CHAPTER 390
Arianna sat in her car, parked across from the grand estate of the King mansion, staring up at its imposing gates.
Her heart raced, but she couldn't summon the courage to go inside. She wasn’t ready to face Xander, not yet.
Xander was supposed to meet her at 11, at a café she hoped he wasn’t at hime. She needed a little more time, a moment to gather her thoughts and find some clarity before facing him, before the confrontation she knew was inevitable.
The uncertainty gnawed at her as she sat there, unsure of what she was hoping for or what she might find once she walked through that door.
As she sat, her mind swirling with unanswered questions, she spotted Aunt Julia walking out of the house, heading toward her car with a grocery bag in hand.
Arianna quickly straightened up and decided to break the stillness, rolling down her window just as Aunt Julia turned her head in her direction.
"Mrs. King," Aunt Julia greeted with a surprised smile.
"What are you doing here? Aren’t you supposed to be at work?"
Arianna gave a soft, reassuring smile.
"I have the day off today," she replied, nodding toward the grocery bag Aunt Julia was carrying.
"Are you headed out to buy groceries? I could give you a ride, if you'd like. I have a few things to pick up at the supermarket too."
Aunt Julia furrowed her brows for a moment before waving her hand in refusal.
"Oh no, I couldn’t trouble you. What do you need? I can pick it up for you," she offered kindly.
Arianna shook her head, a faint smile tugging at her lips. "No, it’s fine. Like I said, it’s my day off. I’m free, so... Let’s go together," she said, stepping out of the car and gently wrapping her arm around Aunt Julia’s shoulders.
Seeing that she couldn’t change Arianna’s mind, Aunt Julia smiled warmly and agreed,
"Well, if you're sure... Okay then."
The two women got into the car, and Arianna started the engine. As they pulled away from the villa, Arianna quietly broke the silence.
"Has Grandma been sleeping any better the last couple of days?" she asked, trying to keep the conversation light.
Aunt Julia sighed and glanced at her. "Not yet. I had a doctor come check up on her. She’s been prescribed some medication, but they’ll adjust it as needed."
She sighed again, her voice tinged with worry. "You know how it is with older people... they can’t let their blood boil."
Arianna nodded, silently acknowledging the concern. She let a few moments of silence pass, then casually asked,
"Grandma has always been so calm, so composed. It’s the first time I’ve seen her like this... What exactly did Harmony do?"
Aunt Julia’s expression changed, and she glanced at Arianna with a mixture of surprise and concern.
"Why do you want to know about her, Mrs. King?"
Arianna’s expression softened, as though she was just making casual conversation.
"No particular reason," she said, her voice light.
"It’s just... since Harmony came around, Grandma’s mood has been off. I just want to understand things a little more, so I can help her get rid of her worries--Why do you think she got so worked up when she saw Harmony? It’s like there’s something deeper there. I know Grandma can be sensitive, but what really triggered this?”
Aunt Julia gave her a long, hard look, clearly unsure whether to reveal more, but she eventually sighed.
"Harmony..." Aunt Julia's voice dropped, a sharp edge of contempt creeping into her words.
"She’s not someone you should trust. She's... she's a very manipulative woman. You should keep your distance, Mrs. King. Stay away from her. She brings nothing but trouble, chaos, and heartache wherever she goes. I don’t care how sweet she acts or how convincing she is—underneath all that is nothing but selfishness and deceit. She’ll use anyone to get what she wants. I’ve seen it before, and I won’t stand by and watch her poison this family."
Arianna nodded thoughtfully, her mind whirring.
Seeing Aunt Julia finally opening up, Arianna pressed on, her voice soft yet persistent.
“I heard that Harmony grew up with Xander and that Grandma used to like her very much. How did things end up so… tense between them?”
Aunt Julia took a deep breath, clearly reluctant, but with Arianna’s questions guiding her, she answered,
“Harmony did grow up with Mr. King. She lived in a villa right next to the Kings’ old estate, isolated, with her parents constantly traveling. Grandma always treated Harmony with kindness, feeling sorry for her loneliness.”
Arianna furrowed her brow, a small frown forming. “Harmony was living on her own as a child?”
Aunt Julia nodded, her expression shadowed by a mix of sympathy and frustration.
“Yes, she stayed with an old servant who looked after her. Her parents were always away, too busy to care for her.”
Arianna quietly processed that. She didn’t particularly care about Harmony’s background, but it painted a picture. She shifted the conversation back to what truly mattered.
“So, what happened after that? How did things go wrong?”
Aunt Julia’s face soured as she recalled the past, her voice laced with disgust.
“There’s not much to say, really,” Aunt Julia began, her voice tinged with frustration. “Grandma was always so good to Harmony, even considered accepting her as her own granddaughter....
*Accept her as a granddaughter…?*
"But Harmony... as time went on, she started acting more and more strange. She was friends with Zach and John too, but when it came to Xander, she became possessive—almost obsessive. It was like no one else could have his attention but her.....If he spent even five minutes with Grandma King, Harmony would throw a fit, crying and pulling him away, demanding he play with her instead. It got worse, little by little, and we all started noticing the odd behavior.”
Arianna frowned. “Odd behavior?”
Aunt Julia hesitated, her gaze distant as she remembered the past.
“Well… things started to get really weird. I remember once, Xander was playing with a cat, and it scratched him. He bled a little, and the next morning, we found that same cat... brutalized, slaughtered. I’ll never forget the look on Harmony’s face when Xander found out. He was devastated, but Harmony... she had this odd, satisfied look, almost as if she was pleased with what had happened.”
Arianna’s eyes widened in disbelief. "That's... disturbing."
Aunt Julia nodded, her expression darkening.
"Grandma noticed it too. After that, more odd incidents happened, one after the other… but I’m not sure how much of it I can explain. It’s hard to put into words." She paused, her gaze darkening as she thought back. "I always had this feeling that behind those incidents, Harmony was somehow involved. It was like there was something… off about her, something I couldn’t quite put my finger on."
She trailed off, clearly uneasy, as the weight of those unsettling memories hung heavy in the air.
She tightened her grip on the steering wheel, a sense of unease settling over her.
“"Is it true that Harmony can't get pregnant because she injured herself while saving Xander?"
The question took Aunt Julia by surprise, and before she could think, she blurted out, "Um... Yes."
It was only after the words escaped her that she realized the gravity of her response. Her eyes widened in shock as she quickly turned to Arianna.
"Mrs. King, how do you know that?"
Arianna’s face became rigid, her expression betraying none of the turmoil inside. She had asked the question not to confirm Harmony’s story, but because she didn’t want to trust Harmony’s words alone.
Deep down, she still clung to the fragile hope that maybe, just maybe, Harmony was lying.
But now, it seemed the truth was undeniable.
That explained why Harmony had been so confident, so certain that Arianna wouldn’t be able to verify that information with Grandma King. After all, if the truth was already known, there was no point in making statements that could easily be proven false.
Arianna forced a tight smile, masking the unease churning in her stomach.
“Xander once told me a bit about his past,” she lied, trying to keep her voice steady.
“That’s how I found out.”
Aunt Julia’s nervous tension seemed to ease as she nodded, her face softening.
“Ah, so he told you,” she replied.
“That’s good to hear. It’s great that there are no secrets between you two.”
Aunt Julia smiled warmly, her words full of reassurance.
“As long as you and Mr. King are on the same page, nothing and no one will come between you. If both of you are fine, then Grandma King will be fine too.”
Arianna sat in her car, staring blankly at the steering wheel. Her thoughts swirled with uncertainty, the heaviness in her chest threatening to overwhelm her. She wanted to be on the same page as Xander, to find some way back to the love they once shared, but Xander... didn’t feel the same way.
There was another woman in his heart, or rather, there always had been.
Harmony.
After dropping Aunt Julia off, she glanced at the clock on the dashboard. It was 10:45. A sigh escaped her lips as she realized the time. She had to meet Xander at 11. The thought of facing him, of hearing his explanations, made her stomach twist, but she knew she had no choice.
With a deep breath, she started the car and pulled away, heading toward the coffee shop where the truth, whatever it was, awaited her.
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