Rebirth Of The Heiress And The Tycoon's Lover (Alina) novel Chapter 268

Chapter 268

AUTHOR’S POV.

The world around Alina felt weightless. The silence was so thick it almost hummed, yet somewhere beneath it, faint echoes rippled… laughter, footsteps, the sound of her own voice, small and airy.

She blinked, and the sterile white ceiling of the infirmary melted away. Suddenly, she was standing in a long corridor washed in golden light. The air smelled faintly of roses and freshly polished wood. The floor beneath her bare feet gleamed, the same mahogany tiles she remembered from somewhere deep inside her bones.

Her lips parted as she looked around. “Where… am I?” She whispered, her voice trembling with awe.

Then she heard it,the sound of light giggles.

Her heart froze.

Up ahead, a little girl darted past two maids, her laughter echoing through the hall. She wore a white frilly dress, her golden–brown curls bouncing wildly as she ran barefoot, clutching a stuffed bunny to her chest.

One of the maids, panting, called out, “Lady Dahlia! Come back here, you’ll trip!”

Alina’s breath caught. Lady Dahlia.

The child turned around and her world tilted. It was her.

Her four–year–old self stood there, eyes bright like twin stars, cheeks flushed with excitement. She giggled mischievously. “You’ll never catch me, Mariam!”

The maids laughed, pretending to chase her, skirts swaying as they tried to corner her. Alina pressed her trembling hand to her lips, tears stinging her eyes as she whispered, “That’s… me.”

She could almost feel the childish joy radiating from her younger self, the kind of laughter untouched by fear or loss. The manor was alive then, filled with warmth, with love.

Her heart clenched painfully.

The little girl hid behind a marble pillar, peeking at the maids, her small hand clutching the bunny tighter. “Shhh, Bun–Bun,” she whispered with a giggle. “We have to be quiet, or they’ll find us!”

Alina felt her throat tighten. She wanted to reach out, to touch that tiny version of herself, to tell her to keep laughing, to never forget this light. But her hand passed through the air like smoke.

The scene shimmered.

The giggles faded, replaced by the sound of boys arguing playfully. When Alina turned, she found herself outside, in the garden.

The air was crisp, the sun warm on her skin. She saw them, two boys around the same age, wrestling on the grass, both laughing. One of them, Damien, had dirt smeared on his cheek, his grin bright and unrestrained.

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Chapter 268

The other boy, the one with Hazel eyes and calm composure, was Lucius.

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And there she was again,her younger self standing near the fountain, watching them, her bunny hanging from

her small hand.

“Lucius!” little Dahlia called, her voice full of authority despite her size. “You’re cheating!”

Lucius turned, a faint smile tugging at his lips. “I’m not cheating. Damien just doesn’t know when to give up.”

“Hey!” Damien protested, laughing as he threw a handful of grass at him.

The maids scolded from afar, but their laughter betrayed their fondness for the trio.

Little Dahlia crossed her arms, her lower lip jutting out. “Lucius, you always win. That’s not fair.”

Lucius crouched down, brushing the grass off his sleeves. “That’s because you never want to play my side.”

Her tiny face softened immediately. “I can be on your side next time,” she offered shyly, then giggled. “But only if you promise to let me win too.”

Lucius laughed softly, a sound so gentle it made Alina’s heart twist. “Alright, deal.”

Damien groaned dramatically, flopping onto the grass. “Ugh, you’re both ganging up on me! No fair!”

Little Dahlia burst into laughter, skipping toward him. “You can be the monster next time!”

“I’m always the monster!” Damien cried in mock offense, making her laugh harder.

Watching them, Alina felt a deep ache build inside her, a longing so heavy it stole her breath. She could see the innocence, the bond they shared long before betrayal and tragedy stained it.

The garden around her shimmered again, and the laughter dissolved into a new scene.

Now, she was in a corridor lined with portraits… portraits of the Stormvale lineage. The air was cooler here, quieter. She could see her younger self again, tiptoeing through the hall with a sketchbook in hand.

Lucius walked ahead, his hands clasped behind his back in that calm, precise manner she had come to know so well.

“You shouldn’t be following me, Dahlia.” He said, his tone soft but firm.

“But I want to,” she replied with a stubborn little frown. “You always go to boring meetings, and I don’t get to see you all day.”

He turned slightly, amusement flickering in his eyes. “That’s because I’m older. I have responsibilities.”

He was just ten.

“I don’t care,” she said defiantly. “When I grow up, I’ll marry you. Then we can always be together.”

Alina, standing in the hall as an observer, felt her chest tighten so sharply it hurt.

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Chapter 268

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Lucius chuckled then that warm sound that always made the air hum. “You can’t just decide that, Dahlia.”

“Yes, I can!” the little girl insisted, her hands on her hips. “You’ll see. You’ll have to say yes.”

He bent slightly, looking her in the eye, his expression softening. “And if I do?”

She grinned so wide it lit up the entire corridor. “Then I’ll make you cookies every day and braid your hair.”

Lucius laughed, shaking his head. “I don’t have long enough hair.”

“Then I’ll grow it for you!” she said proudly, and they both burst into laughter.

The sight tore Alina apart. She could feel tears slipping down her cheeks. “God…” she whispered, clutching her chest. “They weren’t lying, I really loved him back then.”

Her voice was lost in the echo of their laughter.

But then…everything changed.

The corridor dimmed, and shadows crept in. The warmth of the manor began to fade, replaced by a chill that sank into her skin.

When she opened her eyes again, she was standing before the heavy double doors of the drawing room.

Her breath hitched. The same doors. The same ones from the nightmare.

Her small hand trembled as she reached for the handle, though she knew somehow that it wasn’t really her hand. She was only watching, reliving.

Inside, her younger self sat on a velvet chair, her legs swinging nervously. Xander stood nearby, arranging a small tray with silver instruments, a needle gleaming under the chandelier’s light.

Lucius stood beside her, his face calm but his eyes… they were soft, almost sorrowful.

“Lucius,” little Dahlia said, clutching her bunny. “Why are they bringing needles? I don’t like needles.”

Lucius crouched beside her, brushing a hand over her hair. “Don’t be afraid. It’ll be quick, I promise.”

Her small voice quivered, “Will it hurt?”

He hesitated. Then, gently, “Maybe a little. But you’ll be brave, won’t you? For me?”

Her lower lip trembled, but she nodded, her small hands gripping the bunny tighter. “For you.”

Zander beacon for them to come close began murmuring something about “binding bloodlines” and “shared fates.”

Alina’s pulse qui

The air felt heavy, thick with dread.

The little girl whimpered when the needle pricked her finger, but Lucius reached out his hand, letting his own blood drop onto the same seal carved into a golden bowl.

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Chapter 268

Their blood mixed, bright crimson swirling together and Xander used it as the ink for the stamp.

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Alina felt herself shaking. She wanted to scream, to stop it, to pull her younger self away ‘No, she whispered. stumbling backward. “No, stop!”

But her voice didn’t reach them.

The girl looked up at Larcius, eyes wet with tears, whispering. “Now you can’t run away again. I will marry you when I am bigger?”

Lucius smiled faintly, brushing a tear from her cheek. “Yes, Dahlia. You can.”

The room flickered. The light dimmed, then exploded in a blinding white.

Alina gasped, clutching her head as the sounds overlapped… laughter, crying, whispers, promises, all crashing together in her mind.

She saw the maids calling her name, Damien laughing, Lucius holding her hand.

All at once, her past, her innocence, her pain… everything returned.

And just before the vision shattered, she saw her younger self turn toward her, those wide, tearful eyes meeting hers.

“Remember,” the child whispered softly. “Don’t forget him this time.”