Chapter 13

Chapter 13

Harper

My eyes remained locked on it while Richard Blackwood stood on the staircase watching us.

Almost like he was enjoying this.

I hated him for that. I hated how calm he looked. How confident he looked.

As if he already knew the truth would destroy me.

“Pick it up,” Richard said.

I looked at him. “Why?”

“Because you’ve spent years looking for answers.”

My heart was pounding now.

“And now they’re right in front of you.”

Damian stepped closer to me. His shoulder brushed mine. It was a simple thing, but it grounded me instantly.

Richard noticed. Of course he did.

His expression darkened slightly. “Interesting.”

Damian’s voice was cold. “Stop talking and explain.”

“No. She deserves to read it herself.”

I looked down at the envelope again. It was old and worn, yellowed by time. It held decades of secrets. Decades of lies.

Slowly, I bent down and picked it up. My hands trembled.

Not from fear. At least that’s what I told myself.

Damian noticed anyway. He always noticed.

“Harper.”

I looked up at him. His eyes held mine. “You don’t have to do this right now.”

The concern in his voice surprised me. More than that, it got to me. Because he actually cared. Not because of the investigation or the marriage deal. Because of me.

That hit harder than it should have.

“I need to know.”

His jaw tightened. Then he nodded. “Okay.”

The simple support made my chest ache.

Richard laughed softly. The sound immediately killed the moment.

“You’ve changed.”

Damian looked at him. “What?”

Richard’s eyes moved between us. “When did you start putting someone else first?”

The question hung there. Uncomfortable. Dangerous. Because I already knew the answer. The same way Damian did.

Neither of us said anything.

Richard smiled like he already knew.

“I thought so.”

Mason stepped forward. “Can we stop with the games?”

For once, I completely agreed with him.

I carefully opened the envelope. Several papers slid out. Letters. Photographs. Documents. My pulse started racing.

The first page had handwriting on it. Elegant. Feminine. Familiar.

My breath caught.

“Mom.”

Damian looked at me immediately. “What is it?”

I swallowed hard. “It’s her handwriting.”

The room went quiet.

I started reading. The first few lines seemed normal. Then everything changed.

My stomach dropped.

“No.”

The word came out before I could stop it.

Damian moved closer. “What?”

I couldn’t answer right away. The words blurred together. Not because I couldn’t read them. Because they were impossible.

“What does it say?” Mason asked.

I looked up slowly. Then read the sentence out loud.

“Richard Blackwood is not the man who betrayed me.”

Nobody moved. Nobody spoke. Even Richard stayed silent.

The words just echoed through the room. Over and over.

I stared at the page. Confused. Lost. Completely overwhelmed.

“This doesn’t make sense.”

Richard finally spoke. “Keep reading.”

I hated how sure he sounded. But I kept going anyway.

Every paragraph destroyed another piece of the story I’d believed my whole life. My mother had known Richard. Yes. But according to the letter, he wasn’t the one who ruined her. Someone else was. Someone she had trusted. Someone she loved. Someone whose name she never wrote.

The mystery just got deeper. And my anger grew.

Years. I’d spent years hating the Blackwoods. Years building my life around revenge. And now everything was changing. Again.

“This can’t be true.”

Richard sighed. “I expected that.”

I looked at him sharply. “You knew?”

“I knew part of it.”

“How convenient.”

His expression hardened. “You think I enjoyed watching this happen?”

I almost laughed. “Honestly? Yes.”

“Harper.”

Damian’s warning tone made me stop. I looked at him and immediately felt guilty. Because despite everything, he looked exhausted. Not angry. Not defensive. Just tired. Tired of secrets. Tired of lies. Tired of his family destroying everything.

The realization softened something inside me.

Without thinking, I moved closer to him. The distance between us disappeared naturally. Comfortably. Like it was supposed to be there.

Richard noticed. Again.

And this time his whole expression changed. Almost concerned.

That confused me. Why would he care? Why would our marriage bother him so much?

Unless…

A terrible thought hit me.

“What aren’t you telling us?”

Richard froze. Just for a second. But I saw it.

Damian saw it too.

My husband stepped forward immediately. “What does that mean?”

Richard looked away. The silence stretched. And stretched. Nobody interrupted. Nobody moved.

Finally he exhaled heavily.

“I was hoping we wouldn’t reach this point.”

My pulse quickened. “What point?”

Richard looked directly at me. Then at Damian. Then back at me.

“The point where the marriage becomes impossible.”

The words hit like a punch. Impossible? My stomach twisted.

Beside me, Damian went completely still. Dangerously still.

“What are you talking about?”

Richard closed his eyes briefly. Like a man preparing for impact.

Then he reached into his jacket again. This time he pulled out a photograph. Much newer than the others.

He handed it directly to me.

I stared at it. Confusion came first. Then shock. Then disbelief.

Because the picture showed my mother. Richard. And Damian’s late wife. All standing together. Smiling. Like close friends. Like people hiding the same secret.

“What is this?” I whispered.

Richard looked older suddenly. More tired. More human.

For the first time since I’d met him, he didn’t seem powerful. He seemed defeated.

“That’s the day everything went wrong.”

Nobody spoke. The silence felt endless.

Then Richard said something that made the blood drain from my face. Something that made Damian go completely rigid beside me. Something that changed what our marriage meant forever.

“The woman who destroyed Evelyn’s life wasn’t a Blackwood.”

My heart pounded. “Then who was it?”

Richard looked directly at Damian.

And answered.

“Your wife.”