The words "bound together" echoed in my head, heavy and suffocating.
I stepped forward, my voice sharp. "Explain. Now."
My mother's smile never faltered. If anything, it grew sharper, like she had been waiting for this exact moment.
"You've been gone for years," she said calmly, "but absence doesn't erase blood. You are still my son, still heir to what belongs to this family. And with that inheritance comes responsibility."
I frowned. "What does that have to do with her?"
Elena's lips twitched into the faintest smirk, as though she already knew what was coming. My stomach tightened.
My mother's words dropped like a stone into still water.
"You will marry her."
The room went silent.
For a heartbeat, I couldn't breathe. My fists clenched at my sides, my jaw locking.
"You can't be serious."
Her eyes hardened. "I've never been more serious."
I turned to Elena, half-expecting her to protest, to share in my outrage. But she didn't flinch. She didn't even blink. Instead, she looked me straight in the eye, her expression unreadable.
"You knew," I said, my voice low, accusing.
Elena tilted her head, her smile sharp as glass. "I don't like surprises. Of course I knew."
Rage simmered in my veins. "And you agreed to this?"
Her gaze didn't waver. "What makes you think you have a choice?"
Her words struck harder than any blade.
I wanted to shout, to tear the room apart, to demand answers from both of them. But deep inside, I knew the truth: I had been cornered the moment I stepped through that door.
This wasn't just about family. This wasn't just about inheritance.
This was about control.
And they were both playing a game I wasn't prepared for.