Chapter 56: The Truth Beneath the Surface

The room felt like it was closing in on me. Liam’s words echoed in my ears, but they didn’t make sense. The confusion swirling around us only seemed to grow with each passing second. I could see the anger in Dominic’s eyes—his brother had just thrown us a curveball we weren’t prepared for. The walls were closing in, and the more I tried to wrap my mind around the situation, the more it seemed to slip further away.

Dominic’s jaw clenched, his hands balling into fists at his sides. “What the hell are you talking about, Liam?” His voice was low, dangerously controlled, but there was a tension in his posture that made my chest tighten. Dominic was always the composed one, the one who never let his emotions get the best of him. But right now, I saw a glimpse of vulnerability, and it unsettled me more than I cared to admit.

Liam smirked, his expression far too calm for the storm he had just unleashed. “You really think you can just expose Victor and walk away from all this? That it’ll end with your little vendetta? You’ve both been played. You don’t even realize how deep it goes.”

I looked between the two brothers, a cold shiver creeping up my spine. I could see the underlying tension between them. It wasn’t just business; it was personal. This wasn’t the first time Dominic and Liam had butted heads. But now, with the stakes higher than ever, it felt like everything was unraveling.

“Enough with the games, Liam,” Dominic snapped, his voice now sharp with a cold edge. “What is it that you’re really after?”

Liam chuckled softly, his eyes gleaming with a mix of amusement and something darker. “I’m after the truth, Dominic. Something you’ve been running from for years. Something you don’t even understand yet.”

I could see Dominic’s frustration growing as he took a step forward, closing the gap between him and Liam. “I’ve had enough of your cryptic bullshit. If you’re going to say something, say it. Don’t waste my time.”

I could feel the heat rising in the room as the two brothers stood face to face, their rivalry spilling over into something more dangerous. I stepped forward, my hand instinctively reaching out to Dominic’s arm, trying to ground him, trying to make him focus. “Dominic, please. We need answers. Now.”

Dominic’s gaze softened when he looked at me, though there was still a storm raging behind his eyes. He nodded briefly, his focus shifting back to Liam. “Fine. Tell me, then. What’s going on?”

Liam sighed, almost theatrically, as though he were enjoying this moment of control. “You don’t understand, Dominic. This whole thing—the feud between our families, the lies, the manipulations—it’s been carefully orchestrated by someone else. Someone who’s been pulling the strings for far longer than either of us realized.”

My breath caught in my throat. A hidden puppeteer? I looked at Dominic, hoping for some sign that this wasn’t another one of Liam’s games. But the grim expression on his face told me that Liam wasn’t bluffing.

“Who?” Dominic asked, his voice tight with barely restrained anger.

Liam smiled darkly, stepping back slightly as if savoring the moment. “Your father. My father. Elena’s father. None of us are innocent. None of us are free from this web of lies. The one pulling the strings is someone none of us expected. Someone we’ve all trusted.”

I felt a cold weight settle in the pit of my stomach as the implications of Liam’s words sank in. “Who, Liam? Who are you talking about?”

Liam’s eyes locked onto mine, and I saw something flicker there—something that made my pulse quicken. “Your mother, Elena. Olivia Sinclair.”

I froze. The room seemed to tilt around me. My mother? The woman I had trusted more than anyone else in the world? The woman who had always been the pillar of strength in our family?

No. It couldn’t be.

Dominic’s voice broke through the haze of my thoughts. “What the hell are you talking about?”

Liam leaned back against the desk, a smug look spreading across his face. “You don’t get it, do you? Olivia Sinclair has been playing all of you like fools. She’s the one who set this all in motion. She’s the one who manipulated your father, Dominic. She’s the one who made sure the Caldwells and the Sinclairs would never get along. She’s the one who caused the downfall of your family, Elena. She’s the mastermind behind all of this.”

I took a step back, my head spinning. My mother? No. It didn’t make sense. But as Liam’s words echoed in my mind, I couldn’t ignore the sudden flashes of doubt that began to cloud my thoughts. Was it possible? Had my mother been orchestrating this from behind the scenes?

“Why should we believe you?” Dominic snapped, his voice cutting through the tense silence. “This sounds like another one of your lies. Another attempt to divide us.”

Liam’s expression hardened, and his eyes narrowed. “You think I’m lying? I’m not the one who’s been keeping secrets, Dominic. Your father. My father. And Olivia Sinclair—they’ve been working together for years, keeping their own agendas hidden. None of us have been innocent in this game.”

I turned to Dominic, my heart hammering in my chest. His face was pale, his jaw tight as he processed what Liam was saying. Could it be true? Was my mother truly the one behind all of this?

“I’ll show you proof,” Liam continued, his voice taking on a dangerous edge. “You think you’re done with this? You’re just getting started. There’s a lot more to uncover. But the truth will come out, and when it does, it’ll destroy all of you.”

I swallowed hard, the weight of Liam’s words settling heavily in my chest. This wasn’t just about revenge anymore. This wasn’t just about the feud between our families. It was about something far deeper, something far darker, and the truth was about to unravel in ways we never expected.

Dominic’s eyes locked onto mine, and for the first time in a long time, I saw fear in his gaze. “What do we do now?” he asked, his voice barely above a whisper.

I didn’t know how to answer. We were trapped in a game we didn’t understand, fighting against forces far bigger than us. But one thing was certain—the truth was out there, and we had to find it before everything we knew was destroyed.