Chapter 7: A Family of Secrets

The text message burned in Ivy’s mind like fire:

“The twins are only part of the lie. Your baby changes everything.”

She stared at the screen, her hands clammy. Who sent it? How did they know about her pregnancy? And what could they possibly mean by "your baby changes everything"?

Aiden must have noticed her expression. “What is it?”

She hesitated. Every instinct screamed to keep it to herself. But Aiden had been nothing but honest with her — or at least, more honest than his brother.

She turned the screen to show him the message.

He frowned, reading it over. “Do you recognize the number?”

Ivy shook her head. “No name. No ID. Nothing.”

Aiden’s eyes hardened. “It’s a warning. Or maybe a threat.”

“Or maybe someone wants to help,” Ivy whispered, though even she didn’t believe that.

Just then, Ethan’s voice snapped from behind them. “You two done sharing secrets?”

Aiden stepped in front of her protectively. “We’re leaving.”

But Ethan didn’t move. His gaze was fixed on Ivy, and for the first time, she saw something that looked like… fear.

“You don’t know what you’re getting into,” Ethan said lowly. “This isn’t just about paternity. It’s about bloodlines. Power. And history that should’ve stayed buried.”

Ivy swallowed. “Then maybe it’s time someone unearthed it.”

Aiden pushed past him, guiding Ivy down the corridor and out the front door. As they drove away, the silence in the car was suffocating.

“What did he mean?” Ivy finally asked. “About the bloodlines?”

Aiden was quiet for a long moment.

Then he said, “My mother… Evelyn King… she used to talk about the old ways. That we came from a line of powerful European families who made sure their legacy never died. She said she was the last direct heir of the original King bloodline.”

“And Ethan?”

“We don’t know who our real father is,” he said bluntly. “Alaric King raised us like his own, but he wasn’t around when we were born. Our mother disappeared shortly after he returned.”

Ivy frowned. “So… there’s a possibility neither of you are King heirs?”

Aiden didn’t answer, which said more than words could.

They returned to his penthouse in silence. Ivy stepped into the foyer, then stopped short. A package sat on the floor, addressed to her in handwriting she didn’t recognize.

Carefully, she opened it.

Inside was a baby onesie… and a photo.

A black-and-white image of a woman holding two newborns. Her face was blurry, but the babies had the same crescent moon birthmark on their wrists.

The same one the twins had.

And now, according to her latest ultrasound, the same one her baby had too.

Ivy dropped the photo, her heart thundering.

It wasn’t just a coincidence.

This birthmark — the crescent moon — was inherited.

And whoever sent this knew about her child’s genetics.

Aiden picked up the photo, expression dark. “This is our mother. And that’s…”

He trailed off.

Ivy asked the question for him. “That’s not you and Ethan, is it?”

He slowly shook his head. “No. We were born months later.”

A chill spread through her spine. “Then who are these babies?”

Another set of twins?

Suddenly, the message made sense.

The twins are only part of the lie.

There had been others.

Aiden’s phone rang. He stepped aside to answer it. Ivy stared at the photo again, this time turning it over.

Another note.

"You’re not the first. But you may be the last."

Just then, Aiden rushed back in.

“Ivy,” he said, breathless. “You need to sit down.”

She didn’t move. “What is it?”

“The DNA lab called me. I had a second sample run without telling you… a hair from Ethan’s jacket, just to be safe.”

“And?”

Aiden stared at her.

“The results show a partial sibling match between you and Ethan.”

She blinked. “What?”

“You and Ethan… you share blood. Not as cousins. As half-siblings.”

Ivy’s knees buckled. She sank onto the couch, the room spinning.

“No,” she whispered. “That’s not possible. We… I thought… I was with…”

Aiden grabbed her hand. “You didn’t know. Neither did I. But it means one thing—”

He didn’t finish. He didn’t need to.

Ivy stared at the photo of the woman with the babies again.

If Ethan was her half-brother, then…

The night they shared wasn’t just a mistake. It was a tragedy wrapped in deception.

Her baby carried a secret too dangerous to speak aloud.

And someone out there knew.

Suddenly, her phone buzzed again.

Another text from the same unknown number.

“Meet me at 10 p.m. The truth awaits. Come alone.”

Attached was a location pin — an old chapel outside the city.

She looked at Aiden, terror clawing at her throat.

“I have to go,” she whispered.

“You’re not going alone,” he said.

But Ivy already knew she had to.

Because this wasn’t just about her anymore.

It was about generations of secrets, lies… and blood.

And tonight, she would find out how deep it all ran.