CHAPTER 81: CHAPTER EIGHTY-ONE: PIPER IS FREE

Christy’s POV

Kendrick offered to go with me but I refused as I wanted to talk to Mason privately.

He came to the apartment to pick me up and he drove quietly. The city lights blurred against the car window as I watched them pass by, one after another, like fleeting memories.

Mason was focused on driving, his expression was stern and he was giving off an extremely cold vibe.

I haven’t spoken since we left the house as my thoughts were tangled and my heartbeat was too loud.

Mason glanced at me from the driver’s seat. His jaw was tight and his hands steady on the wheel. He looked extremely stressed as there was a deep frown on his forehead.

"Sorry, I couldn’t wait till tomorrow because I will be traveling out of the country very early tomorrow morning," he said finally, his voice was calm but strained.

"No... I needed to know."I said and wallowed hard

He nodded, eyes flicking toward me briefly before returning to the road. "I figured you would say that."

Then we fell into a not so relaxing silence. I shifted slightly in the seat, resting a hand over my belly to feel the baby bump, it was a reminder that I wasn’t alone. I felt strengthened and smiled.

We drove until the streets grew quieter and the noise of the city faded into the distance. Mason finally pulled over beside an old park, it was filled with rusting swings and empty benches.

He turned off the engine but didn’t move. For a long moment, he just stared at the steering wheel, as if the words he was about to say were stuck somewhere deep inside him.

"Mason," I whispered, my voice small but steady. "Please talk to me."

He exhaled slowly and finally looked at me. His eyes were soft, but I could see the storm beneath them. "Christy... I need you to brace yourself for what I’m about to say."

My heart thudded painfully and I took a deep breath to calm down. "Just tell me."

"The day you went missing, we couldn’t find any traces of you in the water, so we all assumed you had drowned after several searches. No one knows how you fell into the water and all the security cameras were destroyed by unknown people.

We all gave up but after I found you, I knew that there was more to that incident. So I started a thorough investigation. I got a foreign tech expert to fix and retrieve the videos of that day." he said after a slight hesitation.

I nodded stiffly. The memory was faint, almost dreamlike. "I remember water...cold....Then... nothing."

Mason’s throat moved as he swallowed and his expression also darkened. "The video showed that it was wasn’t an accident, Christy. You didn’t fall into the river by mistake, someone pushed you."

My breath caught in my throat. "What?"

He looked straight into my eyes. "You were pushed into that river, they wanted the world to think you were dead."

The words sank slowly, like stones sinking into deep water. I blinked, trying to process what he said, but they made no sense. "Who? Who would do that?"

"That’s the part that took me the longest to find out," he said quietly. "After you disappeared, the police closed the case too quickly. But I couldn’t let it go,I had to know why my little sister was never found."

My hands were trembling now. "And?"

"I went back to the town you grew up in," Mason said. "The one Benjamin took you to."

Just hearing that name made my stomach twist. Benjamin. My so called foster father. The man who had raised me and used my as a cash cow by forcing me to dance as a stripper. I still remembered his voice that was always filled with hatred towards me.

My fingers clenched. "What about him?"

Mason leaned back slightly, his voice lowered. "I found out he is in prison and I went to see him."

I blinked, staring at him in disbelief. "You went to see Benjamin?"

He nodded. "He didn’t recognize me at first but once I told him who I was, he started laughing like it was some big joke that finally caught up to him."

My heartbeat quickened. "Mason, what did he say?"

"He told me everything," Mason said. "Or at least... enough to piece the truth together."

He paused for a moment before continuing. "After you were pushed into the river, Benjamin was waiting nearby with two men. He was supposed to... take care of you, as in kill you. But he didn’t, he pulled you out before you drowned."

I froze completely.

"He.. he saved me?" My voice cracked as what I just heard was unbelievable. "Why would he do that?"

"Not out of kindness," Mason said bitterly. "He saw an opportunity. Apparently, someone paid him to make you disappear, but he decided to keep you alive. He knew he could get more money if he held on to you."

I stared at him, and I could feel my throat burning. "He kept me alive... to use me?"

Mason nodded grimly. "Yes, he raised you like his own until the time came when he could use you for leverage. He knew exactly who you were, Christy, the precious daughter of the Lancasters. He knew what you meant to our family... and what you were worth."

I covered my mouth with my hand, as memories of what I suffered resurfaced. All those years I thought I was unwanted, all the beating, scolding and emotional torture. All those nights I cried, his hatred towards me and how I was forced to do things against my will?

I wasn’t unwanted but was being kept to be used for more money, like I was a transaction.

My voice was shaking with anger and hatred. "He is such a monster.. " I broke off, my eyes filling with tears. "He maltreated and made my life a living hell."

Mason’s jaw clenched. "I know, I wanted to kill him when I found out."

I pressed a hand to my chest, trying to breathe through the ache. "So he knew I was a Lancaster... all along?"

"Yes," Mason said softly. "He said he was told everything, who your parents were, what your name was.He knew exactly who you were."

I felt something inside me crumble. "All those years... ."

Mason reached over, placing a hand on mine. "I’m sorry you had to find out like this."

I shook my head. "No, I needed to know. I needed to understand why everything felt wrong growing up."

He nodded silently, then added, "But there’s more."

I looked up sharply. "More?"

He hesitated again, then exhaled sharply. "I asked him what he needed to tell me all these."

My chest tightened. "What did you give him?"

"I negotiated with the authorities," Mason admitted. "His sentence was reduced by five years."

I stared at him, disbelief flooding through me. "You what?"

"Christy, I had to," Mason said firmly. "He wouldn’t talk otherwise. He said he wouldn’t reveal a damn thing unless I helped him get something in return."

I shook my head in frustration. "Mason, he’s a manipulative criminal! You shouldn’t have bargained with him!"

He looked away briefly. "I know, but I needed the truth and now we have it."

I leaned back against the seat, trying to calm my breathing. It felt like my entire past was unraveling before my eyes, every memory was redefined by this revelation.

Then something clicked in my mind. "Wait," I said slowly. "You said he wanted something, was it just his sentence reduced? That’s it?"

Mason didn’t answer immediately.

I turned to him sharply. "Mason."

He sighed, rubbing his forehead. "There’s... one more thing."

My heart sank immediately. "What did you do?"

He hesitated for a long moment before saying, "He asked me to free his daughter."

I froze and my breath hitched. "Piper?"

Mason nodded reluctantly. " yes, Piper or Emily, anyone you call her."

For a moment, I couldn’t even speak.The girl who made my life a nightmare. The one who deceived, hurt me and sabotaged me in ways no one ever found out. I remembered her laugh, cold and cruel, the way she looked at me like I was nothing but dirt.

I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. "You let Piper go?"

Mason looked pained. "I didn’t just let her go, I made her sign an agreement. She promised she wouldn’t come near you. She wouldn’t contact you, she is legally bound to stay away."

I let out a bitter laugh, shaking my head. "You think that will stop her?"

"She signed it," Mason insisted. "If she violates it, she’ll go straight to prison."

I turned to him angrily. "You don’t know her, Mason. Piper doesn’t care about rules., she will find a way."

He was quiet for a moment. "Then we will deal with it if she does."

I looked out the window again, my reflection pale against the dark glass. My heart was pounding, but not just from fear but anger. From the feeling of years stolen and rewritten.

"Do you know what she did to me?" I whispered.

Mason looked at me, confused. "What do you mean?"

I met his gaze, my voice trembling. "Piper was too good at pretending, I took her as a sister but she only saw me as a tool. She is just as heartless and cruel as her parents. She set me up, trapped me and made me feel worthless. If Kendrick hadn’t come when he did... I don’t even know if I would be alive."

His expression hardened. "She what?"

I nodded. "She’s dangerous, Mason, and now that she’s free, she’ll come for me. I can feel it."

He leaned closer, his voice low. "Then she will have to go through me first."

I smiled faintly through the ache. "That’s what scares me."

He frowned. "Why?"

"Because she won’t come for you," I whispered. "She will come to destroy everything I have now, my peace, my family and my baby."

The air in the car went still. Even Mason didn’t know what to say after that.

He finally reached for my hand again. "Christy... no matter what happens, you are not alone this time."

I nodded slowly, but deep down, I wasn’t sure if I believed it but the unease in my chest wouldn’t fade.

After a while, Mason started the car again and began driving me home. The silence between us was heavy and filled with everything we couldn’t say out loud.

When we reached Kendrick’s apartment, Mason parked out front. He turned to me before I opened the door. "Are you going to tell Kendrick?"

I didn’t hesitate before saying "Definitely"

He nodded. "Alright..just be careful, Christy."

I gave a small, tired smile. "Always am."

As I stepped out of the car, the cool night air hit my face. The house loomed ahead, warm light spilling from the windows. It looked peaceful and safe but inside me, something dark and restless had awoken again.

I turned slightly to look back at Mason. He gave me one last reassuring nod before driving off.

I walked slowly toward the door, my hand instinctively on my stomach. "Don’t worry, baby," I whispered softly. "I won’t let anyone hurt us again."

But even as I said the words, a chill ran through me, because somewhere deep down, I could already feel it.

Piper will definitely come for me and the past... never really stayed buried.