Chapter Two Hundred and Thirty- Seven
Ruth looked at her.
"No." The answer landed harder than Asli expected.
Ruth slowly turned toward Georgia.
"And look how small the world is. She became your nanny." Rosalia said.
Her hand flew to her mouth.
"If only we had known..."
Ruth’s gaze snapped back to Asli. Her eyes widened, finally understanding that Asli was not just someone who got pregnant for their son.
"Asli..." She looked at Rosalia. Then back at Asli.
"You’re their daughter?"
"Yes," Rosalia whispered. "She’s my Catalina."
Ruth staggered backward. "How?"
"We thought she died in the fire," Rosalia said. "But Marco had taken her."
Ruth’s hand covered her mouth.
"Oh my goodness."
Asli hated the expression on her face.
That shock.
That pity.
That disbelief.
"Can someone explain what’s happening?" Markus finally demanded.
Everyone turned toward him. It seemed they had all forgotten about him
Rosalia wiped her tears.
"So many years ago, Ruth came here with her sister and her husband. We were happy to have her. She didn’t feel like a stranger."
A faint smile touched her lips.
"She was supposed to stay for a month."
Ruth nodded through her tears.
"Whenever she visited, you were usually training. Asli was either playing, causing trouble..."
Asli’s mouth twitched despite herself.
"...or both of you were studying."
Rosalia looked at Markus.
"You never met her."
Markus frowned.
"Then Marco attacked both Villas on the same day."
The room quietened again.
"We thought everyone from there was dead. I thought Catalina too got burned to death," she continued. "Ruth’s brother-in-law instead of grieving, went after Marco."
Her voice cracked.
"If he had known you two were alive, he wouldn’t have gone. He wouldn’t have."
Asli stood perfectly still.
She already knew part of this story.
Her mother had told her.
But hearing it from the people who had lived it made the pieces fit differently.
’If that’s true...’
Her eyes moved slowly toward Ruth.
’Ahmet’s biological mother could have been Georgia, Ruth’s sister.’
Her breath caught.
’My Nanny is his aunt.’ She said to herself.
Her knees suddenly weakened.
She reached for nothing, yet a hand caught her elbow.
Settimo.
"Careful."
Asli looked down at his hand before pulling herself upright.
Ruth continued through her tears.
"I wish I could have saved my nephew. I wish I had seen where he ran. If only I had..."
Her voice broke.
"At least my brother-in-law would have left a bloodline. Marco slaughtered everyone and I think he found him too, Rosalia."
Settimo went completely still.
His jaw tightened.
For a long moment, he said nothing.
Then...
"Ahmet is alive."
Ruth’s scream filled the hall.
She rushed forward, hugging Georgia, then Markus, then anyone close enough to her.
"He’s alive?"
Tears streamed down her face.
"Where is he? Can I see him? How did he turn out? Does he look like his father?"
Settimo gave a small, almost disbelieving smile. "He’s away supervising supplies."
"What do you mean by Ahmet being her nephew? Is he not your son?" Markus asked, also lost in whatever truth was being said.
"And this is Markus. I already know you. He came to our Villa. What a small world, I never knew he was your child."
"No. He’s Silvio’s." Rosalia corrected.
"Wow! Markus." The way Ruth said his name made him look at her properly.
She studied his face.
Then her eyes widened.
"No wonder I felt drawn to you."
Markus frowned.
"If I’m right..." She swallowed. "You took after your father. Where is he? Did he also die in the fire?"
Markus’ expression changed.
"Now I understand you. Your father was just like you. He liked to joke around. He could act as though nothing had happened, then suddenly become serious when it mattered."
She shook her head fondly.
"That was one of the things I loved about him."
Markus stared at her.
"How do you know my father?"
Ruth’s smile disappeared.
"Because I knew him. It was just a few weeks knowing each other but we hit it off."
Before Markus could ask another question, Ruth turned toward Asli.
"Oh my goodness, Asli."
She grabbed her and hugged her tightly again.
"Thank you."
Asli stiffened.
"For what?"
"If you hadn’t been curious enough to search for the truth, none of us would have known."
Asli pulled away slowly.
The room seemed to tilt beneath her.
There were too many things she couldn’t ignore.
She looked at Settimo.
"So..." Her voice was hoarse. "If I’m understanding this correctly, Ahmet should have been the one trying to kill my family."
Markus’ expression faltered. "Not exactly."
"Then what?"
"Marco isn’t your biological father."
Asli’s fists tightened. "Well, he raised me."
The words came out bitterly.
She looked toward the door.
If Marco had been standing in front of her now, she wasn’t sure she could stop herself.
Settimo caught the look in her eyes.
"Don’t."
She glared at him.
"I’d be damned if I lost you a second time," he said, his voice low. "Stay here."
Asli laughed bitterly.
"I thought you two didn’t want me. Whatever I do shouldn’t concern any of you."
Ruth stepped forward. "She’s not normally like this. I raised her myself. She’s not..."
"I am exactly like this!" Asli’s voice shattered the room.
Ruth fell silent.
"Mind your tone," Settimo warned.
Asli spun toward him.
"You locked me in a room!" Her chest rose sharply. "I’m not some damn monkey you can keep behind glass."
She pointed at him.
"Tell me how you’re any different from Marco."
Settimo’s face changed.
"Don’t you dare compare me to that animal."
His voice dropped dangerously.
"You have no idea what..."
"Enough!" Georgia’s voice cut through them.
Surprisingly, Asli froze.
Even Settimo.
Rosalia’s chest rose and fell rapidly. Tears slid down her cheeks as she looked from Asli to Settimo.
For once, there was strength in her eyes that her calm body could not express.
"Can’t we just be happy today?"
Her voice trembled.
"We found everyone we thought we’d lost."
She looked at Asli.
Then at Ruth.
Then at Georgia.
"We found our daughter."
Visit and read more novel to help us update chapter quickly. Thank you so much!
Use arrow keys (or A / D) to PREV/NEXT chapter