Chapter 4 - A True ReckoningVictor approached Elena slowly.
His hands shook.
"You have her eyes."
Elena said nothing.
She had dreamed of hearing those words as a child.
But dreams had become useless things.
She had spent years wondering why she had been unwanted.
Why her mother had cried in locked rooms.
Why the outside world had been forbidden.
Why every question had been answered with silence.
Now she finally knew.
Vanessa had buried them socially before she ever buried them emotionally.
Victor looked toward the crowd.
"Everyone, leave."
No one moved.
Then Elena spoke.
"No."
Victor turned.
"I didn't come here to hide the truth again."
The room became still.
She picked up the fallen silver tray.
"I served tonight because I wanted to see something."
"What?"
"Whether my family would recognize its own blood..."
Her eyes met Victor's.
"...before I had to remind them."
May you like
Vanessa stared at her from the marble floor.
For the first time in her life, Vanessa understood what humiliation truly felt like.
Related Stories
