CHAPTER 10 — THE SEALED ENVELOPE
CHAPTER 10 — THE SEALED ENVELOPE
The rain began just after midnight.
It struck the windshield of Nathan's car so violently that the city lights became nothing more than blurred streaks of gold and white.
Nathan drove without speaking.
Daniel sat beside him, staring at the road.
Victoria was in the back seat.
No one had asked her to come.
She had simply refused to stay behind.
They were heading toward the abandoned Cole research facility outside the city—the place Richard had used to hold the children.
But Nathan's mind was somewhere else.
On the final image from the foundation.
Grace.
Lily.
Adrian.
And the third child.
Alive.
For years, Nathan had believed his family consisted of one father, one mother, and himself.
Then Grace had revealed Lily.
Then Adrian had appeared.
Then his supposedly dead mother returned.
Now there was another child.
Another heir.
Another secret.
And somewhere behind all of it stood Edward Cole.
A dead man who apparently wasn't dead.
Nathan tightened his grip on the steering wheel.
“Something isn't right.”
Daniel looked at him.
“What?”
“Richard wanted us to see the children.”
“Yes.”
“He wanted us to know where they were.”
“Yes.”
“That means he expects us to come.”
Victoria leaned forward.
“It's a trap.”
Nathan glanced at her through the mirror.
“I know.”
“Then we shouldn't go.”
“We have to.”
“No. We don't.”
Nathan's eyes hardened.
“They have Grace.”
Victoria lowered her voice.
“They may have wanted you to think they have her.”
Nathan slammed the brakes.
The car stopped on the empty road.
Daniel looked at him.
Nathan turned toward Victoria.
“What did you just say?”
Victoria swallowed.
“I said—”
“No.”
Nathan stared at her.
“You said they may have wanted you to think they have her.”
Victoria looked away.
“How would you know that?”
Silence.
Nathan's voice became dangerously quiet.
“How would you know?”
Victoria's eyes filled with tears.
“I don't.”
“You do.”
“I have a feeling.”
“Victoria.”
She finally broke.
“I was there.”
Nathan stared.
“Where?”
“At the facility.”
“When?”
“Before the foundation.”
Nathan's face hardened.
“What did you see?”
Victoria whispered:
“The children weren't prisoners.”
Daniel frowned.
“What?”
“They were being protected.”
Nathan stared at her.
“Protected from whom?”
Victoria looked at him.
“Your father.”
THE FACILITY
The abandoned research center looked dead from the outside.
Broken windows.
Rusting fences.
Weeds growing through concrete.
But Nathan noticed something immediately.
A new security camera.
Then another.
Then another.
Someone was still operating the place.
He raised his hand.
Daniel stopped.
“Stay behind me.”
They entered through a side door.
Inside, the air smelled of disinfectant.
Too clean.
Too recent.
Nathan looked around.
“This place isn't abandoned.”
“No,” Victoria whispered.
A light flickered overhead.
Then a voice came through the corridor.
“You came.”
Nathan froze.
Richard stepped into view.
He wore a dark suit.
His silver watch glinted beneath the fluorescent light.
There was no gun in his hand.
That made Nathan more suspicious.
“Where are they?”
Richard smiled.
“Always straight to business.”
“You know what I want.”
“I know what you think you want.”
Nathan stepped forward.
“Where are Grace and the children?”
Richard's smile disappeared.
“They're safe.”
“Bring them out.”
“Not yet.”
Nathan clenched his fists.
“Then we're going to have a problem.”
Richard looked at Victoria.
“You brought her.”
Victoria's face went pale.
Richard laughed softly.
“She knows.”
Nathan turned.
“Knows what?”
Victoria didn't answer.
Richard did.
“She knows why your mother disappeared.”
Nathan's eyes narrowed.
“Tell me.”
Richard shook his head.
“Not here.”
“Then where?”
Richard pointed toward a door.
“Your father's office.”
Nathan's blood ran cold.
“My father worked here?”
“Your father owned this place.”
Richard opened the door.
Nathan stepped inside.
The room was perfectly preserved.
A wooden desk.
Leather chair.
Old photographs.
A wall covered with medical charts.
Nathan walked toward the desk.
Then stopped.
There was a nameplate.
EDWARD M. COLE
Nathan touched it.
“Why did he keep this?”
Richard stood behind him.
“Because this is where everything began.”
Nathan turned.
“What began?”
Richard smiled.
“The second family.”
THE SECOND FAMILY
Richard walked toward a bookshelf.
He pulled out a book.
A hidden compartment opened behind it.
Inside was a small metal safe.
Richard entered a code.
The safe opened.
Nathan stared.
Inside were dozens of envelopes.
All sealed.
All dated.
Some were more than twenty years old.
Richard picked up one.
“This one is yours.”
Nathan took it.
His name was written across the front.
NATHAN COLE — OPEN ONLY AFTER EDWARD'S DEATH.
Nathan looked at Richard.
“You've had this all these years?”
“Yes.”
“Why didn't you give it to me?”
“Because Edward never wanted you to have it.”
“Then why are you giving it to me now?”
Richard looked at him.
“Because Edward is no longer the only person who can destroy you.”
Nathan frowned.
“What does that mean?”
Richard stepped away.
“Read it.”
Nathan broke the seal.
Inside was a single letter.
His father's handwriting.
Nathan began reading.
Nathan,
If you're reading this, then you have finally discovered the truth about Grace.
She was never the danger.
I was.
I separated you because I believed the Cole empire needed protection from you.
You were too compassionate.
Too willing to sacrifice wealth for people.
I needed an heir who would understand that blood was power.
But I made one mistake.
I underestimated your mother.
Nathan's hands tightened.
He continued.
Your mother discovered the existence of my second family.
She discovered that I had been funding genetic research through the Cole Foundation.
She discovered Michael Reed's work.
And she discovered the children.
Daniel was the first.
Adrian was the second.
Lily was the third.
But there was another child.
A child whose existence was never recorded.
Nathan stopped.
His breathing became shallow.
Another child.
Not three.
Four.
He looked at Richard.
“You said there were three.”
Richard said nothing.
Nathan continued reading.
The fourth child was not created by love.
He was created by desperation.
And he was the only one who could inherit everything.
Nathan's eyes widened.
The letter continued.
If you find him, don't trust him.
He has been raised to believe that the empire belongs to him.
He has been taught that you are his enemy.
But remember this:
The person who controls the fourth child controls the Cole empire.
Nathan lowered the letter.
“Where is the fourth child?”
Richard's face changed.
“Edward never told you?”
“No.”
Richard looked toward the hallway.
“He's here.”
THE BOY BEHIND THE DOOR
A small door opened at the end of the corridor.
A boy walked out.
He couldn't have been more than eight.
Dark hair.
Pale skin.
A serious expression.
Nathan stared.
The boy looked familiar.
Not like Lily.
Not like Adrian.
Like him.
Like Nathan himself.
The child stopped.
“Are you Nathan?”
Nathan swallowed.
“Yes.”
The boy studied him.
“You look like me.”
Nathan couldn't answer.
Richard smiled.
“This is Alexander.”
Nathan stared at the child.
“Who is his mother?”
Richard said nothing.
“Who is his father?”
Again, silence.
The boy answered himself.
“Grandfather said you were my brother.”
Nathan's heart stopped.
“Brother?”
Alexander nodded.
“He said we share blood.”
Nathan stepped closer.
“Do you know Grace?”
The boy shook his head.
“Do you know Lily?”
“No.”
“Adrian?”
“No.”
“Who do you know?”
Alexander looked at Richard.
“Mr. Richard.”
Nathan's expression darkened.
“Where is my mother?”
Alexander looked confused.
“Your mother?”
“My mother.”
“Oh.”
He pointed down the corridor.
“She was here.”
Nathan turned.
“Where?”
“She left yesterday.”
“With whom?”
Alexander looked frightened.
“With Grandfather.”
Nathan's blood ran cold.
“Edward?”
The boy nodded.
Nathan stared at Richard.
“You told me Edward was dead.”
Richard smiled.
“I told you the body was buried.”
Nathan's face hardened.
“Where is he?”
Richard stepped backward.
“Closer than you think.”
Suddenly, the lights went out.
A gunshot echoed.
Daniel shouted.
“DOWN!”
Nathan grabbed Alexander and pulled him to the floor.
Another shot struck the wall.
Victoria screamed.
Then silence.
When the emergency lights came on, Richard was gone.
And so was Alexander.
THE LOCKED ROOM
Nathan searched the facility room by room.
“Alexander!”
No answer.
Daniel found a bloodstain near the corridor.
Nathan's stomach dropped.
“Is it his?”
Daniel examined it.
“No.”
“Whose?”
“I don't know.”
Nathan opened another door.
Inside was a small bedroom.
A child's bed.
Toys.
Books.
And photographs.
Hundreds of them.
Nathan picked one up.
Alexander as a baby.
Then another.
Alexander with Edward.
Then another.
Alexander with Grace.
Nathan froze.
Grace was holding the baby.
She was crying.
On the back was a date.
Five years earlier.
Nathan's eyes filled with confusion.
“Grace knew him.”
Victoria stood in the doorway.
“Yes.”
Nathan turned.
“Tell me everything.”
Victoria shook her head.
“I can't.”
“You will.”
She looked at the photographs.
“Grace wasn't hiding Lily from you.”
Nathan frowned.
“What?”
“She was hiding Alexander.”
“Why?”
“Because he wasn't safe.”
“From whom?”
Victoria whispered:
“From your father.”
GRACE'S SECOND SECRET
Nathan found a hidden recorder beneath the bed.
He pressed play.
Grace's voice filled the room.
She sounded younger.
Terrified.
If you're hearing this, I failed.
I tried to protect all of them.
Lily is Nathan's daughter.
Adrian belongs to Michael's bloodline.
Alexander belongs to Nathan's.
But Alexander was born before Lily.
That means the order was changed.
Nathan stared at the recorder.
Daniel looked confused.
“What does she mean?”
The recording continued.
Edward wanted Alexander to inherit the empire.
He believed Alexander was the perfect heir.
But he didn't know the truth.
Nathan is Alexander's biological father.
And Alexander was born before Nathan ever met me.
Nathan's face went blank.
“No.”
Daniel stared at him.
“That can't be possible.”
Grace continued.
The truth is that Alexander was created from Nathan's genetic material.
Edward took it without Nathan knowing.
He used it to create the child he believed could replace him.
Nathan dropped the recorder.
His mind couldn't process it.
His father had taken his genetic material.
Created a child.
Raised that child as an heir.
Then hidden him.
All without Nathan knowing.
Victoria whispered:
“That's why Edward needed the research.”
Nathan looked at her.
“Where is Grace now?”
“I don't know.”
“You're lying.”
“No.”
“Then who took her?”
Victoria's eyes filled with fear.
“Your father.”
Nathan looked toward the door.
“Then we're finding him.”
THE SEALED ENVELOPE
Daniel suddenly called out.
“Nathan!”
He stood beside the old desk.
“There is another safe.”
Nathan walked over.
Daniel pointed underneath the desk.
A hidden compartment had opened.
Inside was a single envelope.
Unlike the others, this one had no name.
Only four words.
FOR THE REAL HEIR.
Nathan stared.
“Open it.”
Daniel shook his head.
“You should.”
Nathan broke the seal.
Inside was a birth certificate.
Nathan read the name.
His face turned white.
CHILD: ALEXANDER COLE
MOTHER: GRACE BENNETT
FATHER: NATHAN COLE
Nathan's hands shook.
It was official.
Alexander was his biological son.
But the date of birth was impossible.
The boy had been born six years ago.
One year before Nathan had met Grace.
Nathan whispered:
“This isn't possible.”
Then he noticed another document.
A medical report.
The birth mother had not been Grace.
The name had been crossed out.
Someone had written another name over it.
Nathan slowly scratched away the ink.
The original name appeared.
VICTORIA ROBLES.
Nathan stopped breathing.
He turned.
Victoria stood frozen in the doorway.
Her face was drained of color.
Nathan held up the document.
“Is this real?”
Victoria couldn't speak.
“Are you Alexander's mother?”
Tears rolled down her cheeks.
“Yes.”
Nathan stared at her.
The woman he had planned to marry.
The woman who had known about Lily.
The woman who had lied to him.
The woman who had secretly given birth to his son.
But Victoria shook her head.
“I didn't know.”
Nathan's voice broke.
“You didn't know what?”
“That he was yours.”
“Then how?”
“Edward told me the baby died.”
Nathan's expression hardened.
“You gave birth to him.”
“Yes.”
“And Edward took him.”
“Yes.”
“And you believed he was dead.”
Victoria nodded.
Nathan stared at her.
The pieces finally connected.
Edward had taken Victoria's newborn.
He had secretly used Nathan's genetic material.
He had raised Alexander as a future heir.
And he had manipulated Victoria into believing her own child was dead.
But there was still one question.
Why had Edward chosen Victoria?
Victoria whispered the answer.
“Because my family had something your father desperately wanted.”
“What?”
She looked at Nathan.
“Access to the Cole Foundation.”
Nathan frowned.
“What does that mean?”
Victoria stepped closer.
“My father was the foundation's largest private investor.”
Nathan's eyes narrowed.
“And?”
Victoria's voice became almost inaudible.
“He wasn't just an investor.”
Nathan stared.
“He helped Edward create the program.”
Silence filled the room.
Then Victoria said:
“And he is the man who has been controlling the money.”
Nathan's eyes widened.
“Your father?”
Victoria nodded.
“He's alive.”
Nathan looked toward the dark hallway.
“Where?”
Victoria's lips trembled.
“I'm not sure.”
Then the emergency phone rang.
Everyone froze.
Nathan answered.
A distorted voice spoke.
“Now you know about Alexander.”
Nathan's grip tightened.
“Where is Grace?”
“She is alive.”
“Where?”
“Come alone.”
Nathan looked at Daniel.
The voice continued.
“And bring the sealed envelope.”
Nathan looked down at the birth certificate.
“What happens if I don't?”
A pause.
“You'll never see your family again.”
The line went dead.
Nathan stared at the phone.
Then he noticed something written on the inside of the envelope.
A sentence he hadn't seen before.
Written in his father's handwriting.
Never trust the woman who knows too much.
Nathan slowly looked at Victoria.
She was crying.
May you like
And for the first time, Nathan couldn't tell whether she was his enemy…
or the only person left who could lead him to his children.
