Chương 9 - The Woman Who Was Supposed to Be Dead
Two years passed.
Their life became peaceful enough that Delara almost stopped waiting for disaster.
Then a letter arrived.
No name.
No return address.
Only her husband’s full name.
Damian opened it.
A photograph fell out.
He stared.
His face changed.
Delara knew immediately.
“Who?”
“Celeste.”
The woman from the old records.
Damian's father's secret.
Marcus Rourke's sister.
The woman everyone believed dead.
Alive.
The letter contained an address.
A small coastal town in North Carolina.
Damian drove there with Delara.
They found an elderly woman in a blue house overlooking the water.
She opened the door.
For several seconds, she said nothing.
Then:
“You look like your father.”
Damian's throat tightened.
“You knew him.”
She smiled sadly.
“I loved him.”
Delara stepped back politely.
Celeste invited them in.
She told them everything.
Damian's father had not betrayed her family.
He had tried to get her away from Marcus.
Marcus discovered the plan.
The feud began.
Years of revenge followed.
Celeste had escaped.
She stayed hidden because she believed returning would put others at risk.
She gave Damian one final box.
Inside was his father's final letter.
My son,
If you are reading this, then you have finally found the truth.
I did not want you to inherit my darkness.
I wanted you to find someone who would make you put it down.
Damian could barely read the rest.
He handed the letter to Delara.
She finished it.
There was one final line.
When you find her, don't ask whether she can survive your world.
Ask whether you are willing to leave your world for her.
Delara looked at Damian.
He was crying.
She took his hand.
“You did.”
He nodded.
“I almost didn't.”
“But you did.”
Celeste watched them.
“You chose correctly.”
Damian shook his head.
“There was no correct choice.”
Celeste smiled.
“There always is.”
Before leaving, Damian asked one question.
“Why did my father keep the iron ring story?”
Celeste laughed softly.
“Because he believed your mother had once given him one.”
Damian looked surprised.
Celeste explained.
His mother had been the only person who ever challenged his father.
She had given him an iron ring when they married.
Not because they could not afford gold.
Because she believed love should be stronger than appearances.
Damian thought about Delara.
The coincidence was almost unbearable.
The ring wasn't new.
The promise wasn't new.
The Vale men had been forgetting the meaning for generations.
Delara had reminded them.
On the drive home, Damian was silent.
“What are you thinking?”
“That maybe my father did leave me something.”
“What?”
“A chance.”
She leaned her head against his shoulder.
“You took it.”
“Yes.”
“And?”
May you like
He looked at her.
“I don't regret a second.”
