CHAPTER 23: I’VE GOT MY ANSWERS

With trembling fingers, Ruby took her phone from Rayna. She opened the anonymous chat thread, stared at it for a long moment, then began to type:

"Stay the hell out of my life. You know nothing. If you ever text me again, I’ll get my husband involved and make sure you’re caught. This is your final warning. And you should know I have nothing to worry about so you can spill whatever trash you have in your mouth, fool."

She stared at the message, hesitating for just one second more before hitting send.

The message was delivered. The typing indicator blinked for a few seconds.

Then a single response came through:

"Fuck you."

Nothing else. No threats. No taunts. Just two words, sharp and vicious.

Ruby stared at the screen, breath caught in her throat.

Rayna leaned over and read it. "Well. That’s not creepy at all."

"He didn’t deny it," Ruby whispered.

"Yeah," Rayna said slowly. "But he also didn’t say anything else. That might mean he’s rattled. You just showed him you’re not the scared little puppet he thought you were."

Ruby leaned back in the chair, feeling a cold chill run down her spine. "Or I just pissed him off."

Rayna gave a half-smile. "Same difference."

They sat in silence for a while, the tray now mostly empty between them.

"I’m scared, Rayna," Ruby admitted softly.

"I know," Rayna said. "But you’re doing good. And I’m not going anywhere."

Ruby nodded, her eyes falling once more to the phone.

She didn’t know who the blackmailer was. Or if Stefan truly trusted her or was the one behind the stunt. But one thing was clear:

The game was far from over because now, she’d do all she can to get the answer from Stefan.

Away from there, The room was quiet, steeped in soft golden light from the lamp on the nightstand. Stefan sat on the edge of the bed, his cane resting against the wall nearby.

His fingers traced the soft folds of the comforter absentmindedly while his ears tuned into every creak of the house. Ruby hadn’t returned yet, and though she’d said she’d be right back, the silence seemed to stretch longer than expected.

Stefan leaned back slightly, his head resting against the headboard. The evening replayed in his mind—the conversation in the wine cellar, the way Ruby had stepped in at the company, and the warmth in her touch when she guided him earlier.

There was a softness in her that hadn’t been there before. Or maybe it had... but buried beneath something colder, more distant.

That was what unsettled him the most. She feels like a different person.

He hated the thought, hated himself for even entertaining it. Ivy was his wife. The woman he’d promised to spend his life with. But something had shifted in her—her voice was the same but,l her warmth, the quiet hesitations in her responses, there weren’t there before.

And that’s why he’d asked Nathan to test her.

Because if there was even a slight chance that Ivy wasn’t who she claimed to be, Stefan needed to know. He couldn’t see her, couldn’t study her expressions or pick up on subtle physical cues. All he had were instincts. And right now, those instincts were at war.

His phone vibrated once beside him.

He picked it up, recognizing the vibration pattern. A secure line, encrypted and reserved only for a few people in his life. He swiped to accept the call.

"Stef?" Nathan called the moment the call connected.

"Nat," Stefan said calmly.

"You’re not going to believe this," Nathan’s voice came through, amusement coating his tone.

Stefan’s spine straightened subtly. "She replied?"

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"Oh, she did more than reply," Nathan said, chuckling. "She told me to, and I quote, ’stay the hell out of her life’ and called me a fool. Then threatened to get her husband involved. Can you believe that? I wonder what she’d think if she found out ’her husband’ was responsible for everything," he said in amusement.

When Stefan had told him of the plan on the morning after his wedding, Nathan had thought it was absurd having to test his wife like that but he had been left with no option but to go ahead.

Stefan was his best friend after all and he couldn’t have refused him anything.

There was a beat of silence before Stefan let out a low exhale. His chest tightened, though he wasn’t entirely sure why. Relief? Guilt? Something in between?

"Then that’s enough," Stefan said quietly. "No more texts. I already got my answer."

There was a pause on the other end before Nathan responded. "What answer? And why are you convinced now?"

"She’s Ivy," Stefan replied simply. "I now believe she’s Ivy. But like she said, just... changed and more mature."

Nathan snorted. "Changed is an understatement. That girl’s got fire. But I gotta admit—just from the tone in her message, I’d say it’s her too. Only Ivy could cuss someone out that confidently and still sound elegant."

Stefan smiled faintly. "Exactly," he said wishing he could see her face again, see her smile, get angry over little things and have him take care of it.

"But wait," Nathan said, curiosity piqued, "why the hell did you even think she wasn’t Ivy in the first place? Why did you think she’s her twin? Have you ever had an altercation with her twin?"

Stefan hesitated. He rose slowly from the bed and walked toward the window, fingertips grazing the furniture as he moved. "I don’t know and honestly, I’ve never really had any altercation with her neither have I had the chance to be in her company," he admitted. "And thinking about why I even did that—it sounds ridiculous now. But then when after our wedding, infact from the church... she was different. She sounded warmer. Kinder. She touched me with more care. Ivy was never cruel but... she wasn’t this soft either. There were days I wasn’t sure if she was with me for love or just fulfilling some duty."

He turned slightly, facing the faint echo of the hallway outside the room. "But now, she laughs easier. She pauses to listen. She doesn’t sigh when she thinks I can’t hear. I felt like I was talking to someone new."

Nathan was quiet for a second. "So let me get this straight. Because she started treating you better and is more considerate of your feelings now, you assumed she wasn’t Ivy?"

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Stefan chuckled, rubbing a hand over his face. "It sounds stupid when you say it out loud."

"No, man, it makes sense. You’re blind. You rely on consistency, patterns, tone shifts. So when those changed, your brain screamed foul play." Nathan’s tone softened. "But have you considered that maybe she just... grew up a little?"

Stefan thought about it. "I have. I guess I just couldn’t accept that kind of transformation so easily. People don’t change overnight."

"Maybe not," Nathan replied. "But love does things to people. Pain does too. Maybe she realized how much pain you must be going through right now."

Stefan leaned against the wall, his thumb running over the edge of his phone. "Maybe."

Nathan let out a breath. "Has she forgotten anything about you? Any major detail? Something Ivy would’ve never missed? I just want to understand you better."

"No. She remembers everything," Stefan said, voice quiet. "That’s the thing. Her memory’s sharp. Her routine’s nearly the same. Her scent, the way she walks—those haven’t changed or so I think."

"Then quit stressing, bro," Nathan said. "You’re driving yourself mad over something that might just be her heart growing up. It happens."

There was a silence that stretched long between them before Stefan broke it.

"Yeah. I guess I know that now. When are you coming back?"

"Two days," Nathan replied. "Flight lands in the afternoon. You want me to stop by first thing?"

"I’d like that," Stefan said with a smile. "It’ll be good to have you around again."

"You miss my annoying ass, don’t you?"

Stefan laughed. "Maybe."

"Don’t worry," Nathan said, teasing. "When I get there, we’ll figure out what to do if she turns out to be an alien shapeshifter. But for now, just let yourself feel, man. You’ve got something real in front of you. Don’t ruin it because you’re scared."

Stefan ended the call after a few more pleasantries, setting the phone down gently on the nightstand.

He stood alone in the dimly lit room, the quiet humming in his ears blending with the ticking of the antique clock on the wall. A part of him still held onto the uncertainty, but the bigger part—the one that felt Ruby’s touch, heard the tremble in her voice when she said his name—that part wanted to believe.

Maybe he had tested her.

But now, he wasn’t sure if he had done it to expose her... or to reassure himself that someone could truly change, and still love him anyway.

He turned as he heard footsteps in the hallway.

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And for the first time since his accident, he was ready to trust her and be relaxed around her again, knowing she wouldn’t leave him in his condition.