Chapter Four

Diego stood at the door of the small cottage, watching Mariana from the threshold. The tension in the air was so thick it was hard to breathe. She had her back to him, and her body was tense. Every part of her posture said she didn't want to be there. The space between them felt too big to bear. The wind blowing through the trees outside was the only sound that broke the heavy silence.

"Mariana," Diego said in a low voice, almost begging. "We need to talk." I need to know what's true. I want to know everything.

She stiffened but didn't look back. "What truth, Diego?" The one that said you ruined my life? Her voice was sharp, full of the anger and pain she had been holding onto for too long. She finally turned to look at him, her eyes red from crying. "You broke up with me. You picked Lucia over me. "How is there a truth you want now?"

Diego's chest got tighter as he moved closer. "I'm not asking for forgiveness yet. But Mariana, I need to know what happened. Why did you go? Why didn't you tell me about the kids? "Why have you kept everything from me?"

She could hear the rawness in his voice, but her heart was still a battlefield. She had wanted to tell him so many times, but how could she after all that had happened? How could she trust the man who had left her to pick up the pieces of their life?

"I couldn't," she said in a whisper, her voice breaking. "You never gave me a choice, Diego." By the time I found out I was pregnant with your kids, I was nothing to you. The words made her eyes burn. "I wasn't just sad; I was crushed. I couldn't let you do that to me again.

Diego stepped forward and reached for her, but she flinched and took a step back. "I know. I know what I did. But I was wrong. I can't lose you again, Mariana. I've been trying to figure out how to make things right every day since you left. His voice broke at the end, and the raw emotion between them was like a heavy shroud.

She swallowed the lump in her throat and closed her eyes. She wanted to trust him. She wanted to reach out and give him another chance. But the walls she had put up around her heart were too strong and too high.

The door behind her burst open before she could answer. Raquel Cordero stood in the doorway with a pale face and shaking hands. "Diego, you need to hear this." Now.

Diego looked at Raquel, confused. "What's going on?"

Raquel walked into the room and quickly looked back and forth between Diego and Mariana. "This... this has been coming for a long time," she said, her voice strained. "You need to know something about your past, Diego. Something that could ruin everything.

Mariana’s heart skipped a beat, her gaze shifting from Raquel to Diego, trying to piece together what was happening. She felt like her secret was getting heavier.

"What do you mean?" Diego's voice got harder when he heard how serious Raquel was.

Raquel hesitated, and her face turned pale as she got closer to Diego. "Your family... your bloodline isn't what you think it is. Your father kept something from you that you don't know about. A secret about your family history, the curse that runs through your blood.

Diego's face went from confused to shocked. "What are you talking about?" My family is,

"Diego, your family is cursed," Raquel said sharply. "The Rivas bloodline is tied together by a power that you don't know about. And your kids, Mariana's kids, are part of that power.

Diego felt the floor move beneath him as the words hung in the air. His mind was spinning, and the walls he had carefully built around his understanding of his family and pack were falling apart. He asked in a voice that was barely above a whisper, "What does that mean for my kids?"

Raquel shook her head. "It means a lot. The prophecy, the curse, it all ties into them. And you... you don't really know what you're up against. She looked at Mariana. "You've kept this from him, haven't you?" You always knew.

Mariana was shocked by the accusation, but Raquel's eyes were full of understanding and even pity. "I couldn't tell him, Raquel." How could I? After all this?

Raquel's face relaxed, but her voice stayed urgent. "You have to tell him, Mariana." If you don't, you'll never know how much it really costs.

Diego was really hurt by the words. A curse? A prediction? His mind was a storm of fear and confusion. "How... how is this possible? "Why didn't anyone tell me?"

Raquel's eyes got darker, and her voice dropped to a whisper. "Your dad wanted to keep you safe. He thought you would be safe if you didn't know. But the truth is, Diego, the Rivas bloodline is linked to power, dark and dangerous power. And what about the twins you don't even know about? They could either break the curse or make it stronger.

Diego's heart raced as Raquel's words hit him hard. His world, and everything he knew about it, was going crazy.

He looked at Mariana with desperation in his eyes. "Is this real? Are our kids really the key to all of this?

Mariana swallowed hard and nodded without taking her eyes off of him. "Yes." But Diego, it's not just about having power. It's about us, the decisions we make. “Everything could be lost if we don't deal with this together.”

The unspoken truths between them made the air in the room feel heavy. Diego wanted to reach out to her and beg her to forgive him, but he couldn't get over how scared he was of what all this meant. He had no control over a dark legacy that would decide the future of his pack, his family, and his children.

And just as the tension between them was at its highest, a voice broke the silence, sharp and commanding.

A deep, strange voice came from the doorway and said, "Diego Rivas." Valentina Ruiz stood in the doorway, her eyes cold and calculating. "I've been waiting for you."

When Diego turned to look at her, his heart sank. This was not a coincidence. There was a reason she was here. And it was about to become clear why.

Valentina walked into the room with confidence, and everyone noticed her right away. "You've messed everything up, Diego," she said with a voice full of anger. "And now you'll have to pay for it."

As the weight of the moment hit Mariana, she couldn't breathe. Diego's past, the curse, and the kids were all coming together now. But the worst was still to come.

Valentina smiled with her lips and her eyes sparkled with something dangerous. Diego, I've come for the pack. And I'm here for you.