It was a silent lunch. The lack or words only made Kaia nervous as she watched the servers clean the table. She looked up at Trystan and found him staring at her, so she looked away quickly. 

When they were alone, she waited for him to start, fidgeting with her fingers under the table. It took a few seconds before he spoke but to her it felt like minutes.

"I don't even know how to start, and honestly, you are the first person I have felt the need to tell about my past. You've seen my relationship with my father. I'm sorry you had to go through that. It wasn't meant to happen this way. I've been planning this since the day I was saved from his hands. It was supposed to be revenge, for everything he did." Trystan paused, taking in a deep breath. 

"I don't want to confuse so I'll start from the beginning. My mother was incredibly beautiful. She drew attention everywhere she went, so it was no surprise when she caught John Asher's attention. The Asher-Wellington family is a family that comes from old money." The name made Kaia gasp. She knew about the Asher-Wellington family. Everyone did. They were a family of billionaires, CEOs and politicians who controlled most of the country. Trystan gave a sad smile.

"My mother used to work for their corporation. She was an intern, still in college and a little bit naïve, and when John Asher showed interest in her, she was a bit overwhelmed. It was flattering, of course, but he was married and my mother wasn't a homewrecker so she refused. I don't think anyone had ever refused him before. He was the second son of the Asher family, he didn't know the word 'no'. So he raped her. Multiple times." Trystan stopped, shaking his head with his eyes closed, and Kaia reached forward and placed her hand on his. He looked at her and gave her a sad smile.

"He raped her in his office with a picture of his wife and kids sitting on his table. When he was done, he had her removed from his office, fired and expelled from her college. It was a nightmare for a nineteen year old. As if fate had it in for her, she got pregnant. With me. She became spiteful and hateful. She somehow got a message to the head of the family, Frederick Asher-Wellington, I don't even know how she did that, but she told him what had been done to her and what she carried in her a. That of course, infuriated the family. Not the rape, but the fact that she was pregnant. She also sent it to the press and the whole scandal rocked the family.

"So, they made her life hell. She couldn't get a job and she didn't have a place to stay because her parent had kicked her out for ruining her life. After I was born, she got a job at the Van der Molen house as a maid. She should have hated me. I wouldn't have blamed her if she had but she showed me so much love. She was always watching out for me, always protecting me but in the end I couldn't do the same for her.

"Apparently, after she informed the family, his wife left him and his family basically cut him off. That made him angry. Angry at my mother and angry at me. So angry that he killed her." Kaia gasped but Trystan didn't want to stop. He needed to finish before he couldn't speak about it anymore and she knew that.

"He didn't just kill her, he tortured her. When she was found, a lot of her fingers had been cut off and she had been cut over fifty time. In the end, he slit her throat and threw her in the Van der Molen fountain." Kaia could see how painful the words were to him and she saw the shine of tears in his eyes.

"You would think he would stop there but to him, she wasn't the only one at fault. I was too, for being born. For being one of the reasons his life was ruined. He stole me away from the Van der Molens, one night and took me to one of his islands. He told me that he was my father, and that he hated me and my existence. I was just ten. He starved me and once in a while, he beat me within an inch of my life. Turns out he had a thing for torture and I wasn't the only one he enjoyed doing that to."

"Fallon and Keith." Kaia guessed, to which Trystan nodded.

"They had been sold to my father by their families for money. My father had lied that he would take care of them as his own as he brutally tortured them for his own benefit. I lost count of how many times he electrocuted me for fun. How many times he kicked me until I couldn't breathe. But he didn't kill me. Some days, I wished he did. 

"I had given up on living. For four years, I thought I wouldn't survive but one night, the island was stormed. Richard Van der Molen, the oldest son, had been in love with my mother and after her death, he had wanted to take care of me. He had searched for me everywhere and when he finally found out where I was, he came to save me. He saved Keith, Fallon and one other boy, Dean. We were in the hospital for months, healing. Van der Molen even got therapists to help us deal with the pain but something like that doesn't go away. 

"When I got out of the hospital, I decided to go after my father, I didn't make it far but he came to me. I was young and stupid and I wanted to make him pay. I slashed his face as much as I could. You couldn't begin to imagine the pain I felt but it was nothing especially when I saw what he did to my mother. I was the one who found her in the fountain."

"Oh, Trystan, that's so horrible."

"I should have known that it was a terrible idea but it didn't matter. Luckily, I was saved again by Van der Molen. He promised me revenge but it wouldn't be easy. I knew it wouldn't be easy. Especially when the Asher-Wellingtons were looking to kill me. And Kaia, they still want me dead. And they will try harder after what happened with John. They won't let this go and I still have all this hatred for them. I realized that that hate was strong and I knew it was either going to pollute you or leave you dead. That's why I had to let you go. I was punching him, trying to hurt him so badly that I forgot to protect you. I forgot that you were there." He grabbed both her hands and kissed each of them.

"It scared me and worried me. I wasn't sure I could keep you safe, not just from them but from me. But these past few weeks, I've woken up feeling lost. It was like something was missing, someone. I had a breakdown but all I did in that time was ask for you. I asked to see you, Kaia. And I realized that you made it so deep in my heart that my nightmare couldn't push you out of my mind. I want to be with you Kaia but I want you to decide if you're willing to take a chance with me. My life is dangerous. There are many people that I have hurt and that means if you stay with me, you become a target. I'm selfish for asking you to decide but I don't want to lose you. Whatever your decision, I will respect it but I want you to know that I love you, Kaia. More than I have ever loved anyone."