My Love Until the Last Goodbye (Mary and Maximus) novel Chapter 922

"I think there's something you need to know..."

"Know what? That he's dead? I know that! I've known for a long time! And believe me, there isn’t a single day I don’t pray for him. Not a day goes by that I don’t think of my son, that I don’t imagine how things should have been… But what good does it do to dwell on something that never was?"

Aria’s voice trembled with emotion. "It broke me to realize I was too late. It broke me to realize I left him alone for years. I was never strong enough to fight for him… Not a day goes by that I don’t blame myself. If I had done more… If I had escaped… If I had confronted my father..."

She inhaled sharply, as if trying to steady herself, but her voice cracked as she continued.

"Maximus, believe me… Even though I never got to know him, never got to hold him, my heart shattered the day Leonardo took me to his grave."

Tears streamed down her face as she collapsed onto a nearby bench, her body trembling. The scene struck Maximus hard—it reminded him of how he had felt when he first heard that Peter was dead.

Kneeling in front of her, he gently took her hands.

"Aria, I know what I’m about to say will sound impossible. It took me a long time to believe it myself. Leonardo never accepted the truth, but… Peter, your son, my brother… he’s not dead."

Aria’s eyes widened in shock, fresh tears spilling over. She stared at him in disbelief, her body instinctively shaking her head in denial.

"You’re lying! What do you want from me? Why would you play with something like this, Maximus Palmer?" she cried, trying to stand up.

"Aria, I’m not lying." Maximus’s voice was steady. "Leonardo showed you pictures of him, didn’t he?"

She hesitated, then slowly nodded.

"Then let me show you something," he said, pulling out his phone and scrolling through his gallery. "Aria, my brother is alive. Not only that, he just became a father again. He has two newborn daughters, an adult son, and a grandson who’s almost six."

He looked at her, gauging her reaction. "And soon, he’ll have another granddaughter. In a few months, his daughter-in-law will give birth to his great-grandchild."

Aria struggled to process his words. How could this be real? How could Leonardo have lied to her like this?

Then again… her own father had stolen her child from her. If he was capable of such cruelty, why wouldn’t Leonardo do the same?

"Here," Maximus said, handing her the phone. "This is Peter—your son."

Aria took the phone in her trembling hands. The moment she laid eyes on the photo, she shot up from the bench, her breath hitching.

Her fingers shook so violently that she dropped the phone.