Valeria's POV
The gates to the Arden estate swung open as Damon's car approached.
I pressed my forehead against the window, watching the iron gates pass by. Two years. I hadn't been here in two years.
"You okay?" Damon asked softly.
"I don't know what I am anymore."
The driveway curved through gardens I used to run through as a child. Every tree, every turn felt familiar and foreign at the same time.
Then the house came into view. Not a house. A mansion. The place I grew up. The place I ran from to prove I could be normal.
The front doors burst open before we even stopped.
My mother rushed down the steps, not caring about the rain. Her hair flew behind her, her face tight with worry.
Damon barely had time to put the car in park before I threw open the door.
"Valeria!" Mom reached me in seconds, pulling me into her arms. "Oh, my baby. My sweet girl."
I broke.
All the strength I'd been holding onto shattered. I sobbed into her shoulder like I was five years old again, like she could fix everything with just a hug.
"I'm sorry," I gasped between tears. "I'm so sorry, Mom."
"Shh. You have nothing to be sorry for." She pulled back, cupping my face in her hands. "Nothing. Do you hear me?"
Behind her, Lucien stood in the doorway. My older brother. Tall, powerful, and currently looking like he wanted to tear the world apart.
"Inside," he said firmly. "Now."
Mom kept her arm around me as we walked up the steps. Damon followed close behind. Grant's car pulled up seconds later, and he joined us at the entrance.
The moment I stepped into the house, warmth surrounded me. Familiar smells. Familiar sounds. Home.
But everything felt different now. I felt different.
"Conference room," Lucien ordered. "We need to talk."
"She needs rest," Mom argued. "Look at her, Lucien. She's been through—"
"Which is exactly why we need to act fast." Lucien's voice softened as he looked at me. "Val, I know you're exhausted. But there are things you need to know. Things that can't wait."
I straightened my spine. "Tell me."
We walked through halls I used to run down, past rooms full of memories. The conference room doors opened, and I stopped.
The room was full of people.
My cousin Noah sat at a table, multiple laptops open in front of him. A woman I didn't recognize stood by the window. And in the corner—
"Sienna?" I gasped.
My best friend jumped up and ran to me. "Val! Thank God you're safe! Lucien called me an hour ago and I came straight here."
"You knew?" I looked at Lucien. "You called her?"
"She's family too," he said simply. "And we're going to need everyone."
"Everyone for what?" I asked, but deep down, I already knew.
Lucien gestured to the conference table. "Sit. Please."
I sat. Mom took the chair beside me, holding my hand. Damon stood behind us. Grant positioned himself by the door.
Noah spun one of his laptops around. "Okay, so I've been digging since Lucien called. And Val? Your ex-husband is in way deeper trouble than you think."
"What do you mean?"
"Kane's company is drowning in debt. Like, millions of dollars of debt." Noah pulled up documents. "He's been taking loans from some seriously shady people."
The woman by the window spoke. Her voice was cool and professional. "I'm Dr. Ivy Monroe. Your brother hired me to consult on this situation. Those 'shady people' Noah mentioned? They're connected to organized crime."
My stomach dropped. "Crime?"
"Kane borrowed money he can't pay back," Ivy continued. "And Sarah Brent? She's not just some random heiress. Her family has ties to those same criminal organizations."
"Wait." I tried to process this. "Are you saying Sarah deliberately targeted Kane?"
"We believe so." Lucien leaned forward. "Sarah wanted access to our family through you. Kane was just a stepping stone."
"But how would she even know about me? I hid everything about being an Arden."
Noah grinned. "That's where it gets interesting. Someone told her. Someone close to this family."
The room went silent.
"You mean..." I couldn't finish the sentence.
"We have a traitor," Lucien confirmed. "Someone fed Sarah information about you. About when you left. About your marriage. Everything."
Mom's hand tightened on mine. "Who?"
"We don't know yet," Noah admitted. "But I'm tracking digital footprints. Whoever it is, they were careful. But not careful enough."
My head spun. Kane wasn't just a cheating husband. He was involved with criminals. Sarah wasn't just a mistress. She was using him to get to my family. And someone in my own family betrayed me.
"There's more," Ivy said gently. "Those men who attacked you tonight? We believe they were sent to scare you. To make you run away again instead of coming home."
"Why?" I asked. "What do they gain from me hiding?"
"Control," Lucien answered. "As long as you were Kane's powerless wife, you were no threat. But the moment you reclaim your identity as an Arden? You become dangerous to their plans."
"What plans?"
"That's what we need to figure out." Lucien stood and began pacing. "But first, we need to make a statement. Show them that hurting you was the biggest mistake they ever made."
"How?"
He smiled, but it wasn't kind. "By announcing your return. By showing the entire city that Valeria Arden is back. And by destroying everyone who thought they could use you."
Fear and excitement warred in my chest. "When?"
"Three days," Mom said. "There's a charity gala at the Grand Ballroom. Every powerful family in the city will be there. Including Kane and his new friends."
"We'll announce you there," Lucien continued. "Kane will be expecting his broken ex-wife. Instead, he'll face the Arden heiress. In front of everyone."
Sienna squeezed my shoulder. "And I'm going to make sure you look absolutely stunning while doing it."
I looked around the room. At my family. My friends. People who loved me. People who were ready to go to war for me.
"Okay," I said quietly. Then louder: "Okay. Let's do it."
Lucien nodded. "Good. Noah, keep digging into Sarah's connections. Ivy, I want a full psychological profile on Kane and everyone in his circle. Damon—"
"I'm staying with Valeria," Damon interrupted. "Wherever she goes, I go."
"Agreed," Lucien said without argument. "Grant, increase security around the estate. And Mom—"
"I'll handle the social arrangements," Mom finished. "By tomorrow morning, everyone will know Valeria is back."
They all dispersed, moving with purpose. Plans within plans. Strategies I didn't fully understand yet.
Only Lucien remained, studying me carefully.
"You sure you're ready for this?" he asked. "Once we start, there's no going back. Your quiet life is over."
I thought about Kane's cruel words. Sarah's smug smile. The years I spent being small and invisible.
"I'm ready," I said. "I'm done hiding."
He pulled me into a hug. "That's my sister. Welcome home, Val."
But as I hugged him back, the conference room doors suddenly flew open.
Grant rushed in, his face pale. "We have a problem."
"What now?" Lucien demanded.
"Security footage from the front gate. Someone was here. Watching the estate." Grant pulled up an image on his phone. "They left this on the gate."
He turned the screen toward us.
It was a photo. Of me. Taken tonight. Walking into the mansion with my mother.
Written across the bottom in red letters:
WE KNOW WHERE YOU ARE.
My blood turned to ice.
"There's more," Grant said grimly. He swiped to another image. "They left a second message."
This one was worse:
COMING HOME WON'T SAVE YOU. TELL THEM THE TRUTH OR EVERYONE YOU LOVE WILL PAY.
"Tell them what truth?" I whispered.
Lucien's face went hard. "That's what I'd like to know. Val, is there something you're not telling us? Something from your time with Kane?"
"No! I don't know what they're talking about!"
But even as I said it, a memory flickered. Something Kane said once, late at night, when he thought I was sleeping.
Something about a deal. A secret. A debt that could never be paid.
I had forgotten about it. Pushed it away as drunken rambling.
But what if it wasn't?
"Val?" Mom's voice was sharp. "What is it? What do you remember?"
I opened my mouth to answer.
The lights went out.
Complete darkness swallowed the room.
Then, cutting through the silence, a voice came over the intercom. A voice I didn't recognize. Cold. Mechanical.
"Hello, Valeria. Did you really think coming home would protect you? Your family can't save you from what's coming. But I can. Meet me alone tomorrow at midnight. Pier 47. Come alone, or your mother dies first."
The intercom clicked off.
The lights flickered back on.
Everyone stared at each other in shock.
"That's impossible," Grant said. "Our security system is—"
"Hacked," Noah interrupted, typing furiously. "Someone just hacked into our entire network. They were inside our system. They heard everything we just said."
Damon moved to my side. "You're not going anywhere alone."
"She's not going at all," Lucien stated firmly.
But I stood up, my heart racing. "What if they really hurt Mom? What if—"
"It's a trap," Ivy said. "Classic intimidation tactic."
"But what if it's not?" My voice rose. "What if they know something I don't? What if Kane did something that puts all of you in danger?"
The room erupted in arguments. Everyone talking at once.
I backed toward the door, my mind spinning.
Someone hacked our security. Someone knew I was home within hours. Someone wanted me alone.
And somewhere in my buried memories was a truth that could destroy everything.
The question was: what truth?
And was I brave enough to find out?