Hazel's POV
“The results confirm it,” the lab technician said quietly over the phone three days later, and I watched Julian’s hand tighten around the receiver until his knuckles turned white.
We had gathered in the study again, the same room where this entire twisted family history had unraveled, waiting for news that would either end this nightmare or deepen it beyond repair.
“She is your sister,” I said softly, watching the confirmation settle slowly across Julian’s face, grief and relief tangled together in a way I did not fully understand until he finally spoke.
“Twelve years,” he said quietly. “Twelve years of watching Gerald manipulate her grief, and my own family let it happen because admitting the truth felt more dangerous than a stranger’s revenge.”
The prosecutor had agreed
