The clock on the wall ticked past 2 AM. Julius lay in bed, staring at the ceiling. Every time he closed his eyes, he saw that red toy car. It was sitting on his nightstand now, a small, dusty piece of a past he couldn’t reach.

The mystery was eating at him. He felt like a stranger in his own house, a man with a hole in his head where a decade of history should be.

He couldn’t stay in bed anymore. The air in his room felt too thin, still carrying that ghostly scent of Harrison that refused to wash away.

Julius stood up and pulled on a sweatshirt. He opened his door quietly.

The hallway was dark and silent.

He made his way down the stairs, avoiding the steps he knew would creak.

He wasn’t heading for the kitchen.

He was heading for the east wing.

His mother’s private study was off-limits. She kept it locked, and the staff were told never to clean it unless she was present.

Julius reached the door and tried the handle.

Locked.

He didn’t want to break it, but he was desperate.

He reached above the door frame, feeling along the narrow ledge until his fingers brushed against a cold piece of metal. He had seen his mother hide a spare key there years ago.

He grabbed it, slid it into the lock, and stepped inside.

The room smelled like old paper and his mother’s perfume.

Files were stacked on the desk, and the walls were covered in business awards.

Julius ignored the papers on the desk.

He went straight for the filing cabinets in the corner.

He searched for his name. He searched for anything that had to do with Harrison on it.

He found nothing.

No hospital bills. No police reports.

It was as if he was just wasting his time being in this office.

"Where is it?" he whispered, his frustration growing. "How is there nothing?"

He sat in her chair and looked at the desk.

There was a single drawer in the center with a hidden catch.

He pressed it, and the drawer popped open with a soft click.

Inside, there were no medical files.

Instead, there was a single photograph.

Julius picked it up.

The edges were yellow.

In the photo, two men were standing in front of a building. One was his father, younger and laughing, with his arm around the shoulder of another man.

The second man had the same dark hair and piercing eyes as Harrison. 𝒻𝘳ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝒷𝘯ℴ𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝑐ℴ𝑚

They looked like brothers.

Julius flipped the photo over.

In neat handwriting, it said: Partners for life.

"Partners," Julius breathed. "He was there. They were always there."

"It’s late, Julius."

Julius jumped, nearly dropping the photo.

His mother was standing in the doorway.

She was wrapped in a black robe, her face a mask of cold calm. She didn’t look angry; she looked like she was expecting him.

"Who is this man, Mom?" Julius demanded, holding up the photo. "Why is he not in any of the stories you told me? Why did I have to find this in a hidden drawer?"

His mother walked into the room, but she didn’t turn on the lights.

She stayed in the shadows.

"That is Lorenzo Moretti. Harrison’s father. They were business partners. That’s all."

"That’s not all!"

Julius stepped toward her.

"I found a toy car on my bed today. A car I know is tied with my memories, but I have no memory of where it came from. I have no memory of this man or his son. Why have you kept them away from me for twenty-five years?"

"I haven’t kept anyone away," she said, her voice like ice. "Something happened and we lost everything. People move on, Julius. The Morettis went their way, and we went ours."

"Then why is Harrison back?" Julius shouted. "Why are you pushing me toward him? Why does he act like he owns my past?"

His mother walked over and snatched the photo from his hand.

She didn’t answer.

She just stared at the picture for a long moment before locking it back in the drawer.

"You’re imagining things because you’re stressed," she said, her back to him. "Harrison is a powerful businessman. He’s helping our family. That is the beginning and the end of it."

"You’re lying," Julius said. "I can see it. You’re terrified of him."

She turned around then, and for a split second, the mask slipped.

Julius saw a flash of pure, raw fear in her eyes.

But it wasn’t fear of a businessman.

It was the fear of someone keeping a secret that was starting to bleed out.

"I am tired, Julius," she said, her voice shaking. "Go to bed. Stop digging for ghosts. There is nothing in this room for you but old paper."

"Tell me the truth, Mom. Just once."

"The truth is that you are alive and you are safe," she snapped. "Some things are taken from us for a reason. If you keep looking for things you aren’t meant to remember, you won’t like what you find. You aren’t strong enough for the truth yet."

"I’m an Alpha!" Julius yelled. "Stop treating me like I’m broken!"

"Then act like one and go to sleep!" she yelled back.

She stood by the door, waiting for him to leave.

Julius stared at her, his heart hammering in his chest.

He realized then that she would never tell him. She was a vault, and she had buried the keys a long time ago.

Julius walked past her without another word.

But as he went down the dark hallway, he knew one thing for sure.

His mother wasn’t just hiding the past.

She was protecting Harrison.

And for the first time, Julius realized that the biggest ghost in the house wasn’t his father—

It was Harrison.

Whoever was playing with him wanted him to know the truth.

It was time to stop chasing shadows and throw every secret directly in Harrison’s face.​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​