Chapter 3 Broken Glass and Buried Lies

Two Days Later - Leontes Corp, Private Lounge

Aria stared at the ultrasound photo tucked in her desk drawer.

Three years ago, she'd held a life inside her. A piece of Damien. A son.

He never knew.

She never told him.

Because by the time the test turned positive, the papers had already been signed.

"No contact," his lawyer had said coldly.

"Let the past die quietly."

And so she had.

Her heart. Her child. Her identity.

She buried it all.

But not anymore.

Now, her child was everything. And Damien was going to suffer-for what he threw away without ever knowing what it truly cost.

Elsewhere - Damien's Private Office

Damien hadn't slept.

Aria's reappearance had reopened a wound he didn't know was still bleeding.

He sat at his desk, scrolling through security camera footage from that gala night. He froze the frame on her face-Aria, smiling at someone across the ballroom. That same calculating smile.

But the man next to her wasn't just anyone.

Leo Moretti.

European banking tycoon. Ruthless. Vicious. Aria's supposed "advisor."

Damien clenched his jaw.

Was she with him now? Was that who replaced him?

Just then, a text buzzed.

From: Unknown Number

"You want the truth about Aria? Start with who really betrayed you three years ago."

Below the message was a single name: Ava Sinclair.

Damien's former executive assistant.

And Aria's former best friend.

Flashback – The Night Before the Divorce

"Ava, where's Aria?" Damien asked, frustrated. "I need her to explain this."

Ava had looked nervous, eyes shifting. "She left. Said she needed space. I wouldn't trust her, Damien... she's been acting strange for weeks."

She handed him a USB.

"I found this in her laptop."

Damien had stared at the files, then back at Ava. "You're sure?"

She nodded. "I just want to protect you."

Present Day - Aria's Apartment

Leo stood beside Aria, sipping espresso. "Damien's getting suspicious. He's digging."

"I want him to," Aria said, pulling her hair into a sleek ponytail.

Leo raised an eyebrow. "That wasn't the plan."

She turned. "The plan changes."

He walked over, voice lower. "Are you sure you can handle this, Aria? Because when the truth about your child comes out-"

Her voice cut him off. "He doesn't get to know until I decide he's earned it."

Leo looked at her like he pitied her. "Revenge doesn't bring peace."

"No," she said. "But justice might."

Later That Evening - Ava Sinclair's Apartment

Damien knocked twice before the door opened.

Ava froze.

"Damien?"

"We need to talk."

She hesitated before stepping aside. "This about Aria?"

He walked in. "She's back. And now I think... I might've been wrong."

Ava sat down slowly, guilt flickering across her face.

He leaned forward. "That USB-where did it really come from?"

Ava's hands trembled. "I didn't mean for it to go that far. I just... I loved you, Damien. She had everything."

He stared at her. "You framed her?"

Ava swallowed. "She was always going to leave you for power. I just helped her do it first."

Silence.

Damien stood, the weight of realization crashing into him like a wave.

"I destroyed her for nothing."

The Next Morning - Aria's Penthouse

Aria's phone buzzed.

Damien: We need to talk. In person. No games.

She stared at the message. She should have felt satisfaction.

Instead, there was something sharper. Something she hadn't planned for.

Regret.

She typed a reply. "Meet me at 8. No lies this time."

That night, Aria entered the rooftop bar where they first met six years ago.

He was already there.

He looked... different. Haunted.

"I know what I did," he said as soon as she approached. "And I know who really set you up."

She didn't answer.

"I also know... there was something else you never told me."

He handed her a folder.

Inside was a DNA request.

"A child?" he whispered. "Aria... is he mine?"

Aria's breath caught.

Damien's eyes locked on hers.

"Tell me the truth."

To be continued...