Chapter 294: The Family Secret
Alester brought his hands together as he leaned forward. "Aliana, Jade, both of you were born and raised in a world of luxury and comfort, never seeing the foundation that generations of our families built behind the scenes."
Both women knit their brows in confusion.
Before they could misinterpret his meaning, Alester pressed on. "I am not saying this to belittle the effort either of you has put into expanding this empire. Just like you, we, and our fathers before us, were born into this life. But we were once in your shoes. We were made to sit in those exact seats and have this very conversation, receiving the knowledge passed down to us by our parents."
"What knowledge, Dad?" Aliana narrowed her eyes, an uneasy weight settling in her chest.
"What I am about to tell you is our family’s deeply guarded secret. Having been raised as open-minded women, I know you may be inclined to jump to your own conclusions, but I ask you both to be patient and hear me out. It is what made us who we are today... leaders of this world. And every member of this family is expected to honour this tradition," Alester informed them before rising from his seat.
"So I’d like to show you both something. Please come with me." Alester requested.
Nina, Portia and Alec also rose from their seats.
"It’s fine, Ali. Listen to your father and trust us," Portia chimed in reassuringly.
"We’ll be right there with you two," Nina added.
Jade and Aliana exchanged a look, silently asking each other what they should do. But they were their parents. What could possibly go wrong?
After a moment, they both gave each other a small nod before rising from their seats.
"Lead the way, Dad," Aliana said.
Alester offered his daughter a warm smile, but this time, Aliana did not return it. Her guard was fully up after the way her father had been speaking, and she refused to let it drop, even around her own parents.
More than that, an intense curiosity compelled her to see what he wanted to show them.
Together, the group walked up to the top floor of the mansion, heading toward a distant wing far from the family’s bedrooms until they finally stopped in front of a heavy double door.
Growing up in the mansion, Aliana used to play hide-and-seek with her friends and had often tried to enter this room, but it was always locked. Whenever she asked about it, her parents told her it was where her father kept his most important documents and rare collectables. Knowing how particular he was about his private collection, she had never pressed the issue.
Eventually, she left for college, and when she returned, she moved into her own place, never giving this room another thought... until now.
Standing in front of it, Aliana asked, "Dad? Are you finally letting us see your collectables?"
Alester pulled a golden key from around his neck, fitted it into the lock, and glanced over his shoulder. "You’ll see."
That was all he said before pushing the double doors open and stepping inside.
Jade and Aliana stayed close to each other as they followed him in.
As they stepped inside, the creases between their brows deepened.
For a moment, they simply looked around.
The room was lined with polished wood, with large shelves on either side displaying expensive collectables worth millions, each carefully encased behind the glass. But what surprised them most was the size of the room.
It was just so... small.
Perhaps the smallest room either of them had ever seen in the mansion.
"So it really is just another room with collectables," Jade murmured under her breath.
"Seems so," Aliana replied softly.
But Alester didn’t reply.
Instead, he walked towards one of the large paintings that covered an entire wall, making it look more like a door than a piece of artwork. He pressed his palm against a small panel beside the frame, causing a thin section of the wall to slide open, revealing a hidden retinal scanner.
Alester leaned in to scan his eye. A faint click echoed through the room, and the heavy painting began to slide aside, uncovering a dark, hidden doorway.
Both Jade and Aliana felt their breathing hitch. Neither of them had pleasant memories involving secret doors, and both stood completely rooted to the spot.
Alester turned around, taking in their stunned expressions with a faint smile. "No need to look so shocked. Go on in."
As if in sync, Jade and Aliana slowly shook their heads.
"There is no way I am going in there without knowing what is waiting on the other side," Aliana said warily.
"I stand with Ali on this," Jade added, wrapping her arm tightly around Aliana’s as she eyed the dark passageway with deep mistrust.
Nina stepped forward, her expression softening. "Jade, Ali, do you really not trust us?"
Portia stepped closer to Aliana’s side, her tone gentle yet pleading. "Please, Ali, just trust your father. As he said, neither of you has anything to worry about. Don’t you want to know our family secret? How can you doubt your own parents?"
Aliana’s jaw clenched at the memory of the secret door. As much as she wanted to trust and reassure her parents, the mental scar left by what she had experienced on the island ran far too deep.
At that moment, she regretted not having Gavriel with her.
Regardless of the secrets he kept or the doubts she harboured about him, she could not deny the absolute sense of security his presence always brought her. Having him absent now only made the unease inside her grow stronger.
"Aliana, Jade, you can doubt us all you want, especially after everything you’ve both been through recently. But what lies beyond this door is something neither of you can run from. So face the truth."
Alester’s voice was firm as he looked at them before turning and stepping through the doorway, disappearing into the darkness.
The way he said it made it clear that there was no avoiding whatever awaited them on the other side.
Taking a deep breath, Aliana and Jade exchanged one last worried look before Jade leaned closer and whispered, "S-should we take a peek?"
"The way he said it, I think we need to know sooner or later," Aliana whispered back.
Jade nodded. "Alright. If worse comes to worst, you just knock them out like the Rambo you are."
Aliana gave her friend a sidelong glance before the two women finally stepped across the threshold.
The instant they crossed over, the pitch darkness vanished as wall torches shed light on the place.
Aliana and Jade’s eyes widened, their hearts seemingly skipping a beat before plummeting straight to the bottom of their stomachs.