The papers lay scattered across the floor like broken pieces of truth — some torn, some crumpled under Vinny's trembling fingers.
He stared at them for what felt like hours, the words blurring and rearranging themselves in his head until they stopped making sense.
Human subjects. Genetic trials. Project Elysium.
Every line was another knife. Every memory another wound.
When he finally moved, it wasn't out of calm — it was because he couldn't stand the silence anymore. His heart was beating too loudly, his breathing too shallow, his thoughts too sharp. He stumbled to his feet and gripped the edge of the desk for balance.
He wanted to scream. He wanted to tear through the walls until the whole mansion came down. But he just stood there — numb — staring at the shadows stretching across the floor.
A knock echoed on the door. Three gentle taps.
Then Matthew's voice.
"Vinny."
The sound made him flinch.
Vinny didn't move. Didn't answer.
"I know you're awake," Matthew continued quietly. "You shouldn't stay in that room all night. You'll freeze."
Vinny almost laughed. Freeze? After what he'd just seen, he didn't think he'd ever feel cold again.
Matthew's voice lowered, steady but hoarse. "You went looking for something, didn't you?"
Silence.
Vinny stared at the door like it was a wall between two worlds — the one where he could still pretend, and the one where everything had fallen apart.
Matthew sighed softly. "You found out about Project Elysium."
Vinny's hand twitched. His chest tightened.
"Then you already know," Matthew said, his tone carrying something that sounded like defeat. "You already know what my family did. What I did."
Vinny clenched his jaw. "You let them use people. You let them die for your mother's sake."
A pause. Then a quiet, bitter chuckle. "You think I didn't know that? You think I sleep at night?"
Vinny's throat burned. "You could've told me."
"And said what?" Matthew's tone cracked for the first time. "That my mother's heart kept beating because someone else's didn't? That the reason I have you, this house, this empire—" He stopped, breath trembling. "—is because of the same system that took your brother?"
Vinny swallowed hard, hating that part of him still ached at the sound of Matthew's voice. "At least it would've been the truth."
Silence again.
When Matthew finally spoke, it was softer. "The truth destroys everything it touches, Vinny. I was trying to protect what little we had left."
Vinny turned away from the door, unable to look at it anymore. His reflection caught faintly in the window — eyes red, lips pressed tight, like a stranger he didn't recognize.
He whispered, mostly to himself, "You don't get to decide what's worth protecting."
The doorknob rattled, a metallic sound that made Vinny's chest tighten. "Vinny," Matthew said again, almost pleading now. "Open the door."
Vinny shook his head even though Matthew couldn't see. "No."
"Please."
The single word almost broke him.
He took a slow step closer to the door, resting his forehead against it, close enough to feel the faint hum of Matthew's breath on the other side. For a heartbeat, he imagined what it would be like if things had been different — if love hadn't come with lies and chains and experiments written in blood.
Matthew's voice was a whisper. "If you hate me, then hate me. But don't shut me out."
Vinny's chest tightened until it hurt. "You don't get it, do you?" he whispered back. "You already shut me out the moment you chained me."
There was no reply. Just the quiet sound of someone exhaling — shaky, broken. Then footsteps fading down the hall.
Vinny stayed there long after Matthew was gone, until the mansion went quiet again.
––
Morning came with a dull gray light. The air smelled faintly of rain.
Vinny hadn't slept. His eyes felt heavy, his head pounding. But the anger that burned in his chest kept him awake. He gathered the papers from the floor and slipped them into a drawer, locking it tight.
He wasn't done. Not yet.
There was something else he needed to find — proof that Matthew had known all along.
He changed into a clean shirt, combed through his messy curls, and waited until the house began to stir — servants moving, breakfast trays clattering faintly downstairs. Then, quietly, he slipped out.
He knew Matthew would be in his office around this hour — always the same routine, same coffee, same silence. That gave Vinny time.
He headed toward the east wing — the part of the mansion where the archives were kept. It was technically forbidden, but so was every truth in this place.
The door opened with a soft click. Inside, dust floated like ghosts in the sunlight. Shelves stretched from floor to ceiling, packed with files and records. He moved fast, scanning each label — financial statements, medical reports, security logs.
Then he found it — a folder marked "Rosenthal—Private."
He flipped it open, heart pounding.
Inside were letters. Handwritten, elegant, old. Most were addressed to A. Rosenthal — the same man from the photograph. But one of them… one of them bore Matthew's handwriting.
Vinny's blood ran cold as he read.
"I know what you're doing isn't right. But if there's a way to save her, I'll pay any price. Just… don't tell Vinny."
The date was two years before they'd even met.
His fingers tightened around the paper. "You already knew me," he whispered.
The letter dropped from his hand as realization hit. Matthew hadn't just met him by chance. He'd known who Vinny was before the first conversation, before the first touch, before the first lie.
He'd known.
The sound of footsteps outside the archive snapped him out of it. Vinny stuffed the letter into his pocket, closing the folder just as the door opened.
"Vinny?"
It was the maid — Elise, the same one who had served him dinner. Her eyes widened when she saw him. "You shouldn't be here. If the master finds out—"
"He already does."
The voice came from behind her.
Matthew stood in the doorway, expression unreadable.
Vinny's pulse spiked. He took a step back, but there was nowhere to go — just shelves and silence.
Matthew dismissed the maid with a glance, then closed the door behind him. "You never learn, do you?"
Vinny's anger flared despite the fear twisting inside him. "You've been lying since the beginning."
Matthew tilted his head. "And what did you find this time?"
Vinny pulled the letter from his pocket and threw it at him. "This. You knew me before we met. You knew who I was, what happened to my brother. You planned everything!"
Matthew caught the paper, his expression flickering for the first time.
Vinny's voice shook. "Did you use me too? Was I just another project, another experiment?"
Matthew stepped forward, tone dangerously quiet. "Don't say that."
"Then what am I?" Vinny's voice broke, raw and furious. "A replacement for your mother? A guilty conscience to keep you human?"
Matthew's eyes flashed. "You're the only thing that ever made me feel human."
The words hung in the air, heavy and trembling.
Vinny laughed bitterly, tears threatening to spill. "Then maybe you should've let me go instead of chaining me like a possession."
Matthew's hands tightened into fists. "You think I wanted to? You think I wanted to fall for someone tied to everything I hate about myself?"
"Then why didn't you walk away?" Vinny demanded.
"Because I couldn't!" Matthew's voice cracked — not in rage, but desperation. "I saw your name on that list, Vinny. I knew your brother's file. I knew what they did to him. I should've stayed away, but I couldn't. I thought if I kept you close, I could protect you from the same fate."
Vinny stared, heart twisting. "Protect me? By lying to me? By keeping me prisoner?"
"I was trying to save you," Matthew said hoarsely.
Vinny shook his head slowly, voice trembling. "No, Matthew. You were trying to save yourself."
The words hit harder than a slap. Matthew didn't respond — didn't move. He just stood there, looking at him like the world had ended.
Vinny brushed past him, his shoulder brushing Matthew's arm. "We're done lying to each other," he whispered. "From now on, I find my own truth."
He left without looking back.
Behind him, Matthew's voice came out barely audible — a whisper lost to the sound of rain starting to fall.
"Then what's left for me if you take the truth away too?"