Chapter 74: Everything I Missed
After clearing up the misunderstanding, Cassidy felt something in her chest begin to lift. Her body felt lighter, like a weight she hadn’t even realized she was carrying had finally been set down.
And for the first time that night, she found the courage to ask him something.
"I didn’t know you had a half sister," she said quietly, a bit of curiosity in her voice.
Zeke nodded. "Before my father married Margaret, my mom, he had a wife. She died from an illness. Nicole is his daughter from that first marriage."
He paused, then continued, "Nicole cut herself off from the family years ago. My father and grandfather didn’t approve of the man she married. They tried to control her, told her who she could and couldn’t be with. But Nicole refused. She left. Chose her own path."
Cassidy exhaled slowly, her shoulders dropping a little as she took in the story. There was something heavy and sad about it. Something familiar.
Zeke leaned back slightly, his tone thoughtful. "They were furious, my dad and grandfather. They erased her from everything. Cut her out of the family assets, the company, everything."
He looked down at his hands before adding, "After Nicole left, I didn’t see her again. Not for years. But about five years ago... I ran into her by accident. At a restaurant."
His lips lifted slightly at the memory.
"She looked different. Stronger. And we talked. Since then, we’ve kept in touch."
Cassidy nodded slowly, quietly absorbing the history he’d never shared with her before.