Ashley and Lucian continued talking about precious memories from the past. They laughed, shook their heads, and occasionally shared details that surprised the other.

Then came one revelation that completely stunned Ashley.

Some of the street children they used to know had ended up in Dominion.

And Lucian had personally recruited them.

"What?!" Ashley shot upright, eyes wide.

"No way!" she exclaimed, shaking her head. "Absolutely not. How?!"

Lucian chuckled as he sat up, resting an arm over one knee. The amusement on his face was obvious.

This was exactly the reaction he had expected.

Ashley narrowed her eyes suspiciously and leaned closer.

"Really?" she asked quietly. "You mean to tell me that bully rascal is... Lukas?"

Her mouth fell open. She quickly covered it with both hands.

Ashley and Lucian had mostly stayed together, but they had also been part of a loose group of street children.

Unless someone had lived that life, they wouldn’t understand that even street children had their own rules and hierarchy.

Although Ashley and Lucian moved from place to place, the last area they stayed in together was where they spent the longest time. There were more opportunities there.

And in that area lived one particular troublemaker Ashley remembered all too well.

Looking back, all she could remember was a snot-faced kid with tangled hair who laughed like a villain and constantly picked fights.

For a moment, her mind went blank.

"No way that’s him," she muttered.

Then she turned to Lucian. "Didn’t you two fight all the time?"

Sure, Ashley often fought with that rascal too. But that was because he constantly picked on Lucian.

And Ashley had never been the type to stay quiet when someone bullied her friend, especially when Lucian couldn’t speak back then.

Lucian tilted his head slightly. A strange look briefly crossed his eyes.

Yes, he and Lukas fought constantly.

But not for the reason Ashley thought.

Lukas had bullied him for one particular reason. And it had nothing to do with his muteness.

"Why?" Ashley asked. "Why would you recruit him and even make him your left hand?"

Lucian leaned back, supporting himself with one hand against the grass.

"Because even when we fought," he said calmly, "he stayed."

"Huh?"

"Surprisingly enough, he fought with me."

Lucian looked up at the stars. Memories flooded his mind about the stubborn little bully who somehow kept saving him after Ashley disappeared.

"We eventually went our separate ways," Lucian continued. "But I searched for him years later."

A faint smile appeared. "Good thing I found him—and the little gang he built—before someone else recruited them."

"Oh..."

Ashley’s mouth formed a small O. She blinked several times, digging through her memories for anything else she remembered about Lukas.

She had always wondered why Lucian trusted him so much.

Lucian once explained that Lukas’s job was to question him when necessary. But now she realized there was something much deeper beneath that trust.

"What a small world," she mumbled.

Then her eyes drifted toward him. She scooted closer.

"So, Lucian." She tilted her head. "I didn’t know you ran away from home too."

She paused. "Back then, you never told me."

Then again, he hadn’t been talking back then.

"I also didn’t know you were actually from a ridiculously rich family." She stared at him. "If Scott hadn’t caught me, I might’ve hit the jackpot the moment you decided to go home."

Slowly, Lucian turned toward her. "I didn’t run away from home."

"Huh?"

"I didn’t have a home."

Ashley blinked. "What?"

"I’ve been on the streets for as long as I can remember."

Deep lines appeared on her forehead. "Lucian, I don’t think I’m following."

A shallow sigh escaped him.

After a moment of consideration, he began explaining.

The more Ashley listened, the deeper her frown became. Then came the shock. Her eyes widened. Her mouth slowly fell open.

"Does Lukas know?"

Lucian shook his head.

"Just like you, he only knew I ran away," he explained. "Nothing more."

"The High Chamber?"

Another shake of the head. "No."

Ashley stared at him. "As in... no one knows?"

Lucian nodded.

"Gustav? Nolan?" she asked again.

His answer remained the same.

Neither of them knew.

Gustav entered Lucian’s life after he had already joined Dominion.

As for Nolan, he never had a reason to suspect anything.

The late Madam of Dominion had simply claimed Lucian as her son. They live separately. And since Nolan worked for the Don while secretly reporting to the Madam, he never questioned it.

Ashley blinked repeatedly.

All her life, she had believed Lucian was born as the heir of Dominion.

Someone who could never truly understand hardship.

Someone who could never understand her.

Now that belief had been completely shattered.

As she processed everything, another thought suddenly struck her.

Her brows knitted together.

"Lucian." She lifted her gaze. "Are you absolutely sure nobody else knows?"

Lucian shrugged.

The reason he dealt with the Madam so early wasn’t solely about power. She had been carrying secrets. Whether she told anyone before her death remained uncertain.

But he had always believed she intended to take those secrets to her grave. Most of the people closest to her were already gone as well.

"I don’t think so," Ashley murmured.

Concern slowly surfaced in her eyes.

"Lucian, there’s something I haven’t told you." She moved closer. "Do you remember when I told you I met a member of White Serpent?"

"Silvestre?" Lucian nodded. "I remember."

Ashley pressed her lips together.

"I told you he was a friend." She paused. "Not a friend as an adult, but a friend from childhood."

This time, Lucian’s brows furrowed. He studied her face carefully. Slowly, realization dawned on him.

"He told me he was that boy," Ashley said quietly. Her gaze lowered. "And he knew details only you and I should know."

She bit her lip.

The more she thought about it, the more uneasy she became.

"If he knows those things..." She slowly lifted her gaze back to Lucian. "What are the odds he knows this too?"