"How did they meet? Did she tell you?" Aylin asked Ayla.

"He ruined her dress," Ayla explained. "He spilled something on it at a mall. She called him an idiot in front of everyone, and he offered her a restaurant reservation to make up for it. Then she went there with her dad to apologize, and he said he’d accept her apology if she had dinner with him."

"That sounds like something Zayn would totally do," Leo muttered.

"So you know him?" Ayla asked.

"He’s my little brother," Zayden said. "Of course, I know him. And yeah, that ’I’ll only accept your apology if you have dinner with me’ trick is totally his style."

"Is he..." Ayla hesitated. "I mean, Emma seems super nervous about it. Is he a good guy?"

The question hung in the air for a moment.

"He’s my brother," Zayden finally said. "Yeah, he has his issues, but he’s not a bad guy. He wouldn’t hurt Emma. At least, not on purpose."

"That’s comforting," Ayla replied, but her tone showed she wasn’t totally convinced.

They kept eating, shifting the conversation to easier topics: the food, the weather, and Liam’s awful jokes that always made everyone roll their eyes.

Once they were done with lunch, they headed back to the lounge, and the vibe changed a bit as they sank into the comfy furniture.

Zayden waited until everyone was settled, then leaned in with a serious look.

"Ayla," he said quietly, "we need to chat with you. It’s about Emma."

Ayla straightened up, picking up on the serious vibe. "Okay?"

"We haven’t told you who Emma really is," Zayden went on. "And you deserve to know because you’re mixed up in this now, whether we meant for it to happen or not."

Ayla nervously twisted her fingers together. "Mixed up in what? What do you mean?"

"Just breathe," Aylin said gently, reaching for her sister’s hand. "We’ve got your back. Nothing bad is gonna happen. We just need you to see the whole story."

Ayla took a deep breath and nodded.

Zayden started slowly, "Emma’s last name is Kane. Her dad is Alexander Kane."

Ayla’s face drained of color, and her hands started shaking. "No. No, no, no."

Aylin moved closer right away. "Ayla—"

"Don’t tell me," Ayla’s voice was getting louder, panic creeping in. "Don’t say he’s the same Alexander Kane. The one who killed Mom. Please don’t—"

"He is," Zayden replied quietly, his voice gentle but firm. "He’s that Alexander Kane."

Ayla stood up abruptly, backing away. "No. Emma’s dad can’t be— I was friends with—"

Liam stepped forward, speaking calmly. "Ayla, just breathe. Take a moment."

"The day I fainted," Ayla said, her mind racing. "At orientation. Emma said her dad was coming to pick her up. That was him? That was Alexander Kane?"

"Yep," Zayden confirmed. "The day you saw him and collapsed, he was there to get Emma. They even came to see you at the hospital later."

Ayla’s legs felt like jelly; she sank back onto the couch, looking pale. "He was at the hospital? He saw me?"

"He did," Aylin said softly, sitting next to her sister and holding her hand. "We told you your friend and her dad visited, but we didn’t mention that her dad was Alexander. We didn’t want you to freak out again. Sorry for keeping that from you."

Ayla shook her head, tears starting to spill. "I was in the same room as the guy who killed our mom. I was, oh God, I talked to Emma about her dad. What did I say? Did I say anything that would—"

"You didn’t say anything out of line," Liam reassured her. "You were out cold when he was there, and when you talked to Emma about her dad, you had no idea who he really was."

Reyes, who had been quiet, finally spoke up. "What’s important is that Alexander doesn’t know who you are. He looked into you, and all he found was Ayla Monroe. He’s got no clue you’re connected to Aylin and has no idea you’re Marcus Alston’s daughter."

"But Emma," Ayla whispered. "Does Emma not know anything? About all this?"

"No," Zayden said. "Emma’s totally innocent. She has no clue she’s adopted. Alexander told her her mom died giving birth. Emma thinks he’s her real dad."

"Her actual parents," Aylin added softly, "worked for Alpha Dark, the crime syndicate Alexander is part of. They wanted out and had proof that could have taken down the whole operation. So Alpha had them killed."

"Alexander was the one who did it," Zayden went on. "Emma was only a month old when he murdered her parents. Just a month later, he adopted her."

Ayla looked like she might throw up. She put her hand over her mouth and started breathing heavily.

Leo quickly grabbed a glass of water from the table and handed it to her. "Here. Just take a minute."

Ayla took the glass with shaky hands and sipped it slowly.

"I don’t get it," she finally said. "Why would he adopt her? Why would he raise the kid of the people he killed?"

Zayden explained, "Because it made sense. Emma’s parents were gone, and there were no family members looking for her. Alpha had just started expanding his operation and didn’t have the resources to cover his tracks well. Adopting some random kid would have been risky; the family might have shown up asking questions. But with Emma? No one was searching for her."

"So he just... took her," Ayla said, a horrified tone in her voice. "Killed her parents and treated her like something he could just take."

"Yeah," Aylin replied quietly.

Ayla was silent for a while, taking it all in. Then she looked up, meeting Zayden’s gaze. "Why are you telling me this?"

"I know it’s a lot to take in," Aylin said gently. "But it’s important. Your safety, my safety, and everyone in this house depend on keeping these secrets."

"I get it," Ayla repeated quietly. "I really do. I won’t screw this up."

Leo, who had been quiet, spoke up with a small smile. "For what it’s worth, you’re handling this really well. Most people would be freaking out right now."