Chapter 83: Another one on her side

A while after her call with Clancy, a heavy thud of footsteps echoed through the hallway, breaking the quiet of the house. Selen looked up immediately, her posture stiffening out of an old survival habit. She heard voices and walked to the entrance.

To her surprise, standing in the doorway of her home was Patrick. Seven years had etched subtle lines around his eyes, but his commanding presence remained entirely unchanged.

He stopped dead in his tracks when his gaze shifted from the children to Selen. Neither of them spoke for a long time.

"Selen," Patrick said, his voice a low baritone. It lacked the mean edge it used to carry when she first arrived as an unwanted pawn. 𝘧𝓇ℯℴ𝓂

"It’s been a long time." He said and awkwardly put his hands behind him.

"Almost eight years," she replied. "Come in," she said and motioned for him to follow her.

"Clancy told me he was leaving someone he trusted to watch over the children while he was in England, but I did not realize that it would be you." she said as she led him into her sitting room.

Three pairs of eyes suddenly looked up from the floor. David, Daniel, and Diana paused their playing, sensing the new presence in the room. They looked curiously at the tall man.

"This is Patrick. He is an old acquaintance of mine and a friend of your father" she introduced. She found it easier to introduce him that way than having to answer a train of questions about how she knows him and what the job description of a personal assistant was.

Patrick looked down at the triplets. His expression softened significantly, a rare warmth breaking through him. In their bright, observant eyes, he saw a striking mix of Clancy’s stubborn intensity and Selen’s quiet resilience.

"Hello, little ones," Patrick said awkwardly and offered a respectful nod. His gaze lingered on Diana, looking for any lingering signs of illness, but her cheeks were rosy and healthy.

"Are you a bodyguard?" David asked, "Something like that," Patrick replied, a small smile tugging at his lips. "I am here to make sure nothing disturbs you guys." He said.

"We are building a fortress," Daniel announced, pointing toward the floor.

"Then I will make sure nobody breaches it," Patrick promised.

They giggled at his response. "Mummy, can we go finish it in the playroom?" Diana asked Selen. "Yes, go ahead, sweeties. Ask Miss Sarah to go with you" Selen said. The triplets quickly gathered their things and ran off, their laughter fading down the hall.

Once the children were gone, the silence returned, heavier this time. Selen gestured toward the opposite side of the room, moving away from where the children had been.

"I never thought I would see you again," Patrick admitted honestly, keeping his hands clasped behind his back. "When you vanished seven years ago, part of me was relieved. We were destroying you." he said.

Selen looked directly at him, her gaze unflinching. "I had to leave, Patrick. If I hadn’t, I do not think I would have survived to see my children grow up." she said.

Patrick looked down, genuine remorse crossing his features. "I owed you an apology back then, and I still owe you one now. When you first arrived, forced into that union, I treated you like an enemy. I was hostile. I laughed when you were mocked. I let my prejudice blind me entirely, and I am deeply sorry." he said.

Hearing the words out loud brought a strange sense of closure to Selen. She remembered the sheer terror of her first days, but she also remembered the turning point.

"You did treat me terribly at first," Selen said softly. "But you were also the only person who eventually looked at me like a human being. You pulled Clancy’s hand off my throat the day he almost killed me. You saved my life that day Patrick."

"It was the bare minimum, and it was late," Patrick countered heavily, his jaw tightening. "I should have stopped him sooner. I saw the prints of his fingers on your neck. I knew a little more effort would have been your end. The guilt of that stayed with me for a long time." he confessed.

Selen looked at him, her voice quiet but appreciative. "You made up for it later. And to be honest, if I can stand to be in the same room with Clancy and not want to chop his head off, I believe that you should not be the one bearing the grunt" she said.

Patrick looked at her, he did not know what to say. How was she willing to let him off the hook that easily?

But for Selen, he was a saint compared to the Avelino’s when she was in their home. And how much could he do? No matter his relationship with Clancy back then, he could still be fired. But even at that, he tried his best.

As Patrick looked at Selen, the weight of a secret pressing on him. He knew she had no idea about the investigation he had conducted all those years ago, how he had dug into her past, discovered she was an illegitimate daughter used as a pawn, and brought the truth to Clancy.

Seeing her standing proudly in her own home, completely independent, he decided to keep that burden to himself. She did not need to relive the details of her family’s betrayal.

"Mr Avelino is trying to change now," Patrick said instead, shifting the focus. "He has spent months trying to prove to you and to everyone else that he is not the monster he used to be. Do you believe him?" he asked her.

Selen walked a few steps away, thinking over his question carefully to provide him with a sincere answer.

"I believe that he is trying. But forgiveness is not a switch I can just flip. I am here for David, Daniel, and Diana and they deserve to know their father, and Clancy deserves a chance to be one. As for us... well, I won’t say" she said.