Chapter Four – The Quiet Homecoming
1032 Words
(Elena’s POV)
The moment I stepped through the Cross residence gates, I felt the chill of judgment waiting for me. The air wasn’t warm or welcoming. Servants whispered behind half-closed doors. Every stare said the same thing — the exile had returned.
I didn’t bother to knock. I pushed the door open and stepped inside the grand hall, my heels echoing against marble that had seen more lies than footsteps.
“Look who decided to come home,” Selena’s voice floated from the sitting room, coated with a sweetness that could rot teeth.
“Where is he?” Sephina demanded before I could sit down. Her cane struck the floor once — sharp enough to cut through the room.
“He didn’t come,” I said simply.
“I told you to bring him.”
“And I told you,” I replied, meeting her glare, “I don’t know him.”
Selena exchanged a look with Clara, the faintest smirk on her lips. My grandmother’s face turned to stone.
“So,” Sephina said, her voice trembling with anger, “you refuse to obey even now.”
“I refuse to pretend,” I said.
Her cane hit the floor again, harder. “You’ve learned nothing. I should have left you where I sent you. Maybe another five years would’ve taught you silence.”
“You could try,” I said, calm, almost too calm. “But I survived your first lesson, didn’t I?”
The flicker of fury in her eyes told me I’d hit the right nerve.
“You are your mother’s curse reborn,” she spat. “Defiant, proud, reckless. You think you have her strength, but you’ll end up just as dead.”
That word — dead — hit me like a slap. For a second, the old ache stirred, the one I’d buried years ago. But I didn’t give her the satisfaction of seeing me break.
“I’ll take that as a compliment,” I said.
Clara exhaled sharply. “Enough. We didn’t ask you here for banter. Sit down and listen.”
I stayed standing.
Sephina’s gaze darkened. “You will sit when I tell you to.”
I folded my arms. “Then you’ll be waiting a while.”
Selena laughed under her breath. “You really haven’t changed, have you? Still playing the victim.”
“Better that than playing your mother’s shadow,” I shot back. Her smirk vanished.
The room went silent. Only the clock dared to move.
Sephina broke it with a slow, measured tone. “You have no idea the damage you’ve caused this family, Elena. The press, the rumors, your so-called marriage — it’s brought nothing but disgrace.”
“Funny,” I said, “I thought disgrace came from deceit, not truth.”
Her eyes narrowed. “Watch your mouth.”
“I’ve been doing that my whole life. It’s exhausting.”
My father, standing near the window, finally spoke. Cold and weary, his voice sliced the air.
“Enough. Every time you open your mouth, trouble follows. Sometimes I wonder if it wouldn’t have been better if you’d—”
“Don’t finish that sentence,” I said, voice low. “You abandoned me once. You don’t get to bury me twice.”
He looked away. Always did.
I reached for the small suitcase I’d brought and headed for the door.
“Wait,” Sephina’s voice rang out.
I stopped but didn’t turn.
“First,” she said, “you will sign the papers.”
“What papers?”
“Clara,” she ordered.
Clara slid a file across the table. The rustle of paper sounded louder than the wind outside.
I stepped closer, curiosity tinged with dread. “What is this?”
“Your final severance from this family,” Sephina said coldly. “Sign it, and you’re free. No obligations, no inheritance, no ties. Just the life you’ve chosen.”
“Freedom?” I let out a short laugh. “From what — or from you?”
“Consider it both,” she said, leaning back. “And in exchange, half your mother’s shares will go to Selena.”
My stomach dropped. “You want me to give her my mother’s legacy?”
“Your mother’s legacy?” Sephina mocked. “That company survived because of me. Because of this family. You’ve done nothing for it.”
“I was the only one she trusted,” I said quietly. “The only one who didn’t try to destroy her while she was alive.”
Her cane struck the marble again. “Sign it!”
“Not a chance in hell.” I slammed the file shut. “You’ve already taken everything from me once. You don’t get to do it again.”
I turned to leave, my pulse thundering.
Behind me, Sephina’s voice sliced through the air, venomous:
“You think this is over? You’ll regret this defiance, Elena. That husband of yours—”
“Don’t,” I warned, not turning.
But she went on, words sharp as knives:
“—he won’t stay hidden forever. Dead or alive, the truth will surface, and when it does, you’ll wish you’d signed those papers.”
I froze. Dead or alive.
The way she said it — deliberate, too certain — like she knew something I didn’t.
Slowly, I turned back. “What do you mean by that?”
Sephina smiled — not with kindness, but satisfaction, like someone who had just set a trap.
“You’ll see soon enough. Bring him home next time, and maybe I’ll tell you what really happened to Damien Voss.”
My breath caught.
I didn’t respond. I couldn’t.
All I could do was stare at the woman who’d destroyed everything once before — and realize she wasn’t finished.
I walked out before her words could crush me, the echo of her cane chasing me down the hall.
By the time I reached the door, it was dark. The wind bit at my face as I stepped beyond the gates.
But her words stayed.
Dead or alive.
And for the first time, I wasn’t sure which terrified me more.
- Writer
