Chapter 9: The House Where I Lost Myself
The address on my phone belonged to a place I had never been.
That was what I told myself.
But my hands betrayed me.
Because the moment I saw those numbers on the screen, my body reacted before my mind could understand why.
My heart raced.
My breathing changed.
A memory tried to surface.
Not a complete memory.
A fragment.
A smell.
Rain against glass.
A wooden staircase.
A man’s voice saying my name.
Not Penelope.
Something else.
Something buried.
“Penelope.””
Larkin’s voice brought me back.
I looked up.
He was watching me carefully.
“What?””
“You know that place.””
It wasn’t a question.
I looked at the address again.
“I don’t.””
“You reacted before you read the whole message.””
I hated that he noticed everything.
Because he was right.
“I have never been there.””
Thomas stepped closer.
“That’s not possible.””
I looked at him.
“Why?””
“Because that house…”
He stopped.
“What?””
Thomas looked uncomfortable.
“The house belonged to Alexander Woods.””
The room went silent.
My father’s house.
The place I supposedly had never seen.
The place my mind was trying desperately to remember.
Larkin looked at me.
“You don’t have to go.””
The words surprised me.
After everything.
After all the secrets.
After all the lies.
I expected him to demand answers.
Instead, he said the one thing I didn’t expect.
“You don’t have to walk into a trap just because someone built it for you.””
I studied him.
“Is that what you would do?””
“Yes.””
The answer was immediate.
“I would walk into the trap.””
I almost smiled.
“That’s not comforting.””
“It wasn’t meant to be.””
For a second, the tension broke.
Then Daniel spoke.
“You don’t understand Alexander.””
Larkin turned.
“Neither do you.””
Daniel shook his head.
“No.””
He looked at me.
“But I understand what he does to people.””
My fingers tightened around my phone.
“What does he do?””
Daniel’s face became serious.
“He makes you believe you’re choosing.””
A pause.
“But every choice leads where he wants.””
Those words stayed with me.
Because they sounded familiar.
Like something my mother would say.
I looked at the screen again.
The address.
The invitation.
The threat.
Everything led there.
“I’m going.””
Larkin immediately said:
“No.””
I looked at him.
“Why?””
“Because he wants you alone.””
“I won’t be.””
“I’m coming with you.””
That surprised me.
“You think that’s a good idea?””
“No.””
“Then why?””
His eyes met mine.
“Because Alexander Woods has spent years trying to control your life.””
A pause.
“I’m not letting him control what happens next.””
Thomas laughed quietly.
“That’s almost noble.””
Larkin looked at him.
“Almost?””
Thomas shook his head.
“You’re starting to sound like your mother.””
The room froze.
Larkin’s expression changed.
“What did you say?””
Thomas looked away.
“Nothing.””
“No.””
Larkin stepped closer.
“You said my mother.””
Thomas didn’t answer.
I noticed it immediately.
The same reaction.
The same hesitation.
Everyone had secrets.
But Thomas had a specific kind of silence.
The kind belonging to someone who knew more than he admitted.
“What does my mother have to do with this?”” Larkin asked.
Thomas sighed.
“Your mother knew Alexander.””
Another secret.
Of course.
“Everyone knew everyone,” I whispered.
Nobody responded.
Because it was true.
My mother.
Larkin’s father.
Alexander.
Adrian.
All connected.
All hiding pieces of the same story.
An hour later, we arrived at the house.
It sat at the edge of the city, hidden behind tall iron gates and thick trees.
It wasn’t abandoned.
That was the first thing I noticed.
The lights were on.
Someone was expecting us.
The car stopped.
Nobody moved.
Finally, Larkin spoke.
“Stay behind me.””
I looked at him.
“You know I won’t.””
“I know.””
A small pause.
“That’s why I said it.””
We entered together.
The front door opened before we reached it.
No guard.
No lock.
No resistance.
Just an invitation.
Inside, everything was exactly as I imagined.
And that terrified me.
The wooden floors.
The staircase.
The old paintings.
The smell of the house.
My breath caught.
Because I remembered.
Not everything.
But enough.
I touched the wall.
A flash.
A little girl running down the hallway.
A woman laughing.
My mother.
Alive.
Happy.
Before everything changed.
“Penelope?””
I pulled my hand away.
Larkin noticed.
“What happened?””
“I’ve been here.””
The words came quietly.
Thomas looked at me.
“You’re sure?””
“Yes.””
A memory surfaced.
A room upstairs.
A red door.
My mother telling me not to open it.
I turned toward the staircase.
“The second floor.””
Larkin followed my gaze.
“What’s there?””
I swallowed.
“I don’t know.””
But I did.
Some part of me knew.
We walked upstairs.
Every step felt like walking through a dream someone else had written.
At the end of the hallway was the red door.
Exactly as I remembered.
My hand reached for the handle.
Then stopped.
A voice came from behind us.
“You always were curious.””
I froze.
Larkin immediately turned.
A man stood at the bottom of the stairs.
Alexander Woods.
My father.
For the first time, I saw him in person.
Not through a screen.
Not through someone else’s memories.
My father.
He looked older than I expected.
Not weak.
Not broken.
Powerful.
Controlled.
The kind of man who never needed to raise his voice.
Everyone in the room changed when he entered.
Even Larkin.
“Alexander,” Larkin said.
My father smiled.
“Still protecting people who don’t need protection?””
Larkin’s expression hardened.
“Still manipulating people who trusted you?””
Alexander ignored him.
His eyes stayed on me.
“Penelope.””
I hated how natural it sounded.
Like he had said it every day.
“You’re older.””
I stared.
“You know my name.””
A faint smile.
“I chose your name.””
The words made my stomach twist.
“My mother chose it.””
“No.””
He walked closer.
“Your mother changed it.””
The hallway felt colder.
“You’re lying.””
“Am I?””
He looked toward the red door.
“Ask yourself why you remember this house.””
I didn’t answer.
Because I already knew.
My memories weren’t gone.
They were locked away.
Alexander stopped at the bottom of the stairs.
“Your mother believed she could save you by hiding the truth.””
His expression darkened.
“She was wrong.””
“What happened to her?””
For the first time, something changed in his face.
Not guilt.
Not sadness.
Something harder.
“She betrayed me.””
My hands curled into fists.
“You tried to kill her.””
“No.””
The answer came instantly.
“I tried to stop her from destroying everything.””
“That’s the same thing.””
“No.””
He looked at me.
“It isn’t.””
Larkin stepped forward.
“Enough.””
Alexander glanced at him.
“You really don’t know, do you?””
“Know what?””
“That your father was never your enemy.””
Larkin went still.
Alexander smiled.
“Your father died trying to protect you from Adrian Vale.””
Nobody spoke.
Because that was impossible.
Or maybe…
It was the truth everyone had been avoiding.
Alexander looked back at me.
“Your mother told you I was dangerous because she needed you to hate me.””
“Why?””
“Because hate is easier to control than confusion.””
I felt anger rise.
“You don’t get to explain my life to me.””
“No.””
His voice softened.
“That’s why I brought you here.””
He pointed toward the red door.
“Inside that room is the truth your mother buried.””
Nobody moved.
Then Alexander said:
“The reason you became Penelope Woods.””
My hand moved toward the door.
Larkin grabbed my arm.
“Wait.””
I looked at him.
“Why?””
His expression was serious.
“Because once you open that door…”
A pause.
“There’s no going back.””
I looked at Alexander.
At the room.
At the life I had forgotten.
Then I opened the door.
Inside was a small bedroom.
A child’s bedroom.
On the wall were drawings.
Photographs.
Memories.
And in the center of the room was a wooden box.
With my name written on it.
Not Penelope Woods.
My real name.
A name I had never known.
I opened it.
Inside was a photograph.
My mother.
My father.
And me.
Standing between them.
But there was something else.
A letter.
I unfolded it.
Only one sentence was written.
My mother’s handwriting.
The final truth she had hidden from me.
*Penelope, if you are reading this, it means Alexander found you before I could tell you the truth.*
My hands shook.
I read the next line.
*He is not your father.*
I stopped breathing.
Behind me, Alexander whispered:
“She lied.””
I turned the page.
The rest of the letter was hidden beneath a stain.
Only one sentence remained visible.
*Your real father is the man who has been trying to protect you all along.*
Slowly…
Very slowly…
I looked up.
Because there was only one person in the room who had protected me from the beginning.
The man who hired me.
The man who saved my life.
May you like
The man who had been searching for answers beside me.
Larkin Steves.
