Chapter 19 — The Truth Elena Died For
924 Words
“Dead.”
The word echoed through Adaeze’s mind.
Over and over again.
Dead.
Elena was dead.
Again.
Only this time it was real.
For a moment, nobody spoke.
The underground garage seemed frozen in place.
Even the rain outside felt distant.
Adaeze stared at the guard.
“You’re sure?”
The guard lowered his eyes.
“Yes.”
Pain twisted sharply through her chest.
Elena had been one of the few people who had ever shown her kindness in London.
One of the few who had looked at her and seen a person instead of a tool.
And now she was gone.
Because of this war.
Because of The Circle.
Because of a secret Adaeze never meant to steal.
“She died because of me.”
The words escaped before she could stop them.
Immediately—
“No.”
Damien’s voice cut through the silence.
Firm.
Certain.
Adaeze looked at him.
“She was helping me.”
“She made her own choices.”
“She died anyway.”
His jaw tightened.
“Adaeze.”
But she shook her head.
“No. Every person who gets close to me ends up suffering.”
The pain in her voice was impossible to hide now.
Damien took a step toward her.
Then another.
Until he was standing directly in front of her.
Close enough that she could see the exhaustion in his eyes.
The wound beneath his shirt.
The anger he was trying to control.
And then he said quietly—
“Do you know what I see when I look at you?”
The question caught her off guard.
“What?”
His gaze held hers.
“I see someone who keeps surviving things that should have broken her.”
Silence.
Heavy silence.
The words hit harder than she expected.
Because nobody ever described her that way.
Most people called her stubborn.
Difficult.
Complicated.
Not strong.
Never strong.
Before she could answer—
Tunde cleared his throat.
“We still have a problem.”
The moment shattered instantly.
Damien’s expression hardened.
“What?”
“The weapon.”
Everyone looked toward him.
Tunde folded his arms.
“If Elena died protecting it, then somebody found her first.”
Fear crawled slowly through Adaeze’s chest.
The Circle.
They were getting closer.
Every hour.
Every minute.
Damien looked toward the guards.
“Where was she found?”
The guard handed him a file.
“An abandoned warehouse near the Thames.”
Damien opened it.
Read silently.
Then his entire expression changed.
Dangerously.
“What?”
He handed the report to Tunde.
Tunde read one line and swore immediately.
Adaeze’s stomach dropped.
“What is it?”
Nobody answered.
“Tell me.”
Damien looked directly at her.
“There was another message.”
Of course there was.
There was always another message.
“What did it say?”
His eyes darkened.
Then he repeated the words.
Exactly.
“Bring us Adaeze.”
Silence.
Cold.
Terrifying silence.
Adaeze stopped breathing.
The Circle didn’t want the drive anymore.
They wanted her.
Why?
“What am I missing?”
Nobody answered immediately.
Then Tunde spoke quietly.
“Maybe you’re not missing anything.”
Adaeze frowned.
“What does that mean?”
Tunde looked uncomfortable.
Which instantly made her nervous.
“Tunde.”
He exhaled slowly.
“The drive may never have been the reason they were hunting you.”
The room froze.
No.
That didn’t make sense.
“Yes it was.”
“Maybe not.”
Fear settled heavily inside her.
Then Damien suddenly spoke.
“No.”
Everyone looked toward him.
His expression had become completely unreadable.
Deadly calm.
Like he had just realized something.
“Tunde’s right.”
Adaeze stared at him.
“What?”
Damien looked directly into her eyes.
“The drive was insurance.”
Her heartbeat quickened.
“What does that mean?”
His jaw tightened.
“It means someone gave you that drive intentionally.”
Silence.
The world seemed to stop.
No.
“No.”
“You didn’t accidentally take it.”
The possibility slammed into her.
Hard.
Brutal.
“What are you saying?”
Damien’s gaze never left hers.
“I think someone chose you.”
Every nerve in her body went cold.
“Why would anyone do that?”
Nobody answered.
Because none of them knew.
Then suddenly—
A memory flashed through her mind.
Quick.
Blurry.
But there.
A face.
A voice.
A woman.
The night she escaped London.
The train station.
The locker.
The rain.
Someone grabbing her wrist.
Someone pressing the drive into her hand.
Someone saying—
“If anything happens to me, it has to be you.”
Adaeze gasped sharply.
The memory hit with the force of a truck.
Damien immediately noticed.
“What happened?”
She looked up slowly.
Terrified.
“I remember.”
The room went silent.
“What?”
Her hands started shaking.
“I remember who gave me the drive.”
Nobody moved.
Nobody breathed.
Damien stepped closer.
“Adaeze.”
Her pulse thundered inside her ears.
Because suddenly—
Everything made sense.
The drive.
The running.
The lies.
The fear.
And worst of all—
The person who handed her the drive was someone she knew.
Someone she trusted.
Someone who should have been impossible.
Slowly—
Adaeze lifted her eyes.
And whispered the name.
“My mother.”
Silence exploded across the garage.
Damien froze.
Tunde went pale.
Even the guards looked stunned.
Because Adaeze’s mother had been dead for twelve years.
Or at least…
That’s what everyone believed.
- Writer
