A Queen Returns

Chapter10

Aphrodite walked me through the mansion, pointing out all the things she loved. The room that caught my attention the most was the library — it was as large as the one back in my hometown. By the time she finished the tour, we ended up back at Cleopatra’s office.

We stepped inside.

“Did you have fun, dear?” she asked.

I nodded, glancing around. Dimitri wasn’t there. “Um… where’s Dimitri?”

She chuckled softly. “He had to handle some things at the business office, but he’ll be back later.”

I smiled faintly, keeping my gaze lowered.

“Victoria, please look at me,” Cleopatra said gently. “You’re safe here with us.”

I lifted my eyes.

“Now, dear,” she continued, “have you learned anything else about your parents’ deaths? Do they have a suspect?”

I shook my head. “No. We had to leave because of that maniac before we could ask more questions. I’m worried it has something to do with my biological mother.”

Her eyebrows rose. “Why would you think that? I’m sure your biological mother has nothing to do with this. Have you ever had contact with her?”

I shook my head again. “No. I couldn’t even find the adoption agency my adoptive parents said they got me from. It’s like it disappeared.”

She frowned. “What do you mean it disappeared? That seems unlikely. What was the name of the agency, if you don’t mind me asking?”

I thought for a moment. “They told me it was called Sacred Heart. My biological mother’s name on the birth certificate was Victoria Flames. My father was listed as unknown.”

Something flickered in Cleopatra’s eyes, but she hid it quickly.

“Well,” she said, “if you’d like, I can help you research why the agency isn’t showing up. Only if you want me to. I know this is a sensitive subject.”

Her offer shocked me. I never expected anyone to want to help me with this. But guilt twisted in my stomach — like I was betraying the people who raised me.

Aphrodite must’ve sensed it. She sat beside me and took my hand.

“Vic, you’re not betraying them. I promise. They’re looking down on you, proud that you’re willing to search for the woman who gave birth to their beautiful baby girl.”

Tears welled in my eyes. I looked down and whispered, “How do you know that? They’re not here to tell me.”

She lifted my chin and wiped my tears. “Because I was in the same situation.”

I blinked. “What do you mean?”

Aphrodite glanced at Cleopatra before turning back to me. “She’s not my biological mother. She adopted me. She waited until I turned eighteen to tell me — and she encouraged me to look for my birth parents. I found my father. My mother died giving birth to me, and he couldn’t take care of me alone. So he gave me to the woman you know as my mother.”

I turned to Cleopatra, and she nodded. “She’s telling the truth.”

“By the way,” she added, “my name is Cleopatra. I never told you when we lived near you, so now you don’t have to keep calling me Dimitri’s mother.”

I couldn’t believe how kind they were being. “Why are you helping me so much? You don’t owe me anything.”

They exchanged a look before Cleopatra spoke again.

“Sweetheart, I’m guessing your parents didn’t have time to tell you. Hold on.”

She walked to her desk, opened the top drawer, and returned with a folded paper. She handed it to me.

I read it aloud:

‘Cleopatra, we know you are the best person to raise our daughter if something happens to us. We’re at the notary’s office now. She will send this to you. You are now Victoria’s godmother and the person we trust most with our child.’

Tears streamed down my face. “Why would they write this? It’s like they knew something bad was going to happen.”

Cleopatra placed a hand on my shoulder. “I don’t think they knew. I think they wanted to be prepared — to make sure you’d be taken care of. I’ve always treated you as my own, and your parents knew that. We stayed in touch after I came home to recover.”

She squeezed my shoulder gently. “Victoria, I know this is a lot. I won’t push you. But why don’t we go down for dinner? Dimitri is cooking, and we don’t want to upset him by not showing up. We can talk more tomorrow. Right now, you need to eat and rest. You’ve been through so much. When you’re ready, we’ll start looking into your birth parents.”

I nodded, and Aphrodite grabbed my hand as we headed downstairs.

The moment we stepped into the dining room, the most incredible smell hit me. Cleopatra smiled knowingly.

“He loves cooking. Do you remember the name of the dish?”

I shook my head.

“One is called Pirogue,” she said, “and the other is Pelmeni.”

We walked to the table where Dimitri was bringing out food and drinks. When he saw me, he smiled warmly.

“I made something Mom used to make us all the time. I know you loved it. I wanted to make sure you had a good meal before bed.”

He served me first, then everyone else, before sitting down. They all began eating, so I did too — and I’d forgotten how good it tasted. I ended up eating three plates before I was so full I couldn’t take another bite.

When I finally looked up, they were all smiling at me. Dimitri was trying not to laugh.

“What? Do I have something on my face?”

I grabbed a napkin and wiped my mouth — and that’s when Dimitri lost it. He laughed so hard he fell out of his chair. His mother shot him a death glare.

Cleopatra leaned toward me. “He’s laughing because you inhaled three plates before we finished our first. Saying you were starving is an understatement.”

Mortified, I covered my face. Cleopatra placed a comforting hand on my shoulder.

“There’s nothing to be embarrassed about. You’ve been through a lot. It’s natural to be hungry. Why don’t you head up to your room, take a nice long bath, and get some rest? We have a long day tomorrow.”

I looked at Aphrodite, confused. She grinned.

“Mom said I could take you shopping so we can get everything you need while you’re here.”

I looked down. “You don’t have to do that. What I have is fine.”

A hand lifted my chin — Dimitri’s.

“Victoria,” he said softly, “you don’t have access to the money your parents left you right now. I instructed my lawyer to lock the account. Until we know who was following us, we can’t risk them tracing anything back here.”

I looked away, overwhelmed.

“I know you’re worried,” he continued, “but let us help you heal. When the time is right, I’ll make sure you have everything you’re owed. I promise.”

I nodded, excused myself, and headed to my room. I went straight to the bathroom, turned on the tub, and made it as hot as I could stand. I poured in some essential oils and didn’t even look in the mirror.

I sank into the water, leaned back, closed my eyes — and drifted in and out of sleep.