Emery’s POV
From a distance, I stood there, watching. Watching as the game unfolded right in front of me, as my father and Noah’s secrets came crashing down around them. It was everything I had been waiting for. Years of lies, of hidden truths, all now spilling out like a broken dam. The screen flickered, showing things I had long suspected but never had proof of. 
I crossed my arms, trying to stay calm, but inside, I felt a storm brewing. This was it. The moment I had been waiting for.
On the massive screen, flashes of my father’s past filled the room, deals, betrayals, and deaths. So many deaths. My father had killed more people than I could have imagined. The details of each person he had gotten rid of, people he considered obstacles, showed up like a horror movie. But it didn’t stop there. Noah, too, had blood on his hands. I didn’t know when or how it happened, but the truth was there, clear for everyone to see.
Business deals that had ruined lives, friendships my father had destroyed. And then, finally, the reason I had been waiting for. The reason why my father had spent years obsessing over finding a cure, some ridiculous medicine, for our mother.
All this time… for her and was never us.
I knew how badly Noah wanted answers. I could see it in the way he stood there, staring at the screen with that burning look in his eyes. The machine had done what it was supposed to do—dug up every secret my father had buried so deep. And now, Noah was learning all of it. Every single thing.
I could almost feel his fury from where I stood, his fists clenched tight, his eyes fixed on the screen as the truth of our father’s sins played out in front of everyone. It wasn’t just business or old friends. It was the truth about why our father was so desperate to save our mother—something Noah had always wanted to know. Something I knew would break him.
Then the screen went dark. Pitch black.
I stepped forward, feeling the weight of the silence that fell over the room. “Now,” I said, my voice steady but cold, “it’s time to ask the questions.”
Everyone’s eyes turned to me as I explained the rules. “Each of you will have one question to ask. Just one. And you have to answer with the truth. If either one of you lies, the machine will release a sharp, strong current of electricity through your body. It could kill you.”
I paused, letting the words sink in. “So, you better tell the truth. And you only have two minutes to answer the question. No time for lies, no time to stall.”
I could see the tension in the air, everyone waiting, wondering who would ask the first question. My eyes went back to Noah and our father, their faces now being broadcasted on the TV for everyone to see. Beside them, the screen turned white, waiting for the question to be drawn and written out for everyone to read.
I wondered who would be brave enough to go first. Who would have the courage to ask the question that could change everything.
Then, Noah stepped forward.
Without hesitation, he turned to face our father, his voice low and cold. “Why,” he began, his words sharp, cutting through the room like a knife. “Why did you force mother into something she couldn’t handle, keeping her alive all this time, knowing it was killing her. And use me and Emery to clean up your mistakes?”
I felt a shiver run down my spine as Noah’s words echoed in the silence. This was it. The question that could tear everything apart. I couldn’t help but smile, just a little. No matter how our father answered, I knew Noah wouldn’t be able to handle the truth. None of us would.
The question flashed across the broadcast screen, bold and clear for everyone to see.
And then the timer started.
Two minutes.
I stared at our father, watching his face as the seconds ticked by. He looked pale, shaken, but I knew he couldn’t run from this. Not anymore. He had to answer. His life depended on it.
I took a deep breath, knowing that whatever he said, I needed to hear it, too. I needed to know why. But at the same time, I wasn’t sure if I could handle the answer. Could any of us?
The timer continued to count down, and the room was filled with nothing but the sound of my own heartbeat. Two minutes. And then we’d finally know everything. 
But would one of them survive it?
There was only one minute left.
The silence in the room was suffocating, the kind that makes every breath feel heavy. I could see the seconds ticking down on the screen, Noah staring at our father, waiting for the answer. I didn’t know what to expect—maybe nothing could prepare us for this. But this was the moment everything was going to change. I knew it, Noah knew it, and I could feel that even our father knew it.
Noah didn’t look away from the screen, not for a second. I could see the tension building up in him. He wasn’t just angry—he was desperate. Desperate for the truth, for the one thing that would finally make sense of all these years of lies.
Our father opened his mouth, but no words came out at first. He hesitated, as if searching for the right way to explain everything. I could see the struggle in his eyes.
“It wasn’t an easy decision back then,” he finally said, his voice low and broken, like it pained him to even speak. He paused again, the weight of what he was about to say pressing down on him. “That day... when your mother, me, Lucas’ parents, and Ethan—Abigail’s father—were all playing and trying to survive... I thought your mother would come out of that room. I thought she would make it through the first round.”
His words hung in the air, and then, a tear slipped down his face. For the first time, I saw him as something more than just the monster we thought he was. I saw a man who had carried a burden too heavy for anyone to bear.
“No,” he whispered, his voice trembling. “She didn’t make it. She failed the game, and Ethan... Ethan was carrying her in his arms, shouting, crying that she couldn’t do it. The injection started spreading through her body, and I—I couldn’t do anything.”
Noah’s face twisted with anger and grief as our father kept going, the pain in his voice echoing through the room.
“There was only one cure,” he continued, his voice cracking. “One way to save her. I begged your grandfather for help, over and over again, but... nothing. There was nothing anyone could do. She was so scared. She didn’t want to die. She was terrified of leaving both of you—Noah, you, and your sister.”
I could see Noah shaking now, his jaw clenched tight, his eyes refusing to blink. He wanted answers, but this... this was too much.
“I made her a promise,” our father said, his words heavy. “She wanted to live, to stay alive for you both. She wanted to watch over you, take care of you, but her life... it was slipping away. I—I found the injection, but it was too late. Lucas’ mother had it, but by the time I got there, the time had run out. It was over.”
He stopped, his voice catching in his throat as he tried to hold back the sob building inside him.
“Why did I keep her alive?” He let out a bitter laugh, one that sounded more like pain than amusement. “Because she wanted to survive, just like the rest of us. She begged me to find a way, and I did. I spent all these years searching, experimenting, doing everything I could to bring her back to life... because I couldn’t bear the thought of you growing up without her. I was always busy... always trying to save her, while you two grew up without a mother by your side. You were just kids, too young to understand.”
I felt something break inside me. The truth we had been waiting for wasn’t what I expected. It was worse. So much worse.
Noah looked like he was about to explode, his fists trembling, his face red with rage and grief. I had never seen him like this before, not even close. Tears were welling up in his eyes, but he refused to let them fall.
“Your mother...” our father said softly, his voice now just a whisper, “she wanted me to put her into a deep sleep, to keep her alive until I could find a way to save her. She wanted me to promise that I’d take care of you both, but it was too hard. It was too much without her.”
I watched as Noah’s tears finally began to fall, the weight of everything crashing down on him. He didn’t want to believe it. He couldn’t. How could he accept that our mother, the woman he had always loved and missed, had been reduced to a ghost of herself, living only because of some twisted game? 
I didn’t know what to feel. I wanted to scream, to cry, to break something, but instead, I just stood there, frozen, my mind spinning with too many emotions to name.
“Emery,” our father said, turning to me now, his eyes full of regret. “You have your mother’s eyes. And Noah... you have her spirit. Her fire. Everything I’ve done, I did to save her. But now... it’s time for her to come back. It’s time for her to live again.”
He smiled, a bitter, broken smile. “I won’t be leaving this room alive, and I don’t care. I’ve lived long enough without her. Now it’s her turn.”
I couldn’t take it anymore. I turned around, refusing to look at him, refusing to hear any more. I didn’t want this. I didn’t want to know any of it. I didn’t want to face the truth that had been hiding in the shadows for so long.
I saw Nathalie’s face drop, concern etched across her features. But I didn’t care. I didn’t want sympathy. I didn’t want anything.
I just sat down next to her, silent, trying to hold myself together, trying to pretend like I was okay. But it was too late. A single tear slipped down my cheek before I could stop it, and once it started, I couldn’t make it stop.
Nathalie didn’t say a word. She just reached out and took my hand, holding it tight, comforting me in the only way she knew how. We sat there together, not saying a thing, while the weight of everything crashed down on us.
It was too much. Too painful. Too hard to accept.
And as I sat there, the tears silently falling, I realized that nothing would ever be the same again.
The time finally ran out.
A sharp sound filled the room, and suddenly, a gun dropped onto the table between Noah and our father. My heart sank, even though I knew this moment was coming. It was the third level of this game—one of them had to survive. The other... wouldn’t.
I looked at Noah, who was staring at the gun like it was his worst nightmare come to life. He didn’t move. Neither did our father. The tension was unbearable, pressing down on us, making it hard to breathe.
I knew my father had already accepted what was coming. He didn’t deserve to leave this room. He had said it himself. But Noah... Noah still had a reason to live. I could see it in his eyes, the fire, the anger, the will to survive, even if the truth had shattered him.
Our father let out a low, painful laugh, the kind that sends shivers down your spine. It wasn’t the laugh of a man who was amused, but of someone who had finally reached the end of a long, torturous road.
He called out to both of us, his voice soft but filled with something I couldn’t quite place. Was it regret? Sadness? I couldn’t tell.
“Emery... Noah...” he said, his voice cracking. “I finally realize... the question your mother asked me... so long ago.”
His eyes found mine, and for a moment, I saw something I hadn’t seen in years. Pain. Tiredness. Maybe even love, buried deep beneath all the layers of guilt and regret. 
He gave me one last look, and it hit me like a punch to the gut. I didn’t want to see him like this, broken and human. I wanted to keep hating him, to stay angry, but that look in his eyes... it shattered something inside me.
“No,” he said softly, pausing for a moment as if gathering his thoughts. “Make sure you tell your mother... my answer is, ‘No.’”
Noah’s eyes snapped to our father, his face confused, but I knew exactly what he was talking about. The question our mother had asked him all those years ago, when everything was simpler, before the chaos, before the games.
Our father continued, his voice weak, almost like he was talking to himself more than to us. “She asked me once... if I married her because of her family’s wealth. If I stayed with her for the money.”
He laughed again, a bitter sound that made my chest tighten.
“No... it wasn’t that,” he said, his eyes distant, like he was lost in a memory. “I didn’t marry her for the money. I married her because... she was strong. Stronger than anyone I’ve ever known. She was different, unique... a fighter.”
He paused, his breath shaky, and I could feel tears welling up in my eyes. I didn’t want to cry. I didn’t want to feel anything for this man. But I couldn’t stop it.
“She fought for everyone she loved, including me,” he continued, his voice breaking. “Her spirit... it was unbreakable. Even when she was facing death... she never gave up.”
He smiled then, but it wasn’t a happy smile. It was full of pain, full of loss. And that smile... it broke me. It tore me apart in ways I didn’t think were possible.
I couldn’t breathe. I couldn’t move. All I could do was listen there, feeling the pieces of myself crumbling, breaking apart. My father’s words hit me harder than I could have ever imagined, and for the first time, I realized just how much I had been holding in. How much pain I had been burying deep down.
Noah was silent, staring at the gun, but I knew he was feeling it too. The weight of everything—the truth, the lies, the years of not knowing—it was all too much.
Our father’s final words echoed in my mind, tearing me apart from the inside. He didn’t care about leaving this room. He didn’t care about surviving anymore. All he cared about was that our mother would finally get her chance to live again.
And me? I couldn’t take it. I couldn’t handle any more of this. I turned away, not wanting to face the game anymore. Not wanting to hear anything else. I felt like I was drowning, sinking deeper and deeper into a darkness I couldn’t escape.
I sat down next to Nathalie, not looking at her, not wanting to see the concern in her eyes. I just needed... silence. I needed everything to stop, even if just for a moment.
But it was too late. I could feel a tear slipping down my cheek, and once it started, there was no stopping it. Everything was falling apart. My heart, my mind, everything. It was all too much.
Nathalie didn’t say anything. She didn’t need to. She just wrapped her hand around mine, holding it tight, letting me know that she was there. And somehow, that small gesture was enough to keep me from falling completely apart.
But inside, I was broken. Shattered.
And I wasn’t sure if I’d ever be whole again.