My Sister Stole My Mate, And I Let Her - Chapter 49
49: Chapter 49 LET.
IT.
GO 49: Chapter 49 LET.
IT.
GO KIERAN€™S POV
I barely remembered the ride home-just the steady rumble of the engine and the taste of guilt and unease souring in my mouth.
When I arrived, I sat in the driveway with the engine off, bathed in silence and the judgmental glow of the moon, my hands wrapped around the steering wheel as if it were the only thing keeping me grounded.
My phone rang.
Gavin.
I stared at the screen for a second, chest tight, then answered.
“Yeah?”
€œYou need to hear this,€ Gavin said without preamble.
His voice was clipped, cautious.
€œI pulled the server logs from the security archive of the hotel for the Blood Moon Hunt, just like you asked.€
My grip on the wheel tightened.
€œAnd?€
€œThere was footage,€ he said.
€œCorridor cams, lobby, elevator-hell, even the vending machines had security cameras.
But…€
€œBut what?€
€œAbout three months ago, someone put in a formal request to delete specific recordings from the night of the Blood Moon Hunt.€
My grip tightened on the phone.
€œWhat?
You€™re telling me someone erased it?€
€œThey tried,€ he said.
€œBut the thing is, the system doesn€™t just wipe it completely.
It flags deletion attempts, and if the request isn€™t fully authorized or finished…fragments get stored.€
A chill crept up my spine.
€œDo we know who made the request?€
€œThat€™s the thing, Alpha.
It was run through a proxy ID with Admin-level clearance.
But no name.
No trace.€
€œFucking hell.€ I raked a hand through my hair.
€œI€™m still digging,€ Gavin said.
€œBut it€™s clear someone had something to hide about what happened that night.€
My mind was already spinning ahead.
Someone-with access and knowledge-had covered the details of that night.
Or tried to.
Logic dictated there could be other reasons why the footage was deleted, but I knew deep in my bones that it had to do with what happened between Sera and me.
But why?
Who?
My pulse pounded.
I needed answers.
Ashar wouldn€™t give them to me.
Celeste wouldn€™t give them to me.
Gavin€™s research had hit a seemingly dead end.
There was only one other person I could think of.
The one who€™d gotten the ball rolling in the first place.
Maya.
***
I was knocking on Ethan€™s door fifteen minutes later.
He answered shirtless, barefoot, and annoyed, rubbing sleep from his eyes.
€œKieran?€
I didn€™t bother with small talk.
€œIs Maya here?€
Ethan raised an eyebrow.
€œNo.
She€™s with Sera.€
I swore.
€œI need her truth stone.€
His expression shifted-mild curiosity giving way to caution.
€œWhy?€
€œYou know why?
You heard it all, didn€™t you?
I need more answers.€
Ethan studied me for a long moment, his eyes slowly growing more alert.
Then he sighed.
€œYou should probably come in.€
He stepped back and let me in, closing the door behind me with another sigh.
His place was quiet, the faint scent of saffron and eucalyptus lingering in the air, mixing with Ethan€™s.
I followed him into the kitchen, where he poured himself a glass of water before speaking.
€œWhere€™s Celeste?€
I clenched my teeth.
€œThe hospital.€
His eyes widened.
€œWhat?€
I glared at the glass cup.
€œI tried to question her some more, and she…fainted.
Apparently, the stress was too much for her weak wolf.€
€œFor fuck€™s sake, Kieran.€
€œShe€™s fine now,€ I gritted out.
€œYou can go see her tomorrow.
I didn€™t come here to be scolded, Ethan.€
Tense silence settled between us.
And then, Ethan broke it.
€œIt wasn€™t real,€ he said.
I looked up.
€œWhat?€
€œThe truth stone,€ he clarified, voice calm, deliberate.
€œIt€™s not real.€
I stared at him.
€œThe fuck do you mean it€™s not real?
I saw it work.€
He took a long sip of water, then shrugged.
€œWhat you saw was Maya doing what she does best-getting into people€™s heads.€
I took a step forward, fists clenched.
€œDon€™t play games with me, Ethan.
I€™m not in the fucking mood.€
€œI€™m not,€ he said evenly.
€œShe bought that rock at some overpriced vendor stall at the flea market.
She carries it around as if it€™s sacred because it feels that way.
People believe it.
That€™s the point.€
My voice dropped.
€œEmma confessed.€
He nodded, a slight smirk pulling at his lips.
€œBecause Maya€™s presence alone is enough to make people crack.
The stone?
That€™s just a prop.€
€œBut it glowed.€
He gave a half-smile.
€œShe painted the inside with a special powder.
Heat-reactive.
It lights up when a hand grips it tightly enough for the body heat to trigger it.
Pretty smart, huh?€
I stared at him, feeling pressure build behind my eyes.
€œSo everything that happened tonight was a goddamn performance?€
He leaned against the counter.
€œNot everything.€ He narrowed his eyes like he could see through me.
€œAshar€™s confession was real.€
I swallowed hard.
€œBut…€ I was even more confused than ever.
€œIf the stone wasn€™t magic, what made him speak?€
Ethan€™s gaze was knowing.
€œMaybe it wasn€™t about the stone.€ He shrugged.
€œMaybe it was just time.€
I looked away, jaw tight.
I couldn€™t believe I€™d been manipulated that way.
What€™s worse, it had actually worked.
€œYou€™re not angry because the stone wasn€™t real,€ Ethan added quietly.
€œYou€™re angry because you don€™t know what to believe anymore.
Because your memory is shit, and because you let someone else write the narrative-for ten damn years.€
I said nothing.
€œAnd now,€ he went on, €œyou€™re trying to claw your way to the truth when the people around you-Celeste, Sera, even yourself-don€™t fully remember the story.
Or they remember it wrong.€
€œI need answers, Ethan,€ I snapped.
€œI know you do,€ he said calmly.
€œBut here€™s the part you€™re avoiding-what difference will it make?€
I blinked at him.
€œWhat?€
€œYou and Sera are divorced.
You€™re not mates.
And she has someone else now.
I missed it, but I heard they led the opening dance together.
You know what that means.€
My gut twisted at the mention of Lucian and that damn dance.
€œYou think getting closure is going to change anything?€ Ethan asked, tone not unkind.
€œYou think knowing whether or not Celeste set her up will undo the last ten years?€
€œIt might,€ I said tightly.
€œIt might help her heal.
Help me understand.€
Ethan tilted his head.
€œAnd what then?
You sweep in, tear her away from Lucian, and pretend the last decade didn€™t happen?
What does it even matter?
You never loved Sera.
Celeste is the one you chose.
Is the truth going to change that?€
I said nothing.
Because I didn€™t have an answer to that.
He pushed off the counter.
€œLet me be blunt, Kieran.
What€™s done is done.
Your marriage to Sera is over, and you€™re with Celeste now.
If you waver again-if you go chasing after ghosts-both my sisters are going to pay the price.€ His eyes narrowed.
€œAgain.€
My throat tightened.
€œI never meant for either of them to get hurt.€
€œI know,€ he said softly.
€œBut they did.€
I looked down at the tiled floor, guilt coiling around my spine like a python.
€œI€™m not saying you shouldn€™t get the truth,€ Ethan continued.
€œBut be sure you€™re doing it for the right reasons-not because you think it€™ll magically fix everything.€
I took a breath.
€œThen what the hell should I do?€
He sighed.
€œYou€™re going to hate my response.€
I frowned.
€œI don€™t doubt it.€
€œLet.
It.
Go.€
My fists clenched, everything in me instantly revolting at the idea.
€œI-€
€œCan€™t,€ he finished for me.
I nodded stiffly, glaring at the stained marble of his kitchen countertop.
€œJust do me a favor,€ Ethan added.
I looked up.
€œDon€™t lose yourself trying to fix the past.
And don€™t drag everyone down with you.
Sometimes the truth doesn€™t come with peace-it just comes with more consequences.€