Chapter 3
Sisterly Bonds
Ariana paced the length of her father's office, the leather soles of her shoes soundless against the thick carpet. Her mind was spinning, and she couldn't shake the image of Elena's face the hurt, the anger. Her sister's words had cut deeper than she wanted to admit, and even now, hours later, they replayed in her head like a broken record.
You think you can just take over everything? Like it was all meant for you?
Ariana paused, gripping the back of her father's chair for support, her knuckles white. Her father's chair. The thought sent a wave of nausea through her. Everything felt wrong. The company. The board. The way her sister had stormed into the meeting, accusing her of things she didn't even want. She hadn't asked for this, she never wanted to be the one to wear the crown.
"Damn it, Elena," Ariana whispered to herself, the weight of the day pressing down on her shoulders. "Why did you have to make this harder?"
The door to the office creaked open slowly, and Ariana snapped her head up, half expecting another board member to come in with questions she wasn't ready to answer. But it wasn't anyone from the company. It was Elena, standing hesitantly in the doorway, her expression unreadable.
Ariana's heart skipped a beat. "Elena?"
Her sister stood there for a moment, biting her lip as if trying to decide whether to come in or walk away. For a moment, Ariana thought she might turn and leave again, but then Elena stepped inside, quietly closing the door behind her.
"I didn't know if you'd want to see me," Elena said softly, crossing her arms over her chest.
Ariana swallowed hard. There was tension, thick and suffocating, in the air between them. "Of course, I want to see you," she said, her voice shaking slightly. "You're my sister."
Elena let out a short, bitter laugh, her eyes flashing with emotion. "Am I? Because lately, it feels like we're just two strangers fighting over the same scraps of a broken empire."
"That's not true, Elena, and you know it." Ariana stepped forward, trying to close the gap between them, but her sister took a small step back, as if keeping her distance was the only way to protect herself. "We're not fighting over anything."
"You're right," Elena replied coldly. "We're not fighting over anything, because it's already been decided, hasn't it? Dad made sure of that."
Ariana winced at the sharpness in her sister's voice. "Elena, I didn't ask for this. I didn't want to take over the company. But Dad chose me. He must have had his reasons."
Elena's eyes darkened, and for a moment, Ariana saw the raw pain beneath the anger. "His reasons? You mean the fact that he never trusted me? That he thought I was too irresponsible, too wild to handle any of this?"
"That's not fair," Ariana said softly, though a part of her knew there was some truth to Elena's words. Their father had always been hard on Elena, especially after she had chosen to distance herself from the business. But that didn't mean he didn't love her.
Elena's jaw clenched, her eyes filling with unshed tears. "It's not about fairness, Ariana. It's about the fact that I was never given a chance. I was always the screw-up, the one who didn't fit into his perfect little vision for the family. And now I don't even have a say in what happens next."
Ariana's heart ached as she listened to her sister. She had never fully understood how deep Elena's resentment went, how much pain she had been carrying. And now, with their father gone, it was all spilling out like an open wound.
"Elena," Ariana began, her voice thick with emotion. "You're not a screw-up. You never were. Dad just had a different way of showing his love."
Elena let out another bitter laugh, this one laced with tears. "Is that what you're telling yourself to make all of this easier? Because it's not making it easier for me."
Ariana felt her throat tighten. She had been trying so hard to keep everything together, to be strong for the company, for the family, but now she realized how much she had overlooked. Elena wasn't just angry about the company she was mourning, too. Mourning their father, mourning the bond they had once shared.
"Look, I don't know how we got here," Ariana said, her voice breaking. "But we're sisters, Elena. We've always been there for each other. Don't let this tear us apart."
Elena shook her head, tears finally spilling down her cheeks. "I don't know if we can go back to the way things were, Ariana. Too much has changed. You're the head of the company now. And me? I'm just the one who ran away."
Ariana stepped forward, her eyes pleading with her sister. "That's not true. You still have a place here. We can figure this out together. Please, Elena, don't shut me out."
For a long, agonizing moment, Elena said nothing. The silence stretched between them, filled with years of unresolved tension and unspoken hurt. Ariana held her breath, waiting for her sister's next words, praying that they wouldn't drive a wedge between them forever.
"I don't know if I can do that," Elena whispered, wiping at her tears with the back of her hand. "It's just… it's too much. All of it."
Ariana reached out, hesitantly placing a hand on her sister's arm. "I know it's a lot. But we need each other now more than ever. Dad's gone, and the only family we have left is each other."
Elena looked down at Ariana's hand on her arm, her expression softening slightly. But the pain in her eyes was still there, raw and exposed. "I want to believe you, Ariana. I really do. But right now, I just don't know."
Ariana's chest tightened, the fear of losing her sister becoming almost unbearable. "Then don't make any decisions now. Just… stay. Let's figure this out together. We've already lost Dad. Don't make me lose you, too."
Elena bit her lip, her gaze flickering between Ariana's pleading eyes and the floor. For a moment, it seemed like she might turn and walk away again, just like she had done after the board meeting. But then, with a shaky sigh, she nodded.
"Alright," Elena said quietly. "I'll stay. For now."
Ariana let out a breath she hadn't realized she was holding, relief washing over her. It wasn't a perfect resolution, but it was a start. She stepped forward, wrapping her arms around her sister in a tentative hug. For a moment, Elena hesitated, her body stiff and unyielding. But then, slowly, she relaxed, her arms coming up to return the embrace.
They stood there for a long time, holding each other in the quiet of their father's office, both of them grieving not just for their father, but for the years they had lost between them.
"Thank you," Ariana whispered, her voice barely audible.
Elena pulled back slightly, her eyes red but more at peace than they had been moments before. "Don't thank me yet," she said, her lips curving into a small, bittersweet smile. "We still have a long way to go."
Ariana nodded, knowing that the road ahead would be difficult. But for the first time since their father's death, she felt a flicker of hope. If they could rebuild their bond, maybe, just maybe they could find a way to navigate the storm together.
As sisters. As family.