The Weight of Truth
Starling's POV
Rain pounded on the roof of the storage unit, steady and cruel.
The world outside was drowned in thunder, but all she could hear was her own heartbeat.
He stood there — soaked, breathless, and painfully familiar.
Elijah.
The name echoed in her chest like a curse she couldn't let go of.
For a long moment, neither of them moved.
The storm filled the silence between them — heavy, alive, suffocating.
"What are you doing here?" Starling's voice came out low, brittle.
Elijah stepped closer, water dripping from his coat. His eyes searched hers like he was trying to find something he'd lost.
"I could ask you the same thing," he said quietly.
She tightened her fingers around the small metal disk in her hand, hiding it behind her back.
"I came for what belongs to me."
His gaze shifted to the torn painting on the floor. "Your father's work?"
"My father's truth," she shot back.
That one word made him flinch.
His jaw tightened. "Starling, you need to leave. It's not safe here."
"Oh, don't start pretending you care." Her laugh was hollow. "Your family destroyed mine, Elijah. You helped them. You signed the papers that ruined him!"
"I didn't know!" His voice cracked, rough with guilt. "They used me, Starling—"
"Stop lying!" Her words sliced through the rain. "You always knew!"
Elijah took a step closer, his eyes burning with desperation.
"There's someone else behind all of this. A man named Voss. He—"
The name froze her blood.
Her hand trembled.
"Elijah…" she whispered. "He called me tonight."
He froze. "What?"
Her throat tightened, the memory clawing its way back.
"He said my father hid something he needs. And that my fake father never learned to let go."
Elijah's expression darkened. "Fake father?"
She shook her head. "I don't know. I don't even know what's real anymore."
Her pulse was wild.
The disk in her hand suddenly felt heavier — like it was burning through her skin.
Elijah noticed. "What's that?"
"Proof," she said softly. "Or maybe another lie."
A sound shattered the moment — a sharp metallic click.
A car door.
Elijah grabbed her wrist, pulling her behind a row of old crates. "Stay quiet."
Starling's breath hitched. "It's him, isn't it?"
Elijah didn't answer. His gun was already in his hand — steady, trained on the door.
Footsteps. Slow. Confident.
A woman's voice followed — smooth, mocking, familiar.
"You two really have a thing for meeting in dark corners."
Starling's stomach dropped.
Clara.
She stepped into the light — calm, almost elegant. But the look in her eyes was colder than the storm outside.
Elijah's finger tensed on the trigger. "Clara… what are you doing here?"
Clara smiled faintly. "Cleaning up what you and your little muse messed up."
Then she moved aside — and someone else stepped out of the shadows.
Tall. Composed. Dangerous.
The voice that came next made Starling's world tilt.
"You found it after all, didn't you, Starling?"
Lightning flared.
And for the first time, she saw his face.
Voss.
Her breath caught.
The same man from her nightmares. The same man from her father's downfall.
And the man whose voice had haunted her call hours ago.
He smiled — calm, knowing, cruel.
"Now be a good daughter," Voss said softly, his eyes gleaming, "and hand it over."
Starling froze.
The word daughter echoed in her head — too heavy, too impossible.
Elijah looked between them, realization dawning in his eyes.
"Starling…" he whispered. "What does he mean?"
Her pulse stopped.
Her lips parted, but no sound came.
And for the first time — she wasn't sure who she was anymore.
Starling's POV
The word hung in the air like a curse.
Daughter.
Her knees weakened, and for a moment, she forgot how to breathe.
Elijah turned to her — confusion, shock, and something close to fear written all over his face.
"Starling…" he whispered, "what is he saying?"
She shook her head, eyes wide, chest heaving.
"I—I don't know. He's lying. He has to be lying."
Voss chuckled — a cold, knowing sound that filled the room like smoke.
"Oh, you sound just like your mother did the first time she saw me after all those years. Denial really does run in the family."
"Stop," Starling whispered, trembling. "You don't get to say her name."
"Oh, but I do," Voss said smoothly, stepping closer. "Your mother… sweet, fragile Elise. She never told you, did she? That the man you called father was nothing but a cover story to protect my name."
Elijah's grip on his gun faltered slightly.
"Starling…" he murmured again, eyes darting between them.
Starling's voice broke as she spoke, "My father died protecting me. He—he loved me."
Voss tilted his head, amused.
"I never said he didn't. But love doesn't change blood. And yours runs in my veins."
Her world spun.
It felt like the air had been sucked out of the room.
"No…" she whispered, tears burning her eyes. "You're lying!"
Voss smiled faintly, unfazed. "You look just like her, you know. That same defiant fire. But I can see it — my reflection in your eyes."
Something inside Starling cracked.
Her heartbeat roared in her ears.
"Don't you dare compare me to you!" she shouted. "You destroyed everything she ever loved!"
Voss's expression hardened. "I built empires, girl. What I destroyed were obstacles."
Elijah stepped forward, his gun raised again. "Enough."
Voss's gaze flicked to him, sharp and disdainful.
"Ah. The obedient puppet. Still playing the hero for the wrong woman."
"Say another word," Elijah warned, "and I swear—"
"You'll shoot me?" Voss smirked. "Then what, Elijah? You think you can protect her from me? You don't even know what she's holding."
Elijah's eyes darted toward Starling's hand — the metal disk, still hidden behind her.
Voss noticed.
"Ah," he said softly, taking a slow step forward. "So you did find it. Your father's final gift. Hand it over, and maybe I'll let you walk away."
"Walk away?" Starling scoffed bitterly. "You call that mercy?"
Voss smiled — the kind of smile that made her skin crawl.
"I call it restraint."
Something snapped in her.
The rain outside crashed harder, the wind howling through the cracks of the old building.
Starling lifted her chin, eyes blazing.
"You'll never have it."
Voss's smile faded. "You sound just like her."
"Good," she said fiercely. "Because she died protecting me from you."
Voss's gaze darkened. "And look where that got her."
Elijah fired.
The bullet grazed the metal beam near Voss's shoulder — a warning shot.
The sound tore through the air, echoing.
Voss didn't flinch. He simply turned to Clara, who stood by the doorway with an eerie calm.
"End this," he said coldly. "Before she becomes more trouble than she's worth."
Before Starling could react, Clara drew her gun — eyes locked on Elijah.
"Clara!" he shouted. "Don't do this!"
But Clara didn't hesitate.
Her voice was quiet, almost sad. "You should've stayed out of this, Eli."
The gun went off.
A scream tore through the rain.
The sound of shattering glass filled the room as Starling dropped to her knees beside Elijah's fallen body.
"Eli!" she cried, hands trembling, pressing against the blood blooming across his side. "No, no, no—stay with me!"
His hand found hers, weak but steady.
"I'm fine… just—just a scratch…" he lied, voice fading.
Voss stepped closer, expression unreadable.
"I warned you, Starling. Loyalty gets people killed."
Starling lifted her gaze — fury burning in her eyes.
For the first time, she didn't see the monster she feared.
She saw the man she would destroy.
"You made a mistake," she whispered.
Voss raised a brow. "And what's that?"
"You didn't kill me when you had the chance."
...................
"Elijah!"
Her voice broke as she pressed harder against the wound, her palms slick with blood.
He gritted his teeth, eyes clouded with pain but still searching for her. "You… have to run."
"Shut up!" she snapped, shaking her head, tears cutting down her face. "You're not dying on me, not now!"
Voss's footsteps echoed closer.
"Touching," he said coldly. "But this isn't your story to end."
Starling's breath came in sharp bursts. The weight of every betrayal, every lie, every stolen truth pressed down on her — and then, something in her snapped.
Her hand reached for the small device her father had left — the metallic disk she'd been hiding. She pressed the center.
A faint click echoed, followed by a low hum that made the lights flicker.
Voss's expression changed.
"What did you do?"
Starling glared up at him. "I'm finishing what my father started."
The floor beneath them trembled.
The hum grew louder — deep, mechanical, alive. Sparks danced across the cables in the ceiling.
Clara's eyes widened. "Voss… we need to go. Now."
Voss turned, fury flickering across his face as realization dawned.
The disk wasn't a weapon. It was a trigger.
Her father's failsafe — the one thing that could erase every piece of evidence tied to Voss's empire.
"Starling!" Elijah groaned, trying to move, but she grabbed him.
"Don't talk," she hissed. "We're leaving."
She slung his arm over her shoulder, dragging him toward the exit.
The room erupted behind them — flames bursting from the control panel, papers flying, alarms screaming.
Voss lunged forward, shouting, "You have no idea what you've done!"
Starling turned once, her eyes meeting his through the thickening smoke.
"Then maybe it's time you found out."
She pulled Elijah through the back door just as the explosion hit.
The blast sent heat roaring across her back, throwing her and Elijah against the concrete outside. Rain hissed as it met the fire, steam rising in ghostly clouds.
For a moment — silence.
Then Elijah coughed, blood on his lips but alive. "You really know how to make an exit."
A small, broken laugh escaped her. "Shut up, you idiot."
But her smile faded when she looked back.
The building burned — and through the shattered glass, she saw Voss standing amid the flames, untouched, watching her with eyes that promised only one thing.
This isn't over.
Starling turned away, rain and tears blurring together as she whispered,
"No… it's just begun."