At 12:30, guests began to leave the mansion after the new year's party. Alex, feeling quite giddy after the amazing night, bade farewell to Violet at around 1. He walked her down to the metal gate where Mrs. Brown was waiting for her in her egg-shaped Ford-aspire.

Alex stared at Violet's back until she vanished inside the car and Mrs. Brown drove away. Last of the guests were now finally filing out when Alex began his journey back to the mansion. The gravel driveway and the numerous lights jingling around didn't seem that attractive now that Violet had left.

Alex recalled the night in his head. He felt as if a huge burden had been taken off from his shoulders. Violet knew his reality now and accepted him the way he was. She had told that she loved him. It was the best night of his life!

He was absent-minded while whistling as he strolled through the lawn and into the mansion. A new-found skip had adjusted itself into his gait. "What a night!" He thought. "Wait till I tell Edward tomorrow."

"Alex!" Alex's father was standing in the middle of the grand staircase. "We need to talk."

Alex felt a tinge of unease deep in his stomach. How many times had they needed to talk? This usually did not happen.

"Yes father." He followed Arthur as he led him up the staircase and took a right. Alex's room was in the left half so Alex rarely entered into this part of the mansion. Dad's room and study happened to be here.

What is this all about?

They took a left at the end of the corridor and entered another, just like the one in which Alex's room happened to be. The third room one the left was father's and the one in front of it on the right was his study room. Arthur entered the latter.

Smoke issued from dad's cigarettes and pipes hit Alex's nostrils immediately. A black leather sofa set sat at one side with a coffee table, while a huge wooden desk was on another side close to the wall. A rotating office chair sat behind it and two sofa-chairs sat on the other side. Alex imagined that clients would have sat there. Papers were scattered all over.

Arthur moved forward and gestured for Alex to sit in one of the client's sofa-chairs and sat in the office chair himself. He opened a drawer from the desk and took out a pipe, lit it and exhaled immediately, as if not wanting to increase the suspense.

"Talk." He grunted.

"What about?" Alex made sure his tone didn't sound offending.

"So I suppose you told her about our family."

"Yes, I did."

"And what were her views?"

"She said it's fine as long as I don't join the business, and I won't." Alex had always been right-out blunt in telling that he won't be into any of this.

"Alex, son! Are you refusing to carry on your family business just because of... because of a girl?" Arthur's eyes had become soft and his frown seemed humble.

"No dad! I am not leaving it for the girl. I am leaving it because I do not plan on killing people to earn a couple of dollars."

"So you think your father kills people so he can live a rich life, do you? You think I am a murderer?"

"I did not say so, father."

"BUT YOU DID MEAN THAT." He had taken the pipe out of his mouth now. "You're just a kid, Alex. 17 years old, and you think you know it all. I used to be this way too. Thinking about honesty, humbleness, truthfulness and respect. But you know what? The world does not work this way. They don't give a damn if you're a nice person. Power, Alex. Power. The world prostrates in front of you if you're powerful. Otherwise you're just a waste of space."

Alex opened his mouth to respond but was cut off.

"Leave that girl, Alex. I am sorry, but this is how it needs to be."

Alex was lost for words. It was just tonight that they had made their feelings clear for each other, and on the same night they were being pulled apart.

"No!" He said plainly. "I can not. Now that I'm... I'm..."

"You are what?"

"I am sure that she loves me. And I love her too. We need each other, dad." He could not believe he was actually brave enough to say this. But desperate times call for desperate measures.

"Alex... it is better for BOTH of you to leave each other. She does not belong to this side of the world. Do not pull her into a life that she does not want."

"I do not belong to this world too."

"YOU DO BELONG TO THIS WORLD AND YOU WILL BE IT'S FIGUREHEAD IF YOU DO NOT WISH TO BE A FAILED SON." Arthur was pounding his fists on the table now. His eyes were malicious.

"It's funny how you tell me what my duties are when you, yourself did not fulfill yours."

Arthur's eyes shot wide. Nobody in the last 17 years had questioned his secret from the fear that they'd have to face his wrath. And now, the secret himself was questioning it.

"What are you talking about?" He said after a moment's pause.

"I've read your diary dad. I know about you and mom."

He was never going to tell him this, but Arthur had called for it himself. Alex expected him to blaze with fury now, but all that he did was to look at Alex with an undefined expression. Gazing deep into his soul, extracting the amount of truth behind this.

"That diary... It does not give you all the answers, Alex. Like I said. You think you know it all, but you don't."

"Then give me the answers dad. You keep talking about giving Violet her rights. The truth is, that the first and foremost of my rights... which also happen to be your duties, is the truth."

"Alex," The fatherly tone was back. "I can not tell you of the fear that you'd break."

"It's better to break once after knowing the reality than breaking slowly, every passing minute."

"I can not. I would not tell you."

"Then you're failing your duties dad."

"DO NOT TELL ME WHAT I SHOULD DO AND WHAT NOT. YOU DON'T KNOW ANYTHING. YOU DON'T KNOW WHAT HAPPENED. YOU DID NOT HAVE TO LIVE IT. YOU DID NOT HAVE TO GO THROUGH THE PHASE WHERE YOU'RE LEFT NO ONE TO BE WITH. NO ONE TO TALK TO OR JUST TELL WHAT HAPPENED IN YOUR DAY. YOU DID NOT TALK TO SOMEONE'S PICTURE ALL NIGHT LONG AND CRY ON YOUR PILLOW. YOU DID NOT HAVE TO STAND FOR THAT PERSON IN FRONT OF THE WHOLE WORLD JUST TO SEE HER DIE. JUST TO SEE HER... her die." Arthur's voice was quivering.

"I know it was bad, dad. But I need to know now. I am old enough." Alex sounded softer now. He was not used to dad draining his emotions. Arthur was looking down at his desk-top, possibly regrouping.

"You won't be able to bear the truth." He sounded lost.

"STOP SAYING THIS, WILL YOU? IT DOESN'T HELP. I CAN HANDLE THE TRUTH JUST GIVE IT TO ME."

"THE TRUTH IS, ALEX, THAT YOU ARE NOT MY SON!" Arthur looked up as his red-hot face showed to Alex.

The floor slid beneath Alex's feat.

"Then who's son am I?" He managed.

"Chris."

-I'll dedicate the next chapter to anyone who can claim that he/she might have guessed Chris to be Alex's father (be honest :P ) Details of the real story to be told in the next chapter so stay tuned.

Tentative date for next update: 12th September, 2016.