Chapter 269 Truth(2)
"Of course. They love you dearly. They gave you to me because it would keep you and your brother safe. I did my best to raise you, and I enjoyed every minute of it. I still see you as a daughter," Benjamin told her with a gentle smile.
Melina had to look away from him. She appreciated the sentiment, but she was still upset about being lied to. They could've trusted her with the truth earlier instead of waiting until they were forced to admit it to her.
"And Tyler?" she asked him.
"When your parents found out about the attack, they worried that it had something to do with the demon. They sent Tyler to the school to look after you in case there was another attack," Benjamin explained.
"Well, there was," Melina muttered under her breath. Tyler did his job. Was everything part of the job to him? "The demon made some witch befriend me to scope me out. Then, she tried to kill me. Tyler attacked her, but she ran off."
"You should come home. It'll be safer," Benjamin suggested.
Melina shook her head.
"I don't want to go. I want to finish here and then figure out what to do next," she said. Maybe she would see her real parents, but she wasn't ready for that yet. She needed some time to process everything first. "You can tell Tyler to leave."
"Is he rude to you or something?" Benjamin asked, narrowing his eyes slightly.
Melina sighed, her shoulders sagging.
"No, I... fell for him. Now, I'm thinking every nice thing he did for me was because of the job instead of his actual feelings," she said quietly.
Benjamin scooted a foot closer to her.
"Talk to him. He was only instructed to watch you. He chose to talk to you on his own accord," he replied.
Melina's eyes grew a few centimeters in surprise. She didn't know that. He had definitely gone out of his way to do some things that hadn't been required of him.
She didn't want to get her hopes up, but she did want to talk to him and hear him out. If she wanted all of her questions to be answered, she had to listen for them.
"If he stays with me, can I stay here and finish?" she asked him.
Benjamin thought for a moment before nodding.
"Yes, just be careful. I'll be there for your graduation. Do you want me to invite your real parents?" he asked gently.
Melina chewed on her bottom lip for a few moments before shaking her head.
"I don't know yet. I'm not sure when I'll be ready to see them," she admitted.
"That's okay. They would want you to be comfortable first," Benjamin replied.
Melina didn't say anything at first before looking over at him.
"Who was that woman that you said was my mother?" she asked. She knew that it was a random question, but she couldn't help her own curiosity.
Benjamin smiled sadly.
"My fiancé. She passed away a couple of years ago before you were born. I was so distraught... we wanted our own family, our own happy life. I never got to have a child with her, but I'm grateful I was able to raise one at all," he said.
Melina felt her heart ache. She reached out and placed her hand on his. All of these people had been trying to protect her and her brother. They must've really cared to go through all of these lengths to protect them.
"I'm sorry about your fiancé. she told him.
Benjamin nodded before giving her hand a squeeze.
"After graduation, you should probably disappear for a little while. Get the demon off your trail.
I know you want to see your brother, but he's doing good living his own life. He doesn't need to be dragged into this until absolutely necessary," he said to her.
Melina frowned, but she nodded, understanding where he was coming from. If she and her brother found each other, someone could sense their power. They would attract the demon, and she didn't want to disrupt his life.
"I won't find him," she promised, even if it pained her to say that. Maybe it was for the best for him to not know anything. He could live his life blissfully unaware of the hard truth.
"You should go see Tyler," Benjamin told her.
Melina sighed, knowing that he was right. She had her talk with Benjamin. Now, she had to clear the air with Tyler. She wanted to hear from his side.
"Alright. Thank you for coming all the way here," she said as she rose to her feet. It helped that Benjamin came here to talk to her directly.
She was still uneasy about everything, but at least she had a full picture to look at now. Things made more sense to her, even if the circumstances weren't all that great.
She and her brother couldn't help that they were born to be powerful. They couldn't even be together because a power-hungry demon would kill anyone that had nearly as much power. It wasn't fair, but those were the cards that they had been dealt. She still had to play them.
"Of course. If you need anything, call me. I'm here for you," Benjamin told her as he placed his hand on her shoulder.
Melina nodded, believing him. He had been there for her for years. She didn't believe that he would stop now when she needed him the most.
She hugged him goodbye and then watched him leave, hoping that things would turn out for the best, even if the circumstances weren't the best that they could be.
Blair was still out there, and there was no telling what she would do next. She did say that she would see Melina soon, which worried her, but there was nothing that she could do about that now.
What she could do was go see Tyler and clear things up with him. She began the day with a man that she could see herself spending the rest of her life with, but she wasn't sure if she would end the day on the same note.
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