Chapter 4 : The Truth Behind the Marriage

Cael's POV

The entire drive back to the estate was silent.

Hindi ako makapagsalita.

Neither could Xyena.

The letter from Astaroth was sitting between us, folded carefully inside its envelope.

But somehow, it felt heavier than anything I had ever carried.

"If they ever marry, the truth will return."

Those words kept repeating inside my head.

Why us?

Why Xyena?

And why did my grandfather seem to know more than he had ever told me?

Pagdating namin sa estate, agad kong napansin na bukas ang main entrance.

There were no guards outside.

I frowned.

"Something's wrong."

Xyena looked at me.

"How do you know?"

"Because my grandfather never leaves the main entrance unguarded."

I stepped out of the car.

"Stay beside me."

She nodded.

We entered the mansion.

Tahimik.

Too quiet.

"Lolo?"

No answer.

I walked toward the study.

The door was slightly open.

I pushed it.

"Lolo?"

Davon was standing beside the window.

His back was facing us.

"You're late."

I frowned.

"You told me to come home."

"Yes."

I stepped inside.

Xyena followed.

Davon finally turned around.

His eyes immediately went to the letter in my hand.

"You found it."

It wasn't a question.

I stared at him.

"You knew about the letter?"

His expression remained calm.

"I knew it existed."

"And you never told me?"

"It wasn't my story to tell."

I laughed bitterly.

"Not your story?"

I placed the letter on his desk.

"Astaroth wrote this to you."

Davon looked down.

"Yes."

"She mentioned me."

Silence.

"She mentioned Xyena."

His jaw tightened.

"Yes."

"Then explain."

He didn't answer.

I stepped closer.

"Twenty-two years ago, you promised Astaroth that the children would never be involved."

Davon looked at Xyena.

"And yet you arranged our marriage."

His eyes darkened.

"I didn't arrange it."

I froze.

"What?"

Davon looked directly at me.

"The marriage was arranged long before you were born."

Xyena's POV

I felt like the floor disappeared beneath my feet.

"Long before we were born?"

Davon nodded.

"Your families made an agreement."

I looked at Cael.

He looked just as confused as I was.

"What kind of agreement?" I asked.

Davon remained silent.

"Lolo."

Cael's voice was cold.

"Tell us."

Davon walked toward the desk.

He opened a drawer and pulled out an old leather-bound book.

He placed it on the desk.

"This contains the original agreement."

I stared at it.

My hands felt cold.

"Between the Valcieri and Ashworth families?"

"Yes."

"Why?"

Davon looked at me.

"Because of Astaroth."

I swallowed.

"What happened to her?"

Davon closed his eyes.

For the first time, the powerful man in front of us looked old.

Tired.

Regretful.

"She discovered something she wasn't supposed to know."

"What?"

He looked at Cael.

"The truth about your father."

Cael stiffened.

"My father?"

Davon nodded.

"Your father was involved."

"In what?"

Davon didn't answer immediately.

Then—

"In the disappearance of Astaroth."

My breath caught.

Cael stepped backward.

"No."

His voice was barely a whisper.

"My father didn't hurt her."

"I didn't say he hurt her."

"Then what are you saying?"

"Your father knew where she was."

Silence.

I looked at Davon.

"Where is she?"

Davon stared at the floor.

"We don't know."

"You're lying."

Cael's voice shook with anger.

"You know something."

Davon looked at him.

"Your father received a letter from Astaroth the night she disappeared."

"What did it say?"

"He never showed it to me."

"Then how do you know?"

"Because I found the envelope."

Cael clenched his fists.

"Where?"

"Inside his study."

I looked at the old book.

"And what does this have to do with us?"

Davon slowly opened it.

Inside were handwritten names.

DAVON VALCIERI

CHARLOTTE ASHWORTH

ASTAROTH VALCIERI

Then, beneath them, two names.

CAELVARIS ETHANIEL VALCIERI

XYENARIUS ASHWORTH

My heart stopped.

Our names had been written there decades ago.

Before we were even born.

"That's impossible."

Davon shook his head.

"No."

I stared at the page.

Someone had planned this.

Our marriage.

Our lives.

Everything.

Cael's POV

I couldn't take my eyes off the book.

"Who wrote our names?"

Davon didn't answer.

"Lolo?"

He finally spoke.

"Astaroth."

My heart sank.

"She knew?"

"She predicted that one day, you and Xyena would meet."

"How?"

"Because she believed the secret would eventually bring you together."

I shook my head.

"That's insane."

"Maybe."

Davon looked at us.

"But she was right."

I looked at Xyena.

She was staring at the page.

Her expression was unreadable.

"Why would she want us together?"

Davon slowly closed the book.

"Because she believed you were the only two people who could uncover what happened."

"Then why hide it?"

"To protect you."

"From who?"

Davon looked toward the window.

"From the person who caused her disappearance."

The room became silent.

Xyena spoke.

"Is that person still alive?"

Davon looked at her.

"Yes."

My stomach tightened.

"Who?"

Before Davon could answer—

BANG!

A loud sound came from the hallway.

We all turned.

"Stay here," I said.

I immediately moved toward the door.

Xyena grabbed my arm.

"Don't."

I looked at her.

"What?"

"Don't go alone."

I could see the fear in her eyes.

I nodded.

"Stay behind me."

We walked out together.

The hallway was empty.

But a glass vase had fallen to the floor.

Broken.

I looked around.

Nothing.

Then I noticed something.

A piece of black fabric caught on the corner of the doorway.

I picked it up.

Someone had been here.

Recently.

Xyena's POV

"Cael." I Whispered his name

He turned.

I pointed toward the end of the hallway.

"Look."

There was a door.

Half-open.

"Was that always there?"

Cael frowned.

"No."

We approached it carefully.

He pushed it open.

Inside was a small room.

Dusty.

Unused.

But there were papers scattered across the floor.

Photographs.

Letters.

Documents.

Someone had been searching through them.

I crouched down and picked up a photograph.

My grandmother.

Charlotte Ashworth.

Beside her was Astaroth.

They were young.

They were smiling.

And standing behind them was another man.

I recognized him immediately.

"Theodor."

Cael looked at me.

"Who?"

"My father."

He stared at the photograph.

"That's your father?"

"Yes."

I turned the photograph around.

There was a date.

September 2, 2004.

One day before Astaroth disappeared.

Cael took the photograph.

"This can't be."

"What?"

"My father told us he had never met Astaroth."

I stared at him.

"Then he lied."

Before he could answer, we heard a sound.

Someone was behind us.

We turned.

Nothing.

But then the door slammed shut.

"Xyena!"

Cael rushed toward me.

He grabbed the door handle.

Locked.

My heart started pounding.

"Cael..."

"Stay calm."

"How are we supposed to stay calm?"

He tried the handle again.

Nothing.

Then we heard footsteps outside.

Slow.

Deliberate.

Someone stopped directly outside the door.

I held my breath.

A piece of paper was pushed underneath.

Cael picked it up.

There was only one sentence.

"Stop looking for Astaroth."

My hands trembled.

Then another piece of paper appeared.

This one had my name written on it.

XYENARIUS ASHWORTH.

Underneath it:

"You should have never married him."

I looked at Cael.

He was furious.

"Whoever is doing this knows about us."

"Yes."

"And they know about Astaroth."

"Yes."

"Then they must be connected to our families."

Suddenly—

The door unlocked.

Cael pulled it open.

But the hallway was empty.

Whoever had been there was gone.

Cael's POV

I ran toward the main entrance.

Nothing.

No one.

I returned to the room.

Xyena was still standing there, holding the note.

Her face was pale.

I walked toward her.

"Are you okay?"

She nodded.

"Yes."

But I knew she was lying.

"You don't have to pretend you're not scared."

She looked at me.

"I'm scared."

Her voice was soft.

"But I'm more scared of not knowing the truth."

I didn't know what to say.

So I did the only thing I could think of.

I reached for her hand.

She looked down.

Our fingers slowly intertwined.

For a moment, neither of us moved.

This wasn't part of the contract.

There was no clause for this.

No rule.

No agreement.

Just two people standing together because neither wanted to face the unknown alone.

"Whatever happens," I said quietly, "we find the truth."

She looked at me.

"Together?"

"Together."

She nodded.

"Promise?"

I looked into her eyes.

"Promise."

And for the first time, I realized something.

I had entered this marriage believing Xyena was a stranger.

But she no longer felt like one.

Xyena's POV

That night, I returned to my room.

I couldn't stop thinking about Cael holding my hand.

It was such a simple thing.

But somehow, it felt different.

Dangerously different.

I touched my wedding ring.

"This is a contract," I whispered.

But my heart didn't seem to believe me.

My phone suddenly vibrated.

Unknown number.

I opened the message.

"If you want to know what happened to Astaroth, ask your father what he did on September 3, 2004."

I froze.

My father?

Another message arrived.

"And don't trust Cael."

I stared at the screen.

Then—

A third message.

"Because he doesn't know the whole truth about his own family."

My heart began pounding.

I immediately looked toward the door.

Someone knocked.

Three times.

I slowly walked toward it.

"Who is it?"

No answer.

I opened the door.

No one was there.

Only a small black envelope lying on the floor.

I picked it up.

There was one name written on it.

CAELVARIS.

I opened it.

Inside was a photograph.

My breath caught.

It was Cael's father.

Standing beside Astaroth.

But that wasn't what shocked me.

Behind them was a third person.

Someone I knew.

Someone I trusted.

Someone who had been lying to me for years.

I dropped the photograph.

"No..."

My voice trembled.

Because the person standing behind Astaroth wasn't a Valcieri.

It was an Ashworth.

And suddenly, I understood.

The secret wasn't just between our families.

It was inside mine, too.