Emma’s POV

The house had never felt so heavy before.

Even though the twins were back, safe and unharmed, a strange silence settled over our home, lingering in every corner, stretching between every conversation.

It wasn’t the comforting quiet of peace but the unsettling silence of wounds too deep to be seen.

Jason and Anna weren’t the same as well, I didn't expect them to be, if they were, I would be scared too.

They had always been energetic, filling the house with their endless chatter, their giggles bouncing off the walls, their feet constantly thudding against the wooden floors as they ran from room to room.

But now, they barely spoke unless spoken to.

They flinched at the slightest sound, their tiny hands gripping mine or Jeff’s whenever they were startled. At night, they screamed in their sleep.

The nightmares came more consistently, each one worse than the last. I would rush into their room, hold them close, whisper reassurances, but nothing seemed to help, I had never felt so lost in a long time. 

Jeff wasn’t doing any better. I caught him multiple times standing by their bedroom door at night, listening to their cries with his fists clenched, helplessness written all over his face.

It tore at me because Jeff was a man of action, a man who always found a solution but this? This was something he couldn’t fix with power, wealth, or strategy.

I tried to be strong for all of them, but deep down, I was drowning.

The weight of everything, of Sam’s actions, of what he had done to our children, of the pain he had left behind, it was all suffocating me. I could feel the words pressing against my chest, demanding to be spoken.

I had spent years avoiding the truth, keeping the past locked away, but now, maybe it was time. Maybe the only way to help Jason and Anna move forward was to finally tell them everything.

That night, after another round of nightmares, I made my decision. I walked into their room, where they lay curled up together, their small bodies shaking under the dim glow of the bedside lamp.

Jeff had been here earlier, holding them, calming them down, but tiredness had pulled him away. Now, it was just me and them.

I took a deep breath and sat on the edge of Jason’s bed, “Sweethearts, can we talk?”

Jason turned his head toward me, his eyes still heavy with sleep. Anna, half-awake, simply nodded.

“I know you’ve been scared,” I began gently, brushing a strand of hair from Anna’s face, “I know that what happened with Sam was terrifying and I hate that you had to go through it.”

Jason swallowed hard but said nothing.

I continued, my voice steady, “I think it’s time I tell you everything. The truth. About me, about Jeff and about Sam.”

Their eyes widened slightly but they remained silent, waiting.

I let out a slow breath, “A long time ago before you two were born, I married Jeff but it wasn’t the kind of marriage you hear about in fairy tales. It was arranged which means we didn’t fall in love before we got married. Things were difficult between us and for a while, we weren’t happy together.”

Jason shifted and Anna held onto her stuffed bunny a little tighter.

“At that time,” I went on, “Sam was working for Jeff. He was his assistant, so he was always around and because Jeff and I weren’t close, I spent a lot of time talking to Sam instead. He was kind to me and little by little, I thought he was someone I could trust.”

Jason frowned, “But he wasn’t?”

I shook my head, “No, he wasn’t. Something happened between us, something that made Jeff so angry that he decided to divorce me.”

Jason’s frown deepened, but he didn’t ask what that ‘something’ was, I was grateful for that.

“Then I found out I was pregnant,” I continued, “And I had thought that you were Sam's children so I told him and Sam believed that you two were his children but I was wrong. You were Jeff’s and when Sam found out the truth, he, he just couldn’t accept it.”

Anna finally spoke, her voice small, “Is that why he took us?”

I nodded, swallowing the lump in my throat, “Yes sweetheart. He thought you belonged to him and when he realized you weren't his children, he lost control.”

Jason was quiet for a long time. Then to my surprise, he sat up straighter and looked me in the eyes, “I’m glad Jeff is my dad and not Sam.”

My heart clenched, warmth spreading through my chest, “You are?”

He nodded firmly, “Jeff came for us. He fought for us and Sam, he hurt us.” He lowered his gaze, “I don’t ever want to be like him.”

Tears pricked at my eyes but I held them back. I reached out and cupped Jason’s cheek, “You never will be sweetheart. You and Anna are kind and strong, you are nothing like Sam.”

Anna let out a shaky breath and curled into my lap, “Can we sleep now?”

I smiled, brushing a kiss against her forehead, “Of course, baby.”

That night, for the first time since they had returned home, the twins slept peacefully.

A few days later, Jeff did something just as courageous.

He held a press conference.

Standing at the podium, facing a crowd of reporters eager for answers, he looked every bit the powerful CEO that he was but this wasn’t just about business. This was personal.

Jeff cleared his throat, the murmurs dying down as he adjusted the microphone, “I stand before you today not just as the head of Anderson Industries but as a man who has faced tremendous loss and hardship over the past few weeks.”

His voice was strong, unwavering, “Recently my family was targeted in a personal attack. Lies have been spread, my company’s reputation has been dragged through the mud and I have been accused of things that are not true.”

A few reporters leaned forward, eager for more.

“I want to set the record straight,” Jeff continued, “Yes I have a past. There were things I was once involved in that I am not proud of but I have spent years building a life I can be proud of. A family. A company. A future. The accusations against me were planned by a man who sought revenge and unfortunately, many people believed him.”

A woman from the front row raised her hand, “Are you saying Sam Newman was behind this?”

Jeff nodded, “Yes. Sam was the mastermind behind the recent scandals, the protests and even the personal attack on my family.”

The room buzzed with murmurs.

“But justice has been served,” Jeff declared, “And now, it is time to rebuild. To move forward.”

A few more questions came and Jeff answered them with ease, restoring the confidence of the investors and the public. By the time the press conference ended, the tide had shifted.

The doubts surrounding him and Anderson Industries were beginning to fade.

Later that night, as we sat together in the living room, watching the news coverage of his speech, I reached over and squeezed Jeff’s hand.

“You did it.” I whispered.

He turned to me, his blue eyes filled with something softer than usual, “We did it.”

And for the first time in weeks, I truly believed him.

^^^^^^^^

The house felt lighter. Not completely healed but lighter.

Since the night I finally told Jason and Anna the truth, things had begun to change. The twins still had moments where fear crept in but the nightmares weren’t as frequent, and the tension in their small shoulders wasn’t as rigid as before.

Little by little, they were beginning to heal and so was I.

Jeff’s press conference had done exactly what we had hoped, it turned the tide in his favor.

Investors were slowly returning, public opinion was shifting and for the first time in weeks, it felt like we weren’t constantly bracing for another storm.

I should have known that the moment peace started settling in, something else would come knocking at my door.

It was early afternoon when the doorbell rang.

I had just put Anna down for a nap and was about to start cleaning up the living room when the chime echoed through the house.

Jeff was out at the office and Jason was upstairs playing quietly in his room, so I was the only one available to answer it.

When I opened the door, I froze.

Standing there, looking out of place and hesitant, were my parents.

For a second, I thought I was imagining things. It had been months since I last saw them. Years since they had abandoned me to my fate, choosing wealth and power over their own daughter.

My mother, always so well-put-together, looked older. There were lines on her face that I didn’t remember and the usual sharpness in her eyes was dulled with something I couldn’t quite place. Regret? Guilt?

My father stood beside her, hands clenched at his sides, his usual commanding presence dimmed.

I didn’t move. Didn’t speak.

My mother was the first to break the silence, “Emma.”

I inhaled sharply, my grip tightening on the doorframe, “What are you doing here?” My voice wasn’t cold but it wasn’t welcoming either.

My father cleared his throat, “We saw Jeff’s press conference.”

I raised an eyebrow, “And?”

My mother took a step forward, hesitating before saying, “We Emma, we didn’t know, we didn’t know what you went through.”

I let out a humorless laugh, “No you didn’t because you never cared to ask.”

She flinched and for the first time in my life, I saw vulnerability in my mother’s eyes.

“We made a terrible mistake.” My father admitted.

His voice, which had always held so much authority, now carried an unfamiliar weight of regret, “We were so blinded by our own ambitions, by our greed, we never stopped to think about how much we were hurting you.”

I swallowed hard, my emotions a tangled mess inside me. A part of me had dreamed of this moment, of them finally realizing what they had done. But another part of me, the one that had suffered in silence for years, wasn’t sure how to process it.

My mother’s voice wavered, “Emma, we’re not asking you to forget what we did. We know we don’t deserve your forgiveness, but we want to try. We want to fix things.”

I looked between them, searching for any sign that this was another manipulation, another selfish attempt to benefit from my life but all I saw was remorse.

I crossed my arms, “You really think we can just fix things? After everything?”

“No,” my father admitted, “But we can try, if you’ll let us.”

Silence stretched between us.

I thought about everything they had done. How they had forced me into a marriage for their own gain. How they had abandoned me when I needed them most. How they had never once looked back.

But I also thought about everything I had learned over the past few weeks. Holding onto the past, letting bitterness consume me, it wouldn’t change anything.

I had seen firsthand what revenge did to people like Sam, I had lived through what hatred could turn a person into.

I wasn’t that person anymore, I refused to be.

I let out a slow breath, “I’m not ready to forgive you and I don’t know if I ever will, but if you’re serious about fixing things, then I’m willing to try.”

Relief washed over my mother’s face and for the first time in years, my father smiled, a small, sad smile, but a smile nonetheless.

“Thank you Emma,” my mother whispered, “That’s more than we deserve.”

I stepped aside, opening the door wider, “Come in.”

They still had a long way to go but maybe, just maybe, this was the beginning of something new.