Total pages in book: 140
Estimated words: 127933 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 640(@200wpm)___ 512(@250wpm)___ 426(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 127933 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 640(@200wpm)___ 512(@250wpm)___ 426(@300wpm)
Beatrice sighed, her gaze flickering with something that felt like regret. “That’s when things got messy. You wound up in the system under a completely different surname, hidden in plain sight. Isa let Kyle find her after that, maybe out of guilt, maybe to tie up loose ends. But then she did something no one expected—she took both of their lives. I can only assume she thought it would keep you far away from here.”
The weight of Beatrice's words pressed down on me, the reality sinking in with every sentence. My mother... she had killed herself and my father to protect me? And didn’t she she’d lost her tongue somehow? I was instantly reminded of Kennedy. The room seemed to close in, the air thick with the truth I hadn’t even known I was missing.
“But that wasn’t her choice to make,” Beatrice said softly, her voice sharpening just a little. “The Isle was rightfully upset. Your bloodline... it’s tied to us in more ways than you realize. That’s how I found you. How we learned about the existence of Lolita.”
I was never meant to escape this.
The thought was the first to rifle through my head.
Beatrice’s voice softened again, but her eyes gleamed with something sharp, something deliberate. “I have vast resources, a network that can find anyone, anywhere. And when I learned about you, it wasn’t tying up loose ends. It was about lineage, legacy.” She paused, watching me closely as if gauging my reaction. “You carry the legacy of Impio in your veins, Lolita. Blood that ties you to us.”
I could barely breathe. My mother had tried to save me, but even in death, she hadn’t been able to keep me from this place, from them.
“For years, we kept track of you,” Beatrice continued. “You grew up oblivious to your true heritage, and we waited—watched. It was only a matter of time before the right moment came to reintroduce you to the Isle. And once I told Alexander of your existence... well,” she smiled again, this time with a hint of pride, “the rest is history.”
Everything around me blurred as her words settled in. They had always known about me, always watching, waiting.
"When we say you're family and we've always wanted you, we mean it," Esther said softly, her eyes warm as she looked at me.
Adelita spoke up for the first time. Her voice was calm, but there was an intensity behind it that cut through the room. "You took the best of both of them," she said, her gaze piercing as she studied my face. “Your mother and father.”
Her words sank in slowly, but when they did, it was like everything around me froze. My mind raced to catch up.
This woman—Adelita—was my aunt. My mother’s only sister. Which meant Alexander was my…cousin? I blinked, my vision swimming for a moment as the room seemed to tilt around me. I glanced at Beatrice, at Esther, at Adelita, trying to find something in their faces that would tell me I was wrong. There was nothing. Only calm acceptance. To them this was the truth I should’ve always known. I swallowed hard, my heart pounding in my chest as the pieces of my life shifted, rearranging themselves in ways I couldn’t have imagined.
Alexander.
My Alexander.
My cousin.
"When did you find me?" The words slipped out of my mouth before I even had a chance to think, my mind spinning too fast to catch up. When did they find me? How long had they been watching me, knowing who I was, waiting?
Beatrice's gaze softened, though there was no hesitation in her answer. "I found you when you were fifteen." Her voice was calm, a matter of fact as if she were recounting something routine. "Alexander was told about you when you were seventeen."
I quickly did the mental math, trying to make sense of it. That would’ve made him... "Twenty-seven, twenty-eight?" I said, my voice small, barely audible. The realization sank in—he hadn’t known about me for as long as I thought he did, which meant he moved quicker than I could have ever imagined bringing me home.
Beatrice nodded, confirming my thoughts. Esther chimed in, her voice soft, almost admiring. "He accepted you right away."
Adelita’s voice followed, the first trace of vulnerability slipping into her tone. "He rearranged everything for you," she said, as if the words held more meaning than I could grasp.
Then her gaze softened further, a glimmer of something deeper flashing in her eyes. "He has made me proud many times over the years... but I admit, when I learned you'd be brought back here, Lolita, I was terrified." Her voice wavered, but only slightly, as if revealing this truth pained her more than she let on. "I thought you deserved the life you'd built for yourself. I know what it’s like to have that snatched away."