The study

HAZEL'S POV:

Nikolai had a somber expression on his face as he finished confessing to me.

I stared at him for the longest time possible, my jaws ajar.

The silence between us was grave and packed with tension.

Nikolai pulled up before the rusty gates of the abandoned chateau. I had been so engrossed by his revelation I forgot we had arrived at my family's domain.

"We're here," he said, killing the engine and leaning back on his seat. "If you've got something to say to me, say it."

I had a million things to say but I couldn't find the words nor the voice.

"You're not kidding about what you said about my father, right?" I asked in a crooked voice I didn't recognize was my own.

He nodded slowly. "Yes, I'm not kidding."

I exhaled the air I held in my lungs. It all made total sense now. I had been vengeful against the wrong man all these time.

The true villian here was my late father. He orchestrated everything.

The rain had built up more fiercer than ever but inside the car, it was