Scarlett stared at Nana Rose in shock.
"Nana… how did you know about my powers?"
Nana Rose sighed softly and sat down across from Scarlett at the kitchen table. For a moment, she looked older than Scarlett had ever seen her.
"Because," she said quietly, "I have the same power."
Scarlett's eyes widened.
"You… can read minds too?"
Nana nodded slowly.
"Our family has carried this ability for generations. But it does not awaken in everyone."
Scarlett swallowed nervously.
"But if that's true… why doesn't Ethan have it?"
For a brief moment, Nana Rose's eyes turned cold.
Then she said something that made Scarlett's entire world stop.
"Because Ethan is not my son."
The words echoed in Scarlett's mind.
"…What?"
Nana Rose folded her hands calmly on the table.
"Ethan was adopted when he was a baby. His parents were close friends of mine. They died trying to protect your real father. I pitied the child, so I took him in."
Scarlett's heart began racing.
"So… he's not part of the bloodline?"
Nana shook her head.
"No. Which means he could never inherit our family power."
Scarlett stared at Nana Rose, still trying to process everything.
Nana Rose's expression softened, but sadness filled her eyes.
"My real son was Sebastian Maxwell," she said quietly.
The name felt strangely familiar.
"Sebastian… was your father."
Scarlett froze.
"My father…?"
Nana nodded.
"Yes. Sebastian was kind, intelligent, and loyal. I believed he would one day lead the company."
She paused, her voice growing softer.
"But fate had other plans."
"What happened to him?" Scarlett asked quietly.
Nana Rose's eyes grew distant.
"He died in a car accident."
Scarlett's heart tightened.
"Sebastian and your mother, Melanie, were involved in a terrible crash. Your mother was eight months pregnant with you when it happened."
Scarlett felt as if the air had disappeared from the room.
"The doctors fought to save the baby," Nana continued softly.
"And by some miracle… you survived."
She looked at Scarlett with gentle eyes.
"That was the day I promised myself I would protect you, no matter what."
Tears formed in Scarlett's eyes.
"So you raised me…"
Nana nodded.
"Yes."
Scarlett felt a sharp ache in her chest.
"Your father carried the bloodline of our family," Nana continued. "But his powers never awakened."
"So the powers don't appear in everyone?" Scarlett asked.
"No," Nana replied. "Even those born in the bloodline may never awaken them."
Scarlett thought for a moment.
"Then why does Ethan hate us so much?"
Nana Rose's eyes hardened.
"Because Ethan spent his whole life watching Sebastian receive the future he believed should have been his."
"He wasn't the heir," Nana continued. "But he wanted the power, the company, and the legacy."
"And when Sebastian died… Ethan believed everything would finally belong to him."
Scarlett slowly realized the truth.
"But you chose me instead."
Nana nodded.
"Yes."
"And that," she said quietly, "is something Ethan will never forgive."
Suddenly everything made sense.
The greed.
The desperation to control the company.
The hatred hidden behind fake smiles.
"He spent his entire life trying to prove he deserved what was never meant to be his," Nana Rose said quietly.
Scarlett clenched her fists.
"And he thinks if I die… everything will belong to him."
Nana looked at her carefully.
"Yes."
The room fell silent.
Then Nana Rose leaned forward slightly.
"But you, Scarlett… you are different."
Her eyes held a strange mixture of pride and concern.
"The power awakened in you because your soul experienced something extraordinary."
Scarlett's chest tightened.
"Nana… the trauma I went through… it came from my past life."
Nana blinked in confusion.
"Your past life?"
She looked at Scarlett carefully.
"What do you mean?"
Scarlett lifted her head slowly and met Nana's eyes.
"Nana… this is my second life."
Her voice trembled.
"I died at the hands of Ethan and the rest of the family."
The words hung heavily in the air.
"And today… I woke up again in the classroom."
Nana Rose finally understood why Scarlett had been crying when she came home earlier.
Why she had suddenly promised to protect her.
Nana remained silent for a moment, thinking carefully.
Then she spoke gently.
"Don't worry, baby."
She placed her hand over Scarlett's.
"You will tell me everything that happened in your previous life. We will make sure that tragedy never happens again."
She paused before continuing.
"And because of that trauma… your power awakened earlier than it should have through the bloodline."
Scarlett looked at Nana with a mixture of anger and sadness.
For the next two hours, she told Nana everything.
The betrayal.
The lies.
The cruelty of the people she once called family.
Even the friends who had turned their backs on her.
Not once did Scarlett shed a tear as she told the story.
But Nana Rose's expression grew colder with every word.
By the end, Nana looked both furious and heartbroken.
She pulled Scarlett into a tight embrace.
"My baby… I'm so sorry."
Her voice trembled.
"I'm sorry I left you alone so early in that life. I wish I had been there to protect you… to love you… to tell you everything would be okay."
She held Scarlett even tighter.
"But this time will be different."
Her voice became firm.
"You will not face this alone."
"Your Nana will stand beside you every step of the way."
Scarlett closed her eyes as tears finally fell.
Nana Rose slowly pulled back and looked at her.
Then she said something that made the air feel heavier.
"But Scarlett… the power you awakened is only the beginning."
Scarlett looked at her.
"What do you mean?"
Nana Rose's voice dropped to a whisper.
"Because the ability you have right now… is not the true power of our family."
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