Liora has to become Lyra

Liora’s POV

All I ever wanted was a peaceful and happy life. Since I was a child, I worked hard to be the best in school, hoping to make my parents proud. I believed that if I succeeded, I could make them happy too. But that calm life I tried to build fell apart the moment my twin sister went missing. No one knew what had happened to her.

Even though we were twins, our lives were very different. I was raised by our parents, but Lyra was raised by our uncle, Silas. We only saw each other a few times growing up, and from the way she acted around me, I could tell she didn’t like me. Maybe it was because we looked too much alike.

When my mother suddenly asked me to come home, I had a bad feeling. I lived in an apartment and worked quite far from their house, and they had never called me back so urgently. When I arrived, I saw Uncle Silas looking at me with a strange sadness in his eyes. And then the news came, Lyra had disappeared without a trace.

Lyra wasn’t just anyone, she was a famous model and, more importantly, she was married into the Damian family, one of the most powerful families in the country. If word got out that she had vanished, it could ruin our entire extended family’s business. I remembered hearing from my mother years ago that Lyra’s marriage had to stay secret. To the public, Lyra was known only as Uncle Silas’s daughter. No one even knew I existed.

Then, things got worse. I overheard a conversation between Uncle Silas and my father.

“Kellan, don’t forget your promise,” Silas said coldly. “You chose to marry Lilian, someone sent to kill me. I let her live because you promised me that one day, if I asked for your lives, you’d give them.”

I didn’t understand what was going on, but I could see the fear in my mother’s eyes. I held onto her arm, trying to comfort her, but she was shaking. Losing Lyra had clearly broken her heart, especially since Lyra had been taken away from her as a child by Uncle Silas.

“What do you want?” my father asked.

“I want Liora to take Lyra’s place,” Uncle Silas replied.

I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. The room suddenly felt colder. My mother stood up, and what she did next shocked me to my core, she fell to her knees in front of Uncle Silas, begging him.

I tried to pull her up, but she pushed me away.

“Kill me instead,” she sobbed. “I won’t let you take another child from me.”

“Take?” Uncle Silas laughed bitterly. “You destroyed this family the moment you revealed the truth about our past. Everything fell apart because of you.”

“That’s enough, Silas!” my father snapped.

“No, Kellan,” Silas shot back. “You’re the one who made our lives this hard. If you had walked away from the criminal world when I told you to, none of this would’ve happened. You lost the man who raised us because of your choices. Now, the entire family is on the verge of collapsing.”

My father pulled out a gun from his waistband and pointed it at his own head.

“Dad, no! Please don’t!” I cried out. “If you die, I swear I’ll follow you right after.”

He lowered the gun instantly.

“There’s no other way,” Uncle Silas said darkly. “Liora has to become Lyra. If Draven finds out Lyra is gone, we’ll all be the ones to pay for it. The only way to keep things safe is for Lyra to return to her home. That means you, Liora.”

“What do you mean?” my father asked, his expression was very sharp.

“It’s been two months since Lyra left her four-year-old son behind,” Uncle Silas explained. “He’s the only heir of Draven Damian, since Draven’ first wife only had daughters. That boy, Dante, is also your grandson. He cries every day for his mother. Lyra left without warning, and the Damian family is under a lot of pressure. We can’t let them find out she’s missing.”

“You’re out of your mind!” my father shouted. “You want Liora to live with that mafia boss, Draven? Are you trying to destroy my daughter like you did to Lyra? Haven’t you caused enough pain already?”

Uncle Silas looked at my father with a heavy expression. “Lyra got herself involved. She pushed Draven into marrying her. Draven is not someone you argue with. He’s cold, dangerous, and capable of killing anyone without thinking twice. Laws mean nothing to him. He once wiped out the Ramos family just because the head of the household dared to speak to his maid’s daughter.”

“But why Liora?” Mama cried, her voice breaking. “This is all because of Lyra, and you! You took her from me, Silas. Why did you let her get involved with someone like him?”

Tears rolled down my cheeks as I listened.

“I spoiled her,” Uncle Silas said, his voice full of regret. “I gave her everything she ever wanted. But now Draven has given me a deadline. Three days. If I don’t bring Lyra back, our company will collapse, thousands of employees will lose their jobs and worse, he said he’ll take my head for making his son cry.”

Fear and confusion gripped me. I could hardly breathe.

“That’s not our problem!” Papa snapped. “I won’t let Liora take her place. She deserves a life of her own, not this madness!”

I felt tears build up again. My father’s words touched me deeply.

Uncle Silas sighed heavily. “Then you’ll all be buried with me,” he said, his voice filled with threat.

I shook my head slowly. “Uncle…” I whispered. “I’ll do it. I’ll take Lyra’s place.”

“No! Don’t!” Mama screamed. “You can’t, my child!”

I turned to her and Papa. “I love both of you. That’s why I’ll do this. I’ll pretend to be Lyra until she comes back.”

Mama broke down in sobs while Papa pulled me into a tight hug.

I didn’t know if I was doing the right thing, but I knew this, I'd do anything to protect my family. They mean everything to me. No matter what happens, I’ll find the strength to carry on.

“I’m sorry, Mama. I know this decision breaks your heart, but it’s the only way. I pray Lyra returns soon… so I can go back to being myself again. I

promise, Mama. I’ll survive this.”