Jolene’s eyes widened as she slowly retreated from his hold and stepped back.
“Isn’t that what he calls you?” Jaxon asked.
“How did you-”
“When Cassius’s mother had an accident, I drove to the Wallington mansion. I was beyond angry, and all I wanted was to end him. I stopped driving when I saw his car leaving the mansion, and for a fleeting moment, I caught a glimpse of you with him. I knew you looked familiar the day we first met, but I ignored the fact that you were with him on the same day Tatiana was betrayed by Nathan…”
“Stop,” Jolene’s voice cracked.
“What did he tell you to do?” Jaxon asked, stepping forward.
“Don’t come closer,” she said, her voice barely a whisper.
“Why did you do it?”
“You wouldn’t understand. None of you would…” She shook her head.
“That night of Tatiana’s welcome party-I was down because I realized you were the woman in that car, and yet, I kissed you. Because I love you, okay? I’ll understand no matter what, so tell me, Jo,” Jaxon demanded.
Suddenly, she reached for something behind her and aimed it at him-a gun.
“Stay back!”
Jaxon’s expression didn’t change, and he kept approaching her.
“Stop, or I’ll shoot you!” she threatened, her face serious, but the man didn’t stop.
“You want to shoot me? Then shoot me,” he said, taking another step closer. Jolene clenched her jaw.
“Jaxon, stop!”
“Jo? Is everything alright up there?” Rowan’s worried voice came from downstairs.
“Everything’s fine, Dad!” Jolene yelled, her eyes darting back to Jaxon.
“Shoot me!” Jaxon snapped, his loud voice triggering something in Jolene, and she pulled the trigger.
A gasp escaped her lips as she staggered back. Her hands went to her mouth, tears blurring her vision. Spinning around, she dashed out of her room and rushed downstairs.
“Jo?” her father called, but she didn’t listen. She grabbed her car keys and stormed out of the apartment.
When she reached outside, she halted at the sight of a figure.
Tatiana.
—
A dark expression clouded Tatiana’s features as a whirlwind of emotions struck her all at once. Her heart raced, her breath became uneven, and her hands trembled as she struggled to process the turmoil within. The revelation hit her like a tidal wave, threatening to drown her. Her mind reeled, memories flooding back like a broken dam. The pain, the fear, the helplessness-it all rushed back, suffocating her.
‘You know who it is… you just don’t want to accept it,’ her father’s words echoed in her mind.
It all started the night she met Cassius. That wasn’t just a coincidence. Considering how adamant Maximus was about making the Kings join his empire, her appearance in Cassius’s room now made sense.
Jolene had taken her to the hotel, to a room just beside Cassius’s.
Maximus must have known Cassius needed a woman that night and found a way to stop the one originally meant for him. Her drink that night had made her body feel strange, desperate for a man. The barman who served her had given her a strange look, but she had ignored it due to her pain.
At the hotel, Cassius’s room was next door-easy for her to reach.
‘Years ago, you barged into my room and threw yourself at me,’ Cassius had said.
Maximus had let her be for years, allowing her to raise Dylan. Then, when the time was right, he used Isabella’s incident to force her back to the country.
Realization hit her as she recalled how Jolene had tried to bring her and Cassius together.
‘He’s a good man, the best man you’ll ever meet,’ Jolene’s words echoed in her ears.
Jolene had probably known all along that Dylan’s father was Mr. King.
She was being used the whole time to get Cassius. She was being used without her knowledge.
No. Tatiana shut her eyes, blocking out those realizations. As the thoughts hit her, her heart clenched even more.
If it weren’t for the recording she’d overheard while Jaxon was talking to her, she would never have believed it. Jolene had indirectly confessed that she was the “little bird” her father had been talking about.
Tatiana opened her eyes and exhaled.
“T… Tatie?” Jolene’s voice cracked, her body trembling as she looked so nervous.
After what felt like an eternity, Tatiana finally moved her feet, approaching Jolene with slow steps.
“Tell me it’s not true,” she said, her voice breaking with emotion.
Jolene stayed silent, her gaze locked with Tatiana’s.
“Tell me, Jojo. Tell me my father didn’t order you to bring me to that hotel so I would look like a whore to him. When I got pregnant with Dylan, tell me you didn’t inform my father-that you didn’t know all along that Cash was the father. All those efforts to bring us together, tell me they weren’t my father’s orders. Tell me you weren’t the one who revealed I was married to him.”
Tatiana paused and reached for Jolene’s hand. “Just tell me you weren’t his little bird, and I swear to God, I’ll believe you. You’re my sister.”
She watched as Jolene gritted her teeth, trying so hard not to burst into tears.
“Jojo,” Tatiana called softly.
“I’m sorry, Tatie. I’m sorry… You won’t… un…” Jolene bit down on her lip. She removed her hands from Tatiana’s grip and tried to catch her breath.
“It’s all true,” Jolene confessed, and Tatiana felt the world crashing down around her. Jolene continued, “I knew a day like this would come. A day when you’d finally see the real me…” She looked up to meet Tatiana’s gaze.
“Jo…” Tatiana wanted her to stop talking already.
“That’s not all I’ve done, Tatiana. I gave Isabella’s details to your father. That’s why they were able to tarnish her image so badly. I’m a monster… I’ve caused you pain, and I deserve whatever you do to me.”
“Are you being threatened? Is my father forcing you to say all this? My Jojo would never…”
“Tatiana!” Jolene yelled.
Tatiana froze, as Jolene’s words finally sank in. She stayed quiet and just stared at her.
Her sister-from another mother.
Why?
Why her, of all people?!
Jolene shook her head. “You probably hate me now, don’t you?” A small, painful smile spread across her lips.
Jolene continued, “Let me help you.” She took Tatiana’s hand and placed the gun in it. Holding it up, she made the gun point to her forehead while Tatiana still held it.
Jolene slowly let go, leaving Tatiana’s hand with the gun still aimed at her head.
“It’ll make you feel better if I disappear right now. I know how heartbroken you are. How badly you don’t want to believe it… how much you wish this were all a dream… I feel the same too.
So…
To make it easier, Tatiana…”
She stepped closer, pressed her head against the gun, and closed her eyes.
“Please, just… shoot me.”