Adelina Gavrila was back.
At least, that's what the campus news article said, complete with a photo of her walking across the marble steps of the elite private university she had apparently attended before the accident. Her return sparked more whispers than any lecture ever had.
"She looks different."
"Wasn't she homeschooled most of her life?"
"I heard she almost died."
The attention felt suffocating.
Mira had tried to lighten the mood that morning.
"First day back in the academic colosseum," she said, fixing a pin in Adelina's coat. "Try not to faint under the weight of privilege."
Adelina offered a tight smile, but her mind was elsewhere. Nathan hadn't spoken a word about the "real mother" since that night. He'd left her with more questions than answers. Again.
But today, she had to play the role: the obedient daughter returning to her elite education.
The university was pristine, more museum than campus. Marble columns, ivy-covered walls, and students dressed in designer casual. Everyone seemed curated.
She was introduced back into her classes with formal emails and polite applause, as though she'd survived some glorious, Instagram-worthy war.
Her first class was political economics. The professor—a graying man in a three-piece suit—welcomed her with a knowing nod. He did not ask if she remembered the syllabus.
Adelina slid into her seat.
"Hey," a voice whispered beside her.
A girl with cropped black hair and dark lipstick leaned in. "You really don't remember me, do you?"
Adel paused. "Should I?"
The girl smiled faintly. "Not really. You weren't the talkative type. But you always looked like you were trapped under glass. Now you just look... cornered."
Adelina blinked. "What's your name?"
"Lina." She smirked. "Like yours, but less tragic."
There was something about Lina that felt honest in a way no one else here did.
Between classes, Adelina was swarmed with well-wishers, passive-aggressive compliments, and curious eyes. She kept her responses polite and vague.
"You're so lucky to be back."
"Your family must be thrilled."
"What's it like being a living legacy?"
She wanted to scream.
She ducked into the library, where silence offered her brief relief. As she walked the aisles, she noticed a table filled with photos of Gavrila Holdings events: ribbon cuttings, charity galas, conferences. All featuring Victor, Cassandra, and—occasionally—Adelina.
In every photo, she stood poised and silent. A porcelain doll placed for show.
Behind her, a familiar voice rang out.
"Enjoying the shrine?"
Cassandra stood with a sleek tablet under one arm, looking effortlessly powerful.
Adelina turned. "Did you come to monitor me?"
"No. I came to remind you that you're expected at the boardroom next Friday. You're sitting in on the next corporate review. Time to earn your place."
Adelina's stomach sank. "I didn't agree to that."
"You don't need to. The family's name is bigger than your choices."
Before Adelina could respond, another voice joined them.
"She doesn't owe the company anything."
Nathan.
He walked over, eyes locked on Cassandra. Students nearby stopped pretending not to listen.
Cassandra rolled her eyes. "Of course. The knight appears."
Nathan didn't smile. "She chooses her own future. She's not a pawn."
"You mistake privilege for freedom," Cassandra said coldly. "She was born into this. There is no 'choice' when your surname pays for the power you live on."
"She almost died," he snapped. "And no one asked her what she wanted before that either."
Adelina stood between them, stunned at the raw anger sparking in their voices.
Cassandra turned to Adelina. "Just remember: Nathan protects what he's afraid to lose. Not always what's right."
With that, she walked away, leaving an icy trail.
That evening, Adelina sat under a willow tree near the edge of campus, a spot Lina had shown her earlier. She tried to read, but her mind spun with expectations, memories that weren't hers, and questions that had no answers.
The wind picked up.
Her phone buzzed.
A message from Mira.
Nathan's waiting outside. He refused to send a driver.
Adelina sighed and packed her things.
Sure enough, Nathan stood next to his car, leaning against the door like a dark promise. His presence drew attention. Several girls nearby whispered.
"He's her brother?"
"Why does he look like he's about to murder someone?"
"Wait… aren't they a little too close?"
Adelina approached him slowly.
"You really didn't have to come."
Nathan opened the passenger door. "I wanted to."
She climbed in, and they drove in silence for a while. The city lights blurred through the tinted windows.
Finally, she spoke. "Why didn't you tell me about the board meeting?"
"I was going to. But I wanted to ask you first."
She looked at him. "Ask me what?"
"Do you want to be part of the company?"
Adelina stared out the window. "I don't even know who I am yet."
Nathan nodded. "Then we'll figure it out."
The car slowed as they approached the estate, but Nathan didn't turn into the gate.
"Where are we going?" she asked.
"I told you," he said quietly. "It's time you met her."
Adelina's blood turned to ice.
He drove past the Gavrila estate.
And down the road toward a part of the city she didn't recognize.
At the edge of the hills, he stopped in front of an old, gated property. The kind of place that had once been elegant but now stood forgotten.
Nathan turned to her.
"She's inside. And she's been waiting a long time to see you."
Adelina opened the car door, her hands shaking.
As they approached the gate, an old woman stepped onto the porch. Her eyes were the exact shade of Adelina's.
And in that moment, memory came rushing back—
A lullaby in that voice. A touch on her hair. A scream in the dark.
"Adelina," the woman said.
Adel froze.
Not because of the name.
But because of what the woman said next:
"You died in that room. I saw it."