Aria’s POVDamien came downstairs looking different. Not physically, but there was something heavier in his expression now. More controlled. More careful. The second I saw Marcus holding a folded piece of paper behind him, unease curled sharply through me. “What is that?” Neither of them answered immediately, and suddenly I hated silence again. My mother noticed too. Her eyes moved between all of us before settling on Marcus. “What did you find upstairs?” Marcus looked toward Damien first. Some silent understanding passed between them. Then Damien walked toward me slowly. “We found a hidden compartment in your father’s study.” My pulse stumbled hard. Hidden compartment. The words sounded unreal attached to my father. He was organized, predictable, honest. Not secretive. At least that’s what I spent years believing. I stared at the folded paper still resting in Marcus’s hand. “What’s in it?” Marcus hesitated. That terrified me more than anything else tonight. Then quietly h
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