Nobody spoke after that.
The silence felt painfully sharp.
Ophelia immediately regretted saying it out loud.
Not because it wasn’t true.
But because of the look on Alekxander’s face afterward.
God.
He looked destroyed.
Not angry.
Not defensive.
Just tired.
Like he’d been carrying guilt for years and hearing it spoken aloud made it worse somehow.
Cassian quietly looked away, suddenly very interested in the papers nearby.
Smart man honestly.
Meanwhile Ophelia’s chest felt tight again.
Because despite everything…
She didn’t actually enjoy hurting him.
Which was deeply inconvenient.
Alekxander finally spoke after a long moment.
“You’re right.”
The words came quietly.
And somehow that hurt more than arguing would’ve.
Ophelia blinked slightly.
He continued staring at the floor instead of her.
“I lied to her.”
The room stayed silent.
“I told myself it was necessary,” he said softly.
“That if she knew less, she’d be safer.”
His jaw tightened slightly afterward.
“But all it did was make her afraid of me.”
Something inside Ophelia ached hearing that.
Because for the first time, she could clearly picture it now.
Two people trying to protect each other in the worst possible way.
And slowly destroying everything between them because of it.
That kind of pain felt real.
Too real.
Cassian quietly cleared his throat.
“We should focus on the documents.”
Translation:
Please stop emotionally destroying each other underground.
Honestly?
Fair.
Ophelia exhaled slowly and turned away first.
The hidden room suddenly felt heavier now.
Not because of the Society anymore.
But because every corner of this place carried pieces of people who were no longer here.
Mireille.
The original Ophelia.
Even Alekxander felt different inside this room.
Less controlled.
Like the past followed him here too.
Cassian spread several documents across the large wooden table carefully.
“These records mention meetings between noble families,” he said.
“Most of them stopped around twenty years ago.”
Ophelia moved closer slowly.
“And after that?”
Cassian’s expression darkened slightly.
“Everything becomes harder to track.” This chapter was copied from g.com without permission.
Alekxander stepped beside the table now.
“They erased themselves intentionally.”
Of course they did.
Secret evil organizations really loved dramatics.
Ophelia scanned the papers carefully until something caught her attention.
Dates.
Several meetings circled repeatedly over the years.
Then suddenly.
One date stood out immediately.
Her chest tightened.
“Wait.”
Cassian looked up.
“What?”
Ophelia pointed toward the paper slowly.
“This date.”
Alekxander frowned slightly.
“What about it?”
Ophelia’s heartbeat quickened.
Because she recognized it.
Not from this world.
From hers.
“That’s the same day I died.”
Silence.
Complete silence.
Cassian stared at her blankly.
Alekxander immediately stepped closer.
“What?”
Ophelia looked down at the paper again, trying to steady her breathing.
The date was exact.
The same rainy night.
The same day everything changed.
No.
That couldn’t be coincidence.
Could it?
Her hands trembled slightly now.
“I remember the date because…” she swallowed hard, “…it was the last day before my school closed for break.”
Cassian looked disturbed immediately.
“That’s impossible.”
Honestly?
She agreed.
Alekxander’s gaze stayed fixed on the document.
Then slowly, his expression changed.
Like he realized something horrible.
“No,” he murmured quietly.
Ophelia looked at him immediately.
“What?”
But before he could answer.
The whispers exploded loudly inside her head again.
Pain shot through her skull violently.
Too much.
Too fast.
Ophelia grabbed the edge of the table sharply as another vision crashed into her.
Rain poured heavily outside.
Modern streets.
Car lights blurred through the darkness.
No.
This wasn’t the historical world.
This was hers.
Her breathing quickened immediately inside the vision.
She saw herself.
The real her.
Walking home beneath the rain with headphones in.
Alive.
Completely alive.
A black car parked across the street nearby.
Its windows tinted dark.
The vision-Ophelia crossed the road carelessly while checking her phone.
Then paused suddenly.
Someone called her name.
“Ophelia.”
Her blood ran cold instantly.
That voice.
The same voice.
Slowly, vision-Ophelia turned around.
A man stood beneath the rain holding a black umbrella.
His face hidden again.
Always hidden.
But this time she noticed something clearly.
The ring.
Black stone shaped like a sun.
The same ring from the visions.
Fear flooded through her instantly.
Because somehow…
Somehow…
That meant this wasn’t random anymore.
The man stepped closer slowly.
And softly said the words that shattered her completely:
“You were chosen long before you died.”
SCREECH.
Bright headlights rushed toward her violently.
Pain exploded everywhere.
Then darkness swallowed the vision whole.
Ophelia gasped sharply back into reality.
Her knees nearly gave out immediately.
Alekxander caught her before she hit the ground.
“Ophelia!”
Her breathing turned uneven.
No.
No no no.
Tears burned painfully behind her eyes now.
Because she finally understood something terrifying.
Her death wasn’t an accident.
It never was.
Cassian looked pale already.
“What did you see?”
Ophelia slowly looked up.
Fear settled deep inside her chest now.
Not fear of this world.
Not fear of the Society.
Something worse.
Because somehow…
Whatever had been hunting the Ashbourne family.
Had already found her long before she ever came here.