Elena's POV
My phone buzzes the second Isabella disappears with Adrian.
I pull it out with shaking hands. Another text from the unknown number.
She's dangerous. Isabella wants what you have. Trust no one in this house except Martha. The will reading is in one hour. Be ready for the truth.
My blood turns to ice. How does this person know about the will reading? How do they know about Isabella?
Who is watching me?
I drop onto the bed and try to catch my breath. Everything is happening too fast. My father's hatred. Sophia's cruelty. Adrian's kindness. Isabella's threat.
And now these mysterious texts warning me about danger I don't understand.
A soft knock makes me jump.
"Elena?" Martha's voice comes through the door. "May I come in, dear?"
I open the door quickly. Martha enters carrying a tray with tea and cookies. She sets it on the small table by the window.
"You look pale," Martha says with concern. "Did something happen?"
I show her the text. Her face goes white as she reads it.
"Oh no," she whispers. "They found you already."
"Who found me? Martha, what's going on?"
She sits down heavily. "Your grandmother made enemies before she died. Powerful enemies. People who don't want certain truths to come out."
"What truths?"
Martha looks toward the door nervously. Then she leans close and speaks so quietly I barely hear her.
"Your family isn't what you think, Elena. The Morgan bloodline has secrets that go back generations. Your grandmother discovered something terrible right before she died. Something about—"
The door flies open.
Sophia stands there with a mean smile. "Martha, Mother wants you in the kitchen. Now."
"I'm having tea with Elena—"
"Now," Sophia repeats coldly.
Martha squeezes my hand quickly. "We'll talk later. Be careful." She hurries out, leaving me alone with my sister.
Sophia closes the door and leans against it. She studies me like I'm a puzzle she's trying to solve.
"You shouldn't have come back," she says.
"Grandmother wanted me here."
"Grandmother's dead." Sophia's voice is flat. "What she wanted doesn't matter anymore."
"It matters to me."
Sophia laughs but there's no happiness in it. "Of course it does. Perfect Elena. Grandmother's favorite. The one who could do no wrong."
"That's not true—"
"Isn't it?" Sophia pushes off the door and walks toward me. "She talked about you constantly. 'Elena is so brave. Elena is so talented. Elena chose freedom over money.' She never talked about me like that."
I hear real pain under her anger. "Sophia—"
"You left me here," she says. Her voice cracks. "You escaped and I've been trapped in this house for seven years. Pretending to be perfect. Following every rule. Becoming exactly what they wanted. And I hate every second of it."
For the first time, I see my sister clearly. She's not just mean. She's miserable.
"Then leave," I say gently. "Like I did. Choose your own life."
"With what money?" Sophia's eyes fill with tears. "You had Grandmother helping you. I have nothing. Father controls every dollar I spend. If I leave, I'll be on the streets."
"I survived—"
"You're stronger than me!" The words burst out of her. "I'm not brave like you, Elena. I'm weak and scared and I don't know how to be anything else."
She's crying now. Real tears. Not fake ones for show.
I don't know what to do. Sophia has been cruel to me my entire life. But seeing her break down makes my heart hurt.
"You're not weak," I say quietly. "You're just stuck. There's a difference."
Sophia wipes her eyes roughly. "It doesn't matter. After the will reading, everything will change anyway."
"What do you mean?"
She looks at me with something like pity. "You'll see. Grandmother left surprises for everyone. Not all of them are good." She walks to the door and pauses. "Elena? I'm sorry. For everything. But that doesn't mean I can help you."
She leaves before I can respond.
I sit in confused silence. What did she mean about the will reading? What surprises?
My phone buzzes again.
Thirty minutes until the reading. Adrian is looking for you. He wants to warn you about something. Meet him in the rose garden. Alone.
This is insane. I should ignore these texts. I should tell someone about them.
But what if the messages are trying to help me?
I grab my jacket and slip out of my room. The hallway is empty. I take the back staircase that leads to the garden—the one I used when I wanted to avoid my family as a kid.
The rose garden looks exactly like I remember. Red, pink, and white roses everywhere. Stone benches. A small fountain in the center. This was Grandmother's favorite place.
Adrian is already there, standing by the fountain. He's changed into jeans and a simple shirt. He looks more relaxed. More real.
"Elena," he says when he sees me. Relief floods his face. "Thank God. I was worried you wouldn't come."
"How did you know I'd be here?"
"I didn't. I just hoped." He runs a hand through his hair. "I need to tell you something before the will reading. About Isabella. About me. About why you need to be careful."
My heart pounds. "I'm listening."
Adrian takes a breath. "Isabella and I aren't really engaged. I mean, we are officially. But it's not real. Our families arranged it for business reasons. We don't love each other."
"Then why—"
"Because that's what Morgans do," he says bitterly. "We marry for power and money. Not for love. Just like your father tried to make you do."
The words hit me hard. Adrian is trapped exactly like I was.
"But you're twenty-eight," I say. "You could refuse. You could leave."
"It's not that simple." He moves closer. "My father controls my job, my money, everything. If I break this engagement, I lose it all."
"So you'll marry someone you don't love?"
"I will if I can't find a good enough reason not to." His gray eyes lock onto mine. "Elena, when I saw you today, I remembered something. Something I felt when I was eight years old watching you paint."
"What?"
"That there's more to life than duty and expectations. That people can choose their own happiness." He takes another step closer. We're inches apart now. "You reminded me of that again today. Just by being here. By standing up to your father. By being brave."
I can't breathe. The air between us feels electric.
"Adrian, I—"
"I know this sounds crazy. We barely know each other now. But I can't shake this feeling that you coming back means something. That maybe Grandmother planned this for a reason."
Before I can respond, a voice cuts through the garden like a knife.
"How touching."
We spin around.
Isabella stands at the garden entrance. Behind her is Evelyn. And behind them both is my father.
Isabella's face is cold with rage. "I come looking for my fiancé and find him having a secret meeting with his cousin. In a garden. Alone."
My father's face turns purple. "What is the meaning of this?"
"Nothing," Adrian says quickly. "We were just talking—"
"It looked like more than talking," Evelyn says with fake concern. "It looked quite inappropriate."
"We're cousins," I say desperately. "We were just catching up."
"Cousins who are standing very close together," Isabella says. She walks over and links her arm through Adrian's possessively. "Darling, people will talk. You know how important appearances are to your family."
Adrian looks trapped. His jaw clenches but he doesn't pull away from Isabella.
My father glares at me. "Stay away from Adrian. Do you understand? I won't have you creating another scandal."
"I wasn't—"
"The will reading starts in ten minutes," he interrupts. "Get to the study. Now."
He storms away. Evelyn follows. Isabella gives me one more cold look before dragging Adrian with her.
I'm left alone in the garden, my heart racing.
What just happened? One minute Adrian was opening up to me. The next, we're accused of something inappropriate.
My phone buzzes.
That was a trap. Isabella followed Adrian. She's trying to make you look bad. At the will reading, don't trust what you see. Trust what Grandmother wrote. And Elena? Your father isn't your real enemy. The real danger is much closer than you think.
My hands shake so badly I almost drop the phone.
Who is texting me? How do they know everything before it happens?
And what did they mean about my father not being the real enemy?
I head back to the house with my mind spinning. The will reading is about to start. I'm going to find out what Grandmother left me.
But something tells me the art studio isn't the only thing I'm inheriting today.
I reach the study door. Voices come from inside. My entire family is gathered, waiting.
I take a deep breath and push the door open.
Everyone turns to look at me. My father. Evelyn. Sophia. Uncle Philip. Adrian. Isabella.
And at the head of the table sits an elderly man with kind eyes. Mr. Harrison. The family lawyer.
"Ah, Elena," he says warmly. "Perfect timing. Please, sit. We're about to begin."
I sit in the only empty chair. It's next to Uncle Philip, across from Adrian and Isabella.
Mr. Harrison opens a thick folder. "Thank you all for coming. We're here to read the last will and testament of Margaret Anne Morgan."
My heart pounds. This is it.
Mr. Harrison begins reading. Money to charities. Jewelry to Evelyn. Investments to Uncle Philip.
Then he gets to Sophia.
"To my granddaughter Sophia, I leave my collection of vintage fashion and fifty thousand dollars."
Sophia's face falls. That's it? Just fifty thousand?
"To my grandson Adrian, I leave my rare book collection and one hundred thousand dollars."
Adrian nods but doesn't look happy. He doesn't need money.
Mr. Harrison looks directly at me. "And to my granddaughter Elena Morgan, I leave the following: my personal art studio and all its contents, my private journals from 1965 to the present, and a sealed letter to be opened only by her."
He slides a cream envelope across the table. My name is written on it in Grandmother's handwriting.
"However," Mr. Harrison continues, "there is one condition. Elena must stay at the Morgan estate for a minimum of two weeks. She must attend all family events. And she must read the journals in their entirety. If she fails to meet these conditions, everything goes to charity."
The room erupts.
"Two weeks?" my father roars. "She can't stay here for two weeks!"
"That's the will's requirement," Mr. Harrison says calmly.
Sophia glares at me. "This is ridiculous. What's in those journals that's so important?"
"That's for Elena to discover," Mr. Harrison replies.
I stare at the sealed letter in my hands. It feels warm somehow. Like it's alive.
Isabella leans forward. "What about Adrian? Does he have to stay too?"
"Adrian lives here already," Mr. Harrison points out.
Something about the way he says it feels important. Like there's a hidden meaning.
My father stands up. "This is manipulation. My mother was clearly not of sound mind when she made these changes."
"I can assure you she was perfectly sound," Mr. Harrison says firmly. "I have doctors' statements to prove it."
Uncle Philip speaks for the first time. "Charles, let it go. Mother wanted this. Let Elena have her inheritance."
"Fine," my father spits. "Two weeks. But after that, she's gone. Forever."
He storms out. Evelyn follows. Sophia lingers, looking at me with an expression I can't read, then leaves too.
Isabella stands gracefully. "Come, Adrian. We have wedding plans to discuss."
Adrian looks at me one more time. His eyes say everything his mouth can't. Then Isabella pulls him away.
Only Uncle Philip and Mr. Harrison remain with me.
"Open the letter, Elena," Mr. Harrison says gently. "Your grandmother wanted you to read it immediately."
With shaking hands, I tear open the envelope.
Grandmother's handwriting fills the page. But it's the first sentence that makes my heart stop.
My dearest Elena,
If you're reading this, you've agreed to stay. Good. You'll need these two weeks to prepare for what's coming. The journals will tell you about forbidden love, hidden secrets, and the truth about our family that no one else knows.
But most importantly, you will learn about Adrian.
Sweet girl, I've watched Adrian grow into a man trapped by duty, just as I was once trapped. And I've watched you become a woman brave enough to choose freedom. When I look at you two together, I see history repeating itself—the same pull, the same impossible connection that I felt so many years ago.
What I'm about to tell you will change everything you think you know about your family. About yourself. And about the man whose gray eyes follow you around the room even though he's engaged to someone else.
Elena, you and Adrian aren't what everyone thinks you are.
The letter slips from my fingers.
I'm not what everyone thinks?
What does that mean?
Uncle Philip picks up the letter. He reads it. His face goes completely white.
"Oh no," he whispers. "She actually told you."
"Told me what?" My voice comes out like a scream.
Philip looks at me with something like pity. "Elena, you need to read those journals. Tonight. All of them. Before anyone else finds out what's in them."
"Finds out what?"
He stands up. "Your grandmother kept secrets that could destroy this family. And you're right in the middle of them."
He walks out, leaving me alone with Mr. Harrison.
The lawyer smiles sadly. "Your grandmother was a brave woman. She's giving you the truth she never had. Use it wisely."
Then he leaves too.
I sit in the empty study, my grandmother's letter on the table, my mind racing with a thousand questions.
What secrets did Grandmother keep?
What truth is she giving me?
And what did she mean when she said Adrian and I aren't what everyone thinks we are?