The discovery burned in my mind like a live wire, refusing to let me breathe. I stormed into Xavier’s study, my hands trembling as rage coursed through me. The door slammed behind me, and Xavier looked up from his drink, his sharp gaze locking onto mine.
“You lied to me,” I said, my voice shaking with betrayal. “You knew my father.”
Xavier set his glass down with deliberate calm. “Yes, I did.”
I took a step closer, my heart hammering in my chest. “You were involved in his death.”
His expression flickered-just a hint of something that might have been regret-but it was gone so fast I thought I imagined it. “I didn’t kill him, Alyssa.”
“Then explain that file!” I snapped. “His death report-your name was right there.”
Xavier leaned back, his hands steepled under his chin, studying me like a puzzle he had to solve. “It’s not what you think.”
“Of course it’s not,” I spat. “It never is with you.”
He sighed, dragging a hand down his face, and for a moment, the ever-composed mafia kingpin looked almost… exhausted. “Your father and I were friends once, Alyssa. He got involved with dangerous people-people I warned him about.”
“And then he ended up dead,” I shot back. “Sounds pretty convenient for you.”
Xavier shook his head, frustration simmering beneath his cool exterior. “It wasn’t me. It was Ethan.”
I froze. “What?”
“You heard me,” Xavier said, his voice dropping to a dangerous rumble. “Ethan orchestrated your father’s death. He wanted to sever ties with the mafia and build his own empire, clean and untouchable. Killing your father was the first step.”
My world tilted. I had expected lies, manipulation, maybe even the truth about Xavier’s involvement-but Ethan? Ethan had always been the calm in the storm, the man who promised me protection.
“No.” I shook my head, unwilling to believe it. “You’re lying. You just want to pit us against each other.”
Xavier’s lips curled into a humorless smile. “Believe what you want, Alyssa. But the truth doesn’t care about your feelings.”
I paced the room, my thoughts racing. Ethan had never mentioned my father-never given me a reason to think he was connected to any of this. But Xavier… Xavier had no reason to lie. At least, not about this.
“You expect me to just believe you?” I demanded, stopping in front of him. “Why now? Why tell me this now?”
“Because you need to understand the kind of man Ethan is.” Xavier stood slowly, his presence looming over me. “He’s not your savior, Alyssa. He’s a snake, and he’ll strike the moment you let your guard down.”
“Right. And you’re the hero in all this?” I scoffed, crossing my arms. “You expect me to trust you after everything?”
Xavier’s expression softened-just a fraction. “I’m not a hero. But I don’t want to see you destroyed, either.”
The sincerity in his voice threw me off balance, but I refused to let him in. I had been played by too many men to fall for one more.
“Where’s the proof?” I asked, my voice steadier now. “If Ethan killed my father, where’s the evidence?”
Xavier’s gaze darkened. “The only proof I had was buried with your father. Ethan made sure of that.”
“Convenient,” I muttered, bitterness twisting in my gut. “How do I know you’re not just feeding me another lie?”
He stepped closer, his eyes locking onto mine. “You don’t. But ask yourself-how much do you really know about Ethan?”
The question hit harder than I expected. Ethan had always been smooth, charming, too perfect. And now, cracks were starting to show.
As Xavier turned to leave, I noticed a small drawer slightly ajar in his desk. Something about it caught my attention-something that didn’t belong in this meticulously organized room.
“Wait.” I walked over, pulling the drawer open fully. Inside was a folded, yellowed piece of paper, tucked beneath a leather-bound journal. My heart raced as I reached for it.
Xavier watched me carefully but didn’t stop me. “What is it?”
I unfolded the paper slowly, my breath catching as I recognized the handwriting.
It was my father’s.
The note was brief, scrawled in a hurried hand:
“Alyssa, if you find this, stay away from both men. They will destroy you-just as they destroyed me. Trust no one. Protect yourself. I love you.”
The room spun as the weight of the message settled over me. My father had known. He’d known about Xavier. He’d known about Ethan. And he’d warned me-years too late, but a warning all the same.
I clutched the note, my hands shaking. “What the hell is this, Xavier?”
He didn’t answer immediately. Instead, he watched me with an unreadable expression, as if waiting for me to connect the final pieces myself.
“My father knew both of you,” I whispered, more to myself than to him. “He knew what you were capable of.”
“He knew the risks,” Xavier said quietly. “But he underestimated Ethan.”
I crumpled the note in my hand, anger and confusion swirling in my chest. “So, what? You expect me to just walk away? Pretend none of this ever happened?”
“No,” Xavier said, his voice calm but firm. “I expect you to survive. And if you’re smart, you’ll stop trusting either of us.”
I stared at him, feeling like the ground beneath my feet had been ripped away. Everything I thought I knew-about my father, about Ethan, about Xavier-was unraveling faster than I could keep up.
“What do you want from me?” I asked, my voice barely above a whisper.
“Nothing,” Xavier said simply. “I just want you to see the truth before it’s too late.”
But what was the truth? Was Xavier telling the whole story? Was Ethan the villain, or was Xavier manipulating me again?
I didn’t know anymore.
All I knew was that the note in my hand was the only thing that felt real-and it told me one thing loud and clear:
Trust no one.