OWNED BY A COLD HEART Episode 11 – The Fire Beneath the Ice
Rain still pattered on the windows of Damian Voss's sleek black car as it cut through the night. The city lights blurred behind the glass, like fragments of a life Liana once knew. Inside, the silence was thick. Not the kind that begged for noise, but the kind that knew its own weight.
Liana's hand remained under Damian's, her fingers barely moving.
"You're quiet," he said finally.
She looked out the window. "I'm trying to understand if this is real. Or if I'm going to wake up and find myself back in the café, tying aprons and avoiding eye contact."
Damian's lips twitched, not quite a smile. "It's real. As real as the lies they built your life on."
She turned to him. "I don't know how to be this person. The girl with a powerful family. A sister I never knew. A... truth that feels like fiction."
He met her gaze. "Then be the person you've always been. No name can change that."
Her heart stuttered. "And what about you, Damian? Who are you without the empire?"
He looked away. "A man with blood on his hands. And a mother who taught me never to bleed in public."
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The Easton Estate – Morning
Celeste Easton stood in front of the long mirror in her room, a silk robe hugging her frame. Her eyes were shadowed by sleeplessness, but her posture remained flawless.
On her dresser lay the baby photo. The locket. The truth.
She stared at her reflection and whispered, "She's my sister."
A knock came.
Isobel entered, more composed than usual. "You didn't come to breakfast."
"Wasn't hungry."
"That's rare."
Celeste turned. "She knows."
Isobel didn't flinch. "So do you. What now?"