bitterly.

“That's impossible.”

“That's what you said the last time you swore you'd never trust anyone again.”

My smile disappeared.For a moment, I saw my mother's face.Her gentle smile and her warm embrace. The way she used to brush my hair before bedtime, then I remembered the flames. The screams, the blood on the floor. I closed my eyes.

“I won't forget why I'm doing this, Mika.”

“Serena—”

“I have to go.”

I ended the call before she could say anything else.Then I opened the bottom drawer of my desk and took out an old photograph.It was the only picture I had left of my family before everything fell apart.

My mother stood beside my father, smiling at the camera.I was between them, holding a small birthday cake.

We looked happy, safe and looked like a family that had nothing to fear. I ran my thumb over m mother’s face,

“I'll make them pay, Mama.”

My voice cracked.

“I promise.”

I placed the photograph beside Adrian's marriage proposal.

Then I picked up a pen.

And signed my new future into existence.

SERENA VILLAREAL.

Not Alessandra Vale, not the women they thought they new. I was the daughter of Gabriel Villareal, and I was going to become the wife of Adrian Monteverde. 

The man I had sworn to destroy.I just didn't know that somewhere across the city, Adrian was staring at an identical photograph.

A photograph of my family, beside it lay a file bearing my real name. And underneath my picture, written in his own handwriting were five words.

I finally found you, Serena.

He picked up his phone and dialed a number.

When the other person answered, he spoke in a low, controlled voice.

“She accepted.”

A pause, then he continued.

“Prepare everything. The wedding will take place next week.”

He ended the call and looked once more at my photograph.For a long moment, he said nothing.Then he whispered something that would have changed everything if I had been there to hear it.

“I'm sorry, Serena.”

His fingers tightened around the edge of the photograph.

“This time, I'll make sure you survive the truth.”