The next day, on my way home, I received a call from Ethan Shaw. He said he had found something about my father.
There was hesitation in his voice, but in the end, he sent me the information.
One file detailed his private properties under his name. Several properties in the city had quietly been bought for his son.
There were also two trust funds—again, for that child.
The last document was a will, where he left most of his assets to that child.
I scoffed and threw the papers in front of him.
"So, I'm not your child, am I?"
"The company is in crisis, you say the cash flow is broken, but then you go behind my back and buy your son real estate. Are you expecting me to sell myself to ensure your family's happiness?"
"You're a girl. You're going to get married sooner or later!" he reminded me.
"Yes, I'm going to get married... So give me the household register, I'm getting married."
"Who are you marrying?"
"Alden."
My father seemed incredulous. "How could you marry Alden?"
"I asked you to beg him out of sheer necessity. You think he would really forgive the Velez family?"
"Everything that happened back then, the stuff with Mary—how could he not care?"
"You don't know, Mary's heart disease relapsed when she found out about Jeramiah's existence. She passed away without being able to be saved..."
"What did you say?" I couldn't stop my hand from shaking.
My father furrowed his brows, sighing helplessly.
"I'm telling you the truth. It was Alden who asked me to bring you back from abroad. All of this... it was his plan."
I couldn't believe my ears. One thing after another, and I had been clueless—like a fool.
I had even foolishly believed that, five years later, he still cared about me.
I had played with his emotions. My father had caused his mother's death. He must have hated us to the core.
I felt like a puppet with strings pulled by others.
Walking down the street, waves of nausea washed over me.
In a panic, I rushed into a pharmacy and bought a pregnancy test.
I stared at the two red lines in my hand, and I felt completely numb.
Alden... He really had set up an elaborate trap.
The afternoon sunlight was warm and pleasant, and I numbly opened the door. Alden was still carefully ironing a white shirt.
"What's wrong?" he asked when he saw something was off with me.
"Did you have my father bring me back from abroad?" I asked blankly.
"Yes," he answered.
I gave a bitter smile and threw the test kit at him.
"What did you give me? Why am I pregnant?"
"Folic acid."
Oh, well...
"You all lied to me, you all lied to me…" I lowered my head, my body trembling uncontrollably. "Alden, you won. You shattered my pride. Back then, I tricked you, and now you're getting back at me. I deserve this. You woke me up when I thought I was the happiest. You made me realize who I am. I admit, I'm dying inside. Are you satisfied now?"
"What more do you want? Do you want me to be like I was back then? Fine, Alden, I was wrong. Please, let me go…"
I collapsed to my knees, and Alden rushed to catch me.
"Brooks, don't do this..."
My emotions, which I had been holding in, could no longer be contained.
"Alden, can't you just let me go? What do you want from me?"
His eyes were bloodshot. He gripped my shoulders tightly.
"I only want you! I only want you, Brooks Velez!"
"Why won't you look back at me? Just turn around, and I'll forgive you!"
"For the past five years, every single day I hated you, wanting to get back at you. But when I saw you again, I couldn't bring myself to do it."
"I asked myself how I could forgive you. I want you to stay by my side forever. We'll get married, have a child—just like you wrote on your wish list. I'll fulfill every single one of those dreams."
In the end, with red eyes, he weakly uttered:
"I just want to keep you..."
He grabbed my hand and pulled me through the villa, opening door after door.
"You said you liked a Tiffany blue wardrobe, I've made it for you."
"You said you wanted thick goose down blankets under the large floor-to-ceiling windows."
"You said you wanted a sunroom studio, and I've already made that too."
The studio was filled with my paintings from the years, and photos of me.
"Why can't you see? Why can't you see it, Brooks?!"
Alden suddenly lost control and shouted, his body trembling slightly, his hand clutching his chest, his lips turning purple.
"Alden, Alden, what's wrong with you?"
He slowly collapsed...
