Chapter 34: Chapter 34

SCARLETT’s POV

I just stared at him for a few minutes and caressed his face before getting up to go home and pack our belongings. I need to carry out my plans.

Before I returned home from the mansion, I turned to Dominic, who was sleeping soundly, but I discovered something different.

Mom and dad’s argument, and what I heard from them, was the truth.

That’s why my mom’s behavior toward Sophia when she discovered what had happened to me, and my revelations about my relationship with Dominic.

I want to keep everything hidden until it clear the mess-up, but this is not what I expected…

I thought everything would be fine, but things between me and my family only got worse.

And, Sophia was my daddy’s illegitimate child, which means he cheated on mom.

“Scarlett?”

Why does this have to happen? Why am I still confused by what is going on?

“Scarlett!”

I blinked and turned to face Carter.

“We’re here.”

When I turned around outside, I saw we had arrived at Claire’s house.

“Are you certain you’re here with Claire?” he asked. I nodded. “I have another house where you and your children can stay for now because it’s safer there.”

I just shook my head and smiled at Carter.

“I’ll bother you with what you’re doing, brother; it’s better for us to be here with Claire,” I said. He sighed and nodded.

“You know you’re not bothering me, Scarlett,” he said as he went down first to put our belongings down.

I looked at my children, who had dozed off during the trip.

“I’ll carry Agustin.”

I nodded and picked up Carrie before exiting the car.

“Oh, my gosh! Scarlett! It surprised me when Carter called me and asked me to stay here!” Claire yelled as she saw me. “Come in! Guard, open the gate!”

Claire’s guards unlocked the gate, and we entered.

“What happened? You wouldn’t have come here if there weren’t a problem,” said Claire. I smiled because she knows when I'm in trouble.

“What a damn life,” I smirked, and Claire frowned before turning to Carter, as if he didn’t notice his surroundings.

“Tell me, okay?” Claire even motioned for me to tell her what had happened.

I winced but nodded because I knew she wouldn’t stop asking me questions.

We entered Claire’s mansion and proceeded to the guest room. I put Carrie and Agustin on the bed and adjusted their sheets.

“We’re fine here, brother,” I said as I stroked my children’s hair.

“Okay, call me if you need anything; I’m fixing everything in San Martín.”

I just nodded and hugged Carter before taking him outside. I just waved at him as he drove away from the mansion.

Furthermore, I sighed and turned to go inside, but Claire stopped me.

“What now?” she asked, as if she was waiting for my story to be revealed to her.

I sighed because I don’t think the night will end unless I tell her.

She drew me to the sofa, and I just laughed at what Claire was doing. I leaned back on the sofa and looked up.

“As much as I’ve learned, I don’t know where to start.” I rubbed my head.

“Ah, wait…” Claire smirked and raised her hand. “It’s better to talk when there’s wine!”

She smiled as she placed the wine on the table.

“Claire?!? I think you were expecting me to come here!” I yelled, surprised by what she did. She smirked and summoned her maid.

“Two glasses, Mother Melinda! Add some ice, and then you can cook our food.”

Mother Melinda smiled and nodded, so I smiled back.

“Claire!” I yelled, shaking my head because it appeared she was planning to get me drunk.

She smirked. “It’s our night!”

I sighed and shook my head. She never grew up.

“Tell me what happened, and why did you even consider leaving the mansion?”

I took the glass that mother Melinda had placed on the table and filled it with ice and wine while staring at the bottle of wine.

“Where do I start? I still can’t wrap my head around everything I’ve learned,” I said as I drank some wine.

“What did you discover?”

I leaned back on the sofa, staring at the glass in my hand.

“That I am aware of Grandma’s death.”

Claire’s eyes widened. “W-what?!”

I smirked and sipped the wine from my glass once again.

“It’s surprising, isn’t it? I thought grandma died of illness, and I thought grandma had a serious illness. That’s why she died, but the truth is it killed her,” I said, pausing when eyes filled with tears up in my eyes, which I wiped away.

“I see, the Knights made it public that Lady Josephine died because of a serious illness,” said Claire as she sipped her wine. “All of your subordinates it saddened by the news, but the truth is it killed her, which is why our family it surprised by Lady Josephine’s death.”

I gripped the glass tightly.

“I knew something about what happened before, but because of the trauma of the tragedy, they chose for me to forget everything,” I said as I drank the wine Claire had refilled in my glass.

She frowned and looked at me as if she were confused, so I nodded because it was true.

“How did you know anything about what happened when you were so young?”

I looked at her and leaned back against the sofa.

“Yeah, I was young back then, but I remember when the Knights had an event, but I didn’t go because grandma didn’t go either, so I stayed behind because she didn’t have anyone in the mansion.” I smiled again and sipped the wine.

“Then, boom. That’s all I remember, but I have nightmares from the past that I’m uncertain if it happened or if it’s the memory I forgot.” I touched my forehead not because I was right, but because what I discovered has made my head ache even more.

“The more I try to remember everything, the more my head splits open,” I said as I sipped another glass of wine.

“It’s difficult, Claire, and I’m not sure where to start, with my family or with justice for Ken or those I should know.” I shook my head. “I’m struggling because I’m still confused, and I guess Sophia is right that I shouldn’t come back here.”

Claire raised an eyebrow. “Don’t pay attention to that b-tch!” she yelled. I laughed and drank more wine.

“This is not what I want for my family, Claire; I went with Dominic to escape trouble, to escape the world of the Knights.” I clenched my fist. “I want to continue in the real world, but that’s not happening because the longer it goes on, the more chaotic everything becomes; I would like to protect my family, but I'm not sure what to prioritize.”

I covered my mouth and started crying. Claire rubbed my back as she sat next to me.

“Just cry. You know I’ll never leave you. I’m right here.”

I hugged her and sobbed quietly.

“I-I’m getting tired…”

Claire rubbed my back, and I wiped my tears away before smiling at her.

“It’s not over yet, Claire, because I found Sophia is an illegitimate child,” I said. I nodded as her eyes widened.

“F-ck?!?”

I smirked. “She’s daddy's illegitimate child, which means dad cheated on mom back then because he thought he and mom would never have a child, and Sophia results from his sin.” I drank wine once again. “I didn’t think dad could do that to mom, which is why there’s such an enormous gap between them, and why I always hear them fighting because of my half-sister and me.”

“That bitch!”

As tears streamed down my cheeks, I laughed.

“Being a knight is still in her blood, but even if the world turns upside down, she is still a child of sin.” I bit my lower lip and bowed.

“I see…”

I came to a halt and looked at her. Is there anything she knows about Sophia?

“I remember that day, …. high school days, I saw Sophia always talking to someone outside the campus, a woman who also looks rich,” Claire said, and I frowned.

“Oh, don’t look at me like that friend; I wasn’t sure who she was talking to back then, so I wasn’t paying attention because I might make a mistake.”

I shook my head because she’s never told me.

“I’m not sure who that is, TSK!”

“Perhaps that’s her real mother.”

“I’m not convinced. She’s still ugly!”

I shook my head and laughed. Because Claire has always been annoyed with Sophia for reasons, but I don't know her reasons.

“Oh, and what are you going to do?” asked Claire. I smirked after looking up, as if thinking.

“I’m leaving and going to San Martín to get away because I can’t move here; Brother Carter is fixing the Knights’ property and will transfer it to my name, so I need your help.”

I hold her hand because she doesn’t seem to like what I’m about to do.

“You will be my eyes here, hacking all the CCTVs on San Martín and then giving me the code; I need to do this alone because I don’t want anyone else to be harmed,” I said.

“I’m also afraid that what Ken said about them taking my children will come true, so I’ll do what I want before they can get ahead of me.”

She let go of my hand and stood up. “No way! Take me with you! I’ll help you! I don’t want you to suffer alone! Fighting them doesn’t seem easy either!”

Before I looked at Claire again, I looked around in case someone heard us.

“I know who they are, but I want to enter their lair to find out what their next move against my family will be, but not as a Knight, but as another person,” I said as I took Claire’s hand again. “I understand how you feel, but for now, I’d like to go it alone, and I’ll call you when I need your help.”

She winced at me and averted her gaze, as if she couldn’t stand me.

“I also know that if my cousins find out, they won’t be able to relax until they can join the party, TSK.” I rolled my eyes, imagining what I’d do if my other cousins found out.

Claire sighed and walked over to the table to gather her belongings. She put the laptop in front of me.

“I’m sure you’ve heard of Solen Madrid; this is what Carter made me work on; this is the only time I learned the name of their group and the tattoo they have like Ken’s,”

It focused me in front of her laptop when she pressed something, and Solen Madrid’s information showed up. Which I also had from Carter.

“Solen Madrid is simply hiding in the shadows, and you can only hear her voice, as Ken stated.”

I nodded because Carter had told me so.

“There is a fake Solen Madrid where she pretended to ruin your and other Knights’ businesses.” I nodded once again. “Let me show you something,”

Claire played a clip while I frowned. When I saw the fake Solen Madrid sitting on the chair, my eyes widened.

“Don’t tell me you abducted her?”

She laughed and smirked. “Do we look like kidnappers?”

I shook my head and concentrated on a video.

“Yes, I am the pretending Solen Madrid; I don’t even know who she is; I only hear her voice.”

“I don’t want to do this, but I have no choice because they are holding my children and have also killed my husband, so I have no choice but to do it. Please help me, even if it’s just my children because I know I’ll be gone at the end of this video.”

“This tattoo on my arm symbolizes their group; Solen is his right hand because they have a mastermind.”

“I’ve never seen that person, and their lair is in San Martín; please help me; this is my last confession.”

I was stunned after watching the video. According to what she told me, they also threatened her in the same way that Ken was. They also used her.

“Someone just sent this to my email a while ago, and I thought it was nothing, but I was also surprised that it was a fake Solen Madrid video,” she said, looking at me. “Wherever you go, they will be there, so take me with you because it looks like you will have a difficult time fighting them. They have many killed people.”

I clenched my fists at what I learned from the impostor Solen Madrid, but I’m even more eager to enter their lair.

Claire showed me a tattoo.

When I saw the tattoo, I held my head up because images were flashing through my mind. Damn it!

“Are you okay, Scarlett?”

I raised my hand to say I’m fine and took a deep breath because my head was hurting again, and I was seeing images.

“That tattoo belongs to the person who killed my grandmother.”

My memory of that person’s face is blurry, but I remember a large tattoo on his chest.

“Based on what I discovered, I prefer to stick to my plan; I shouldn’t put it off any longer.”

Claire came to a halt and sighed. “Get some rest.”

I shook my head because the enemy continues to move again.

“Don’t worry, I’m fine,” I said. She shook her head and shut down her laptop.

“Rios…” I turned to Claire. “Someone is hanging around his house, but he seems to be aware of it.”

I knew it. Rios, who knows everything, will almost certainly kill him as well.

“But don’t worry, Rios can handle himself.”

“Even so! Our enemy is strong! TSK.” I clenched my fist. If they involved my cousins, they will recognize me by how I move.

I stood up and grabbed Claire’s shoulder. “Save the information, Claire, I’m going to rest,” I said as I walked up to my children’s room.

I even looked at my children and sat next to them, kissing them on the cheek.

“I will protect you, but mom will leave for now because I need to do something.”

I stroked their hair and stood up to look for my belongings.

This time, I’m bringing back Scarlett from before. I’ll put it back where it belongs.

***

RIOS’ POV

“I can't believe Sophia is an illegitimate child!”

“It’s a good thing Uncle Vernon kicked her out.”

“Scarlett was at Claire’s mansion; let’s go because I think she has a plan.”

“Yeah!! Let’s go tomorrow! We still know nothing! Only brother Carter and Rios do!”

When they looked at me, I raised my eyebrows because I was familiar with those expressions.

“Don’t make us fools! You know something! If you keep it from us, we’ll be like others!”

I grimaced. “You just want to join the party, TSK! For now, let Scarlett do what she can for all of us,” I explained.

“No, our enemy is powerful; Scarlett cannot do it alone!”

I exhaled a sigh. “I know, but for now... Scarlett wants to be alone; let us just understand her feelings, especially given what she found.”

They were all silent and thinking.

I know Scarlett would like to go it alone, but we will not agree. She is the one who should be protected. Our parents had also informed us.

Scarlett is the person who’s not abandoned because that was our grandmother’s wish before she died.

Scarlett Venice is a miracle baby, so it chose her to replace Grandpa, but everything changed when he chose Sophia. TSK!

“Rios is right; what we all know is difficult for Scarlett, especially since her family is involved,” said Erin as he patted my shoulder.

“I, too, believe there is something wrong with what is going on.” said Arthur, frowning as our cousins agreed.

Did they only realize this now? Something was clearly wrong from the start.

“So you’ve realized…”

We turned to look at our older cousin.

“Brother!”

Carter gave a nod and placed something on the table.

“Would you like to help Scarlett?”

“Of course!” says everybody.

He smirked and took out his belongings. “Scarlett has a plan to enter the enemy's den to get close to them and learn about their next moves in our family; I transferred the Knights’ property in San Martín to her name, but as another person.”

They came to a halt, but they were clearly interested in what Brother Carter had to say.

“Before that, there will be an event that Scarlett and the chairperson are unaware of, but I know it’s a trap for the Knights; what we do to we will trap them in their event.”

I whistled and smirked.

“The Madrid Enterprise?”

Carter gave a nod. “Prepare the event; I’ll take care of talking to Scarlett because she won’t be here long… She’s leaving for San Martín,” he said before leaving the quarters.

“F-ck! It’s time to party.”

I smirked and exited the quarters, but I ran into Carter, who was getting into his car.

“Be careful, someone will kill you,” he warned before leaving.

I’m not stupid, brother, to not know that, TSK.

I simply got in my car and drove home.

They will be unable to defeat me because they will be up against a Rios Knight.