Chapter 53

Not siblings

I sit next to Rowan frozen. My mind unable to comprehend what Ethan just told me. First of all

James and Kate Sharp weren’t my parents. Second, he claimed to be my brother.

“What?” I scream as the impact of his words finally sink in. “You slept with me knowing you’re my

brother? That’s fucking disgusting“. <

“You slept with him? Why would you sleep with him?” Rowan boom, a dangerous aura filling the

room. Suffocating the atmosphere around us.

I give him a withering look. “That’s none of your business“.

My thoughts were occupied with Ethan’s revelation. If what he said was the truth, then it meant I

had sex with my brother, and he had sex with me knowing the truth.

I felt bile rising up at that thought. Feeling utterly disgusted. What kind of a sick bastard does

that? Why would you sleep with someone knowing very well that you were blood related?

The more I got to know about Ethan, the more I wondered if he had been acting all along.

“You aren’t my sister” Ethan speaks up.

“But you just said that Nora and Theo are your parents” I point out.

“I told you I was adapted. That part was true. They did adapt me after my father was killed. We

aren’t blood related, so we didn’t commit incest.” He smirks then winks “I can however say, I loved

it every time you screamed my name”

I am mortified. My cheeks turn pink, and I look down.

Even if we weren’t blood related, it didn’t make what he did right. If he’s telling the truth then he

shouldn’t have slept with me at all.

I feel Rowan tense beside me, but I ignore him. It didn’t make sense why his hands were fisted and

his jaw clenched.

Brian clears his throat. The sound cuts through the tense and awkward atmosphere.

“If you said Nora’s baby died, why then are you claiming Ava is that baby?” Brian asks, bringing me

back to the present.,

1/5

“Yeah it makes no sense Gabe adds

+15 BONUS

It was true. There is no way Nora and Theo are my parents. If the doctors told them that the baby

died then that’s probably true. Besides, he did say that the baby wasn’t responsive after birth, and

Nora witnessed this herself before she passed cut

“That’s what they she believed. She even held a small ceremony and buried the baby. It was

months of heartache for the two of them, especially Nora. She fell into depression and had to be

admitted to a psychiatric facility Ethan explained

“She wasn’t the same after that news. It’s like she lost the will to live and wanted to follow her

baby to the grave. Years passed and still she was struggling. Her grades dropped and she

graduated late because she failed her classes. Theo was with her throughout, but it was killing

him to see the gurl he loved suffer”

I don’t know the woman, but I was a mother, and I knew how painful it would be for me to lose

Noah. I can’t imagine the pain of anticipating the arrival of your baby only to have them taken

away from you. It would have killed me

“It took time, but with the love and support of Theo and his parents, she was able to pull through

They got married when they were twenty two. Everything was falling into place. She was ready to

try for another baby. Her hopes were dashed when she was told she couldn’t get pregnant. The

doctors from when she was a teen failed to tell her that the difficulties of her labour at such a

young age had caused permanent damage to her womb.”

“After knowing she couldn’t have children, it broke her, but she decided to adapt. That’s when

they got me. They gave me everything including their last name”

I remember when he talked fondly about his parents. The love he had was immeasurable.

“So how does Ava fall into all these?” Rowan asks, his eyes glaring at Ethan

“My grandparents died in a plane crash, but I came to know that they had been looking into the

matter about their granddaughter. Turns out they believed there was foul play. They didn’t tell

Nora and Theo in case their belief turned out to be nothing. It was around that time I came to

know that they had a hidden clause in their will. One that Theo didn’t know about. Everything.

including their company was left to their granddaughter in the event Theo retired or God forbid,

died. The family lawyer knew about their search and the clause.”

He continues. “I couldn’t allow that. I had worked for that company since I was twenty five. I rose

+15 BONUS

search and imagine my shock when I found out that they were right. There was foul play. Nora’s

parents paid the doctors and nurses to fake everything, including the death of Nora’s baby”

I just continue watching him. Listening to him as everything unfolded.

“They thought it would be an embarrassment if their congregation found out that Nora had gotten

pregnant out of wedlock. When she was pregnant it was easy to hide ‘the sin‘ their daughter

committed since she never left Theo’s estate, but once the baby was born, things would change. It

isn’t easy hiding a baby, so they paid to have the death of their granddaughter faked and then

offered her up for adoption”

“My search led me to you. I knew I had to take you out. If you didn’t exist, then the clause was null

and void. I came here and after asking about you, I got a whole lot of information. Given how

people hated you including your husband and family, I thought I would be doing them a favour.

After all, a woman who would steal and trap her sisters boyfriend couldn’t be someone worth

knowing or good for that matter”

My breath catches at that. I still can’t believe that same man that assured me that the night with

Rowan nine years ago wasn’t my fault, is the same man that thought just for that I didn’t deserve

to live.

I try to breath in through the pain, but it’s fucking hard.

“I have to clarify that the first attempt on your life wasn’t on me, but I took the opportunity. I saw a

chance to get close to you and I took it. What better way than to be a hero to get you to trust me. It

worked and you opened your door to me.”

Fuck, it hurts so much. To know he played me from the beginning and I was too blind to see it, just

tears me apart.

“Why would you need to get close to me if you had already hired goons to kill me?” I whisper.

That’s what I wanted answers to. Why get to know me if he wanted me dead.

He shrugs. “I thought it would be fun to toy around with you and pay you back for being a terrible

person. You were so trusting and gullible, it made things easy for me. Besides that, getting to know was

my my plan B. In case those I hired failed, then it would be easier to kill you myself if I

was close to you.”

I look down and clench my hands. I felt like a fucking fool. Here I was developing feelings for him

while all the while he was planning to destroy me.

3/5

+15 BONUS

“It was supposed to be easy, get to know you then destroy you. I didn’t count on he stops before

he can finish the sentence. His eyes roaming the room before landing on me.

For the first time since we found the truth, something passes in his eyes Guilt? Love? I can’t tell

because it was too quick for me to read into it. He soon after shuts down. Turning cold once more.

I wanted to know what he stopped himself from saying, but I’m too much of a coward to ask.

Besides, in light of everything he has done, does it even matter?

“But even if Ava had died, wouldn’t the company have fallen into Noah’s hands?” Letty asks after a

while

“Not really. First of all, I deleted every evidence of her existence just so the family lawyer wasn’t

able to track her and second, the will doesn’t mention anything about the children Ava would

have”

“This is insane, you know that? You’re telling us that not only is Ava not related to us, but our

parents probably knew and never said anything this whole time” Travis says standing up.

Ethan sighs before throwing Travis a hateful look. “That’s exactly what I’m saying and after

getting to know the kind of woman she is, I’m fucking glad that she’s isn’t related to such a

disgusting and hateful family”

Travis launches himself at Ethan, but Ethan easily gets out of the way and Travis ends up

sprawled on the table.

Rowan scoffs his eyes burning a hole into Ethan’s forehead. “That’s rich coming from the man

that wanted her dead”

Ethan glares back at Rowan before his eyes turn to me. “I was going to terminate the hitman’s

services, but he went underground. I didn’t know what he was planning, by the time I did it was

too late and he’d already taken you.” he breathes. “If you don’t believe anything I say, at least

believe me on that”

I couldn’t stand his intense gaze, so like the coward I am, I stood up and ran out of the room. I

found myself outside the station. My heart squeezing in my chest like someone had grabbed it

and was squeezing.

I try to control the tears, but I can’t. They fall down my cheek and I let them. A sob tears from deep

inside my soul as I let the depth of his betrayal wash over me.

4/5

+15 BONUS

Someone pulls me into the chest. I know from the cologne that it’s Rowan. He has a unique scent

made specifically for him.

“It’s okay Angel, let it all out” his deep voice rumbles comfortingly.

I pull away from him and look up at him. I let him see my tear stained face. Right now, I don’t care.

“It’s okay, you can say it. You can tell me how much of I fool I was. You can tell me you told me so” I

hiccup through my cries.

His grey eyes soften before his arms wrap around me once again. Pulling me back to his warmth and

comfort.

“Shh” he whispers “I will never tell you that, Ava. Never!” 3

I continue to cry. Wishing the pain away.

I cry in my ex–husband’s arms after the man I was dating broke me with his betrayal.