The words followed Liora into her dreams.
You need an heir.
She heard them again when she woke.
Heard them while brushing her teeth.
Heard them while getting dressed.
And by the time she made her way downstairs for breakfast, she was thoroughly sick of them.
The Valmere estate was already awake.
Sunlight poured through the tall windows overlooking the gardens, bathing the dining room in warm morning light.
Staff moved quietly between tables, setting out breakfast while maintaining the sort of invisible efficiency Liora still hadn’t gotten used to.
She slid into her usual seat.
A few moments later, Adrian appeared.
Naturally.
Perfectly dressed.
Perfectly composed.
Perfectly annoying.
“Good morning.”
Liora narrowed her eyes.
“It would be better if people stopped speaking in riddles.”
Adrian poured himself coffee.
“An excellent morning to you as well.”
She watched him over the rim of her cup.
“What did Octavian mean?”
The coffee paused halfway to Adrian’s lips.
Only for a second.
Then he continued drinking.
“What did he say?”
“‘You need an heir.'”
Silence.
Adrian set down the cup.
“You’re eavesdropping again.”
“You keep having interesting conversations.”
“You have a remarkable lack of self-preservation.”
Liora ignored him.
“Why is everyone so obsessed with inheritance?”
“Everyone isn’t.”
“Octavian certainly is.”
A shadow crossed Adrian’s expression.
Gone almost immediately.
But not before she caught it.
“Money changes people.”
Liora rolled her eyes.
“That’s the answer you gave me last time.”
“Because it’s still correct.”
“How much money are we talking about exactly?”
Adrian reached for another piece of toast.
“Enough.”
Liora groaned.
“You are impossible.”
“So I’ve been told.”
“Frequently, I hope.”
“Daily.”
That earned the smallest smile from her.
Unfortunately.
She hated when he won arguments by refusing to participate in them.
A staff member approached Adrian moments later.
“Sir, your nine o’clock meeting has arrived.”
Adrian checked his watch.
Then stood.
“I’ll be gone most of the day.”
Liora immediately looked interested.
Too interested.
Adrian noticed.
His eyes narrowed.
“Don’t.”
“Don’t what?”
“Whatever it is you’re planning.”
“I wasn’t planning anything.”
“You never look that innocent unless you’re planning something.”
Liora placed a hand over her chest.
“You wound me.”
“I’m leaving now.”
With that, he walked away.
Liora watched him disappear.
Then smiled.
Slowly.
Dangerously.
By ten thirty, she found herself standing outside Elara’s room.
Again.
The door opened easily.
The familiar scent greeted her immediately.
Books.
Flowers.
Memories.
She stepped inside.
The room had begun feeling less like a museum and more like a person.
Every journal she read revealed another piece of Elara.
A woman who loved terrible sketches.
A woman who hated reporters.
A woman who secretly paid hospital bills.
Liora settled into the chair beside the window.
The journal rested open on her lap.
She read for nearly an hour.
Laughing occasionally.
Shaking her head at others.
Until something caught her attention.
A desk.
Looking at it felt awkwardly different.
She stood.
Walked over.
Examined it.
Three drawers.
Two opened easily.
One didn’t.
Her brow furrowed.
She tried again.
Nothing.
Locked.
Interesting.
Liora crouched.
Studied it carefully.
Everything else in the room had been accessible.
The journals.
The photographs.
The keepsakes.
Why lock one drawer?
And more importantly…
What was inside?
Her curiosity immediately woke up.
Which was unfortunate.
Because curiosity was rarely satisfied by common sense.
She searched the desk.
Nothing.
Checked nearby shelves.
Nothing.
Examined every obvious hiding place.
Still nothing.
Eventually, she leaned back in frustration.
“You’re hiding something.”
The drawer remained stubbornly silent.
Her phone rang just after noon.
The sight of her mother’s name instantly softened her expression.
“Mom.”
“Liora!”
The familiar warmth in her mother’s voice made her smile.
“How are things?”
“Good.”
A pause.
“Actually…
very good.”
Liora blinked.
That was unusual.
“What happened?”
Her mother laughed.
“You wouldn’t believe it.”
“Try me.”
The next several minutes were filled with good news.
Clara’s treatments were working.
The asthma attacks had reduced significantly.
Noah had been bragging about his grades.
Their father was enjoying his new driving job more than anyone expected.
And for the first time in years…
The family sounded relaxed.
Happy.
Stable.
Liora listened quietly.
A lump formed in her throat.
Because she knew exactly why things had improved.
And she still couldn’t tell them.
“Your father keeps saying he’ll spoil his grandchildren one day.”
Liora nearly choked.
“Mom.”
“What?”
“I’m twenty-five.”
“Exactly.”
Liora laughed despite herself.
A familiar voice suddenly shouted from somewhere in the background.
“Tell her I said hi!”
“Noah says hello.”
Another voice followed.
“And me!”
“And Clara.”
Liora smiled.
“I miss you guys.”
The words slipped out before she could stop them.
The line grew quiet.
“We miss you too.”
Her mother hesitated.
“Come visit soon.”
“I will.”
The promise felt genuine.
After saying goodbye, she sat silently for several moments.
Staring at the screen.
Thinking.
Missing home.
By mid-afternoon, she was back in Elara’s room.
The locked drawer still bothered her.
Which meant she wasn’t leaving until she figured something out.
Outside, clouds had begun gathering.
Dark grey stretched across the sky.
Rain threatened.
The room grew dimmer.
More intimate.
More secretive.
Perfect mystery weather.
Liora resumed her search.
This time she paid attention to details.
The journals.
The shelves.
The books.
The decorations.
Everything.
Hours passed.
Then—
Something slipped from between the pages of an old book.
A small brass key.
Liora froze.
Slowly.
Very slowly.
She picked it up.
Her heart immediately accelerated.
No way.
No actual way.
Could it really be this simple?
There was only one way to find out.
****
The rain had started by the time she returned to the desk.
Soft droplets tapped against the windows.
The room sat bathed in shadows.
Her fingers tightened around the key.
One breath.
Then another.
She inserted it into the lock.
For a second, nothing happened.
Then—
Click.
The sound seemed unnaturally loud.
Liora stared.
The drawer was open.
A thrill shot through her.
Part excitement.
Part guilt.
Part fear.
Slowly, she pulled it open.
Inside sat several items.
A jewelry box.
A leather folder.
A small collection of letters tied together with ribbon.
And one sealed envelope.
Immediately, her attention locked onto it.
The envelope looked older than everything else.
Handled often.
Protected carefully.
Almost treasured.
Her pulse quickened.
She reached for it.
Then froze.
Words were written across the front in elegant handwriting.
Elara’s handwriting.
Liora recognised it instantly.
The message was short.
Simple.
Yet somehow it felt heavier than anything she’d read before.
To Dad.
Her breath caught.
Then she noticed the second line.
And the blood drained from her face.
If anything happens to me.
The rain struck harder against the windows.
The room seemed to shrink around her.
Liora stared.
Unable to move.
Unable to look away.
Because suddenly she wasn’t holding an envelope.
She was holding a secret.
One Elara had never intended anyone else to find.
And somewhere deep inside her, she knew one thing with absolute certainty.
Whatever was inside that letter…
had the power to change everything.