Chapter 10: The Smile of the Man Who Took Everything
Damian Cross stood in the doorway like he had never left.
That was the first thing that terrified me.
Not the fact that he found us.
Not the fact that he walked into the house like he owned it.
It was the calm.
The same calm he always had.
The same smile.
The same perfectly controlled expression.
Seventeen years ago, I would have trusted that smile.
Now I knew better.
“Bear,” Damian said.
His voice carried through the room.
Almost friendly.
Almost warm.
I stepped in front of Eli.
“You shouldn’t be here.””
Damian looked past me.
At Maya.
At Marcus.
At the boy standing beside his mother.
His eyes stopped on Eli.
And for the first time, the smile disappeared.
Only for a second.
But I saw it.
Recognition.
Fear.
“You found him.””
The words were quiet.
I felt my hands tighten.
“You knew.””
Damian looked back at me.
“Knew what?””
I laughed once.
A cold, empty sound.
“You always did that.””
“Did what?””
“Pretended you didn’t understand.””
The room was silent.
Damian stepped inside.
Marcus immediately moved.
“Don’t.””
Damian looked at him.
“Still protecting him?””
Marcus’s face hardened.
“You don’t get to say that.””
Damian smiled slightly.
“That’s exactly what I told myself for years.””
I stared at him.
“What did you want?””
Damian looked around the small house.
“Honestly?””
He sighed.
“I wanted you to stop digging.””
My eyes narrowed.
“Digging?””
“Yes.””
He looked at the photograph in my hand.
“The past.””
A chill moved through me.
“You buried my past.””
“No.””
Damian shook his head.
“You buried yourself.””
The words hit something deep.
Because they sounded like something Marcus had said.
The man I was before was gone.
But Damian wasn’t saying it with regret.
He was saying it like he had planned it.
Maya stepped forward.
“You ruined our lives.””
Damian looked at her.
“I saved yours.””
Her expression changed.
“Don’t.””
“I kept you alive.””
“You destroyed everything.””
Damian’s jaw tightened.
“You don’t know what you’re talking about.””
“I know exactly what happened.””
Maya’s voice shook.
“You crashed his motorcycle.””
The room froze.
Damian didn’t move.
Not even a little.
And that was the answer.
I stepped forward.
“You did it.””
Damian looked at me.
“I made a mistake.””
My stomach turned.
“A mistake?””
He looked almost annoyed.
“I never intended for you to forget everything.””
Marcus moved.
“You almost killed him.””
Damian looked at him.
“And you almost ruined everything by trying to save him.””
The anger between them was immediate.
Years of hatred.
Years of secrets.
I looked between them.
“You two knew each other.””
Neither answered.
That was enough.
“You both were involved.””
Marcus shook his head.
“No.””
Damian smiled.
“Tell him.””
Marcus looked away.
I felt something crack inside me.
“Tell me.””
Marcus closed his eyes.
“I worked with Damian.””
The words were quiet.
But they destroyed everything.
I stared.
“What?””
“Before the crash.””
My voice dropped.
“You helped him?””
“I thought I was helping the business.””
The anger rose.
“You helped him take my life.””
Marcus looked at me.
“I didn’t know what he planned.””
Damian laughed softly.
“Still telling himself that.””
Marcus turned.
“You manipulated everyone.””
“And you let me.””
The room became silent.
Eli looked confused.
Scared.
I hated that he was hearing this.
I hated that his first memories of finding his father were filled with betrayal.
I walked toward Damian.
“Why?””
He looked at me.
“Why what?””
“Why me?””
For the first time, his expression changed.
Something darker appeared.
“You really don’t remember.””
I hated those words.
“I remember enough.””
“No.””
Damian stepped closer.
“You don’t remember what you did to me.””
I frowned.
“What are you talking about?””
His smile disappeared.
“Before the shop. Before Maya. Before everyone called you a hero.””
He pointed at me.
“You ruined my life.””
The accusation shocked me.
“I don’t know you.””
“You did.””
His voice became sharper.
“You just forgot.””
A memory flashed.
A courtroom.
A young Damian.
A broken family.
A newspaper.
Gone before I could hold onto it.
I grabbed my head.
Pain exploded.
Maya rushed toward me.
“Bear?””
I stepped back.
“No.””
Damian watched.
“You feel it, don’t you?””
I looked at him.
“What did you do?””
He smiled again.
“I didn’t erase your memory.””
A pause.
“Someone else did.””
The room went still.
“Who?””
Damian looked at Marcus.
Then at Maya.
Then finally at Eli.
“The same person who has been watching all of you.””
The lights suddenly went out.
Again.
A sound came from upstairs.
A footstep.
Everyone froze.
May you like
Damian whispered:
“He’s here.””
