Greatest Legacy of the Magus Universe

Chapter 2157: Leap of Faith

By the time Adam returned home, it was late into the night.

As he quietly entered through the front door, he couldn’t help but find it a little amusing.

Sneaking into my own house, he thought.

He quietly locked the door behind him. He was about to head downstairs and add the information he had gathered to his investigation board when suddenly he paused.

A faint light illuminated the third floor as Adam looked up the staircase.

She’s awake.

He briefly hesitated before making his way up to the third floor.

The table lamp on Genevieve’s side of the bed was on. She lay beneath the blanket, comfortably nestled in bed as she read a book. When she heard the faint creak of a floorboard, she turned her attention away from the pages.

Genevieve stared at Adam for a few moments.

Then she smiled faintly. "You’re back."

Adam felt his heart twist.

There was something about the way Genevieve looked at him with subtle scrutiny. The faint smile on her lips. The relief in her voice when she greeted him.

He knew that smile.

Or perhaps he only wished he didn’t.

What excuse should I give her this time?

He had spent the past couple of weeks lying to her, and now he had to do it all over again. He could already imagine himself making up another excuse, offering some vague explanation for his absence while pretending nothing was wrong.

And Genevieve would listen. She wouldn’t question him. She wouldn’t press him for answers. But he knew she was observant enough to recognize the truth behind his words.

She probably already knew he was going to lie to her face again. In all the worlds, no one knew Adam as deeply as her.

He stood there, near the staircase, staring at her while a tug of war raged in his heart.

Genevieve noticed it and grew concerned. She got out of bed and walked toward him. "Is everything all right?"

Adam remained silent as he looked into Genevieve’s cerulean eyes. He glanced at his own reflection in her eyes and all he could see was... shame.

Genevieve’s birth had coincided with her mother’s death.

Almost her entire life had been shaped by a secret. She had grown up with a gap where her parents’ story should have been, with unanswered questions and silences that no one seemed willing to break.

Her grandfather had told her what he could. But the silence surrounding her father had taught her to notice what was left unsaid.

Perhaps her grandfather had thought the same way Adam did. That he was protecting her by keeping her away from the truth. That she was better off not knowing. That troubles would follow if she was privy to it.

Genevieve loved her grandfather. She had even forgiven him for keeping the secret of her ancestry from her.

But that did not mean she had ever chosen to live that way.

And now, another man she loved was making the same decision on her behalf.

Adam lowered his head, unable to look her in the eye all of a sudden.

Genevieve stepped closer, gently cupping his face. "Adam," she murmured. "What happened?"

Adam was still silent.

He hated keeping secrets from her. He hated having to look into those beautiful eyes and pretend that nothing was wrong. Every time he lied to her, he felt as though he was betraying the very trust she had placed in him.

And for what?

To protect her?

From what, exactly?

The truth?

Who had given him the right to decide what she could or could not handle?

"Adam, you’re scaring me," Genevieve said in a trembling voice. "What happened?"

"I, uh..." Adam couldn’t even look her in the eye. He tried to come up with another excuse. Another lie. Something. Anything.

He knew he was being a hypocrite. He himself resented people who kept him in the dark, yet here he was, doing precisely the same thing to the woman he loved with all his heart.

He wanted to believe he was doing this for her sake. That keeping her uninvolved was the safest choice. But deep down, he knew there was more to it than that.

He was afraid.

Afraid that she would get hurt. Afraid that the truth would bring trouble to her doorstep. Afraid that he might lose her if things went wrong.

But those were his fears. Not hers.

And that was the most uncomfortable truth of all.

In trying to protect Genevieve from making a choice that might hurt her, he had denied her the very right to make that choice for herself.

She was his heart. She was his soul. She was his. And he was hers.

So why was he afraid to trust her?

Genevieve had given him her unconditional love and trust and loyalty, yet he continued to keep her at arm’s length whenever trouble arose.

He had secrets he could never reveal, such as the Lotus and the Mask. But this was different. He could tell her about his investigation, the reason why he was away from her most nights.

Taking a deep breath, Adam gently held Genevieve’s hand and kissed her knuckles.

It was time to take a leap of faith.

"You’re too good for me," he whispered to her.

He would tell her what he knew. He would tell her what he suspected. And if she wanted to become involved, he would at least hear her out instead of deciding on her behalf.

He might still have secrets he couldn’t reveal. But he didn’t have to keep every burden to himself.

What was the point of sharing a life with someone if he couldn’t even trust her with the parts of it that frightened him?

"Come," he said. "I want to show you something."

He led her down the stairs, toward his laboratory. Genevieve was silent all the way, curious and a little nervous about what Adam was going to reveal to her.

"I’m sorry I kept it hidden from you for all this while," he said as he walked toward the false wall. "Thought I was protecting you. Selfish, I know."

He activated the mechanism. The walls parted, revealing the vast board filled with parchments and connecting red threads.

"I’ve been working on this secret project." Adam walked back and stood beside Genevieve.

He kept staring at the board, a little scared of how she might react.

"Sorry for lying to you," he murmured.

"Thank you," Genevieve said softly.

Adam blinked. He turned to her, a little surprised. He had braced for anger, for tears, for a cold shoulder. He did not expect gratitude.

Genevieve looked to him and simply smiled.

Adam stared at her, secretly ashamed of how little he thought of her.

"You’re not... mad?" he asked.

"No, Adam." Genevieve shook her head. "But I would be lying if I said I wasn’t a little hurt. I knew you were keeping something from me. But I also know you did it because you wanted to protect me. So how can I be mad?"

Adam nodded slowly.

Genevieve slipped her hand around his neck and pressed her forehead against his.

"So thank you for trusting me," she said from the bottom of her heart. "I’ve got you. We’ll figure this mystery out together."