Chapter 5 — The Sister Who Wanted More
Chapter 5 — The Sister Who Wanted More
Lauren was crying when Nathan Reed drove away.
I didn't know that yet.
All I knew was that my daughter was upstairs, an envelope containing her photograph lay in James's hand, and someone had just proven they could reach inside our home whenever they wanted.
I stood beside the crib, unable to move.
Emma had finally stopped crying.
She was sleeping.
Completely unaware that the adults around her were falling apart.
James stared at the open window.
Then at the photograph.
“She's been watched.”
My throat tightened.
“For how long?”
“I don't know.”
“Lauren?”
“Possibly.”
“Reed?”
“Possibly.”
“Who else?”
He didn't answer.
That frightened me more than anything else.
“James.”
He turned toward me.
“We need to move her.”
“Where?”
“Somewhere secure.”
“My mother's?”
“No.”
“My father's?”
“No.”
“Then where?”
He looked at me.
“Someone neither of them knows.”
I frowned.
“Who?”
“My old commanding officer.”
I stared at him.
“Another military man?”
“Yes.”
“James, I'm starting to think military men are the reason my life is falling apart.”
Despite everything, the corner of his mouth almost lifted.
“Fair.”
Then Emma stirred.
We both looked at her.
She opened her eyes.
James immediately softened.
“Hey, sweetheart.”
He leaned over the crib.
Emma reached for him.
He picked her up.
I watched him hold her.
The fear in his face disappeared.
For a few seconds, he wasn't Captain Walker.
He was simply her father.
And I realized something.
Whatever James had done in the past, whatever secrets he had kept, he would do anything to protect our daughter.
But I also realized something else.
If Lauren had been part of this for years—
I needed to know why.
Not what she had done.
Why.
The next morning, Lauren called me.
I almost didn't answer.
James stood beside me.
“Put it on speaker.”
I nodded.
“Hello?”
Lauren's voice was quiet.
“Emily.”
“Where are you?”
“I can't tell you.”
“Are you with Reed?”
Silence.
Then:
“Yes.”
My heart tightened.
“Why?”
“He has Sophie.”
“You helped him.”
“I didn't know what he was going to do.”
“You knew enough.”
“I know.”
“You were paid.”
“I know.”
“You followed Emma.”
“I know.”
My voice broke.
“Why?”
Lauren began crying.
“I wanted something.”
“What?”
“Everything.”
I didn't understand.
“What does that mean?”
“I wanted Dad's approval.”
I stared at the phone.
“Lauren…”
“You always had it.”
“No.”
“Yes.”
“You had everything.”
“I had nothing.”
“That isn't true.”
“You were the smart one.”
“I wasn't.”
“You were.”
“You were beautiful.”
“I hated that.”
“You had Mom's attention.”
“You had Dad's.”
“You had the life everyone wanted.”
I couldn't believe what I was hearing.
“All I wanted was to be seen.”
“You hit my daughter.”
“I know.”
“You threatened me.”
“I know.”
“You helped people who wanted to hurt her.”
“I know.”
“And you think this is because you weren't seen?”
“No.”
Her voice cracked.
“I think it's because I was stupid.”
Silence.
Then she whispered:
“And because someone finally offered me what I had always wanted.”
“What?”
“Power.”
I sat down.
James remained standing.
“What did Reed promise you?”
“He said he could give me control of the trust.”
My heart stopped.
“The Blackridge trust?”
“Yes.”
“Why would he give you that?”
“Because he needed someone inside the family.”
I looked at James.
“Inside the family.”
“Yes.”
“That's why you came to Emma's hospital room.”
Lauren began crying again.
“Yes.”
“You were looking for the mark.”
“I didn't know what it meant.”
“Did Reed tell you?”
“He said it was proof.”
“Proof of what?”
“That Emma was the heir.”
I stared at James.
He closed his eyes.
Lauren continued.
“I thought if I helped him, he'd make me rich.”
“Did he?”
“No.”
“What happened?”
“He changed the deal.”
“How?”
“He said I wasn't getting money anymore.”
“What did he want?”
“He wanted the child.”
My stomach dropped.
“You mean Emma?”
“Yes.”
I felt sick.
“You agreed?”
“I didn't know he wanted to hurt her.”
“You were willing to give him my daughter.”
“No.”
“You were.”
“I was wrong.”
“Wrong isn't the word.”
“I know.”
“Then what is?”
Lauren was silent.
“Desperate.”
I closed my eyes.
“You chose money over your own niece.”
“Yes.”
“And now?”
“I want to fix it.”
“How?”
“I need your help.”
James immediately shook his head.
“No.”
Lauren heard him.
“James.”
“You've lost the right to ask Emily for anything.”
“I know.”
“You lied to her.”
“I know.”
“You put Emma in danger.”
“I know.”
“And now you're asking her to trust you?”
“No.”
Lauren's voice became almost a whisper.
“I'm asking her to listen.”
Lauren gave us an address.
A motel outside the city.
She told us she had escaped from Reed.
James didn't believe her.
Neither did I.
But she said something that changed everything.
“Reed has the original ledger.”
James froze.
“The Blackridge ledger?”
“Yes.”
“Where?”
“He keeps it with him.”
“Why?”
“Because it's the only thing protecting him.”
“From whom?”
“Everyone.”
Lauren continued.
“He doesn't want the trust.”
“Then what does he want?”
“He wants revenge.”
James looked at me.
I felt a chill.
“Revenge for what?”
Lauren said:
“His daughter.”
Silence.
“What daughter?”
“Sophie.”
I stared at the phone.
“Sophie is Reed's daughter?”
“Yes.”
My mind raced.
“Then why did you say she was Bennett's daughter?”
“Because that was the story.”
“Lauren.”
“I swear.”
“Who was Thomas Bennett?”
“Reed's closest friend.”
I looked at James.
He nodded slowly.
Lauren continued.
“Thomas agreed to raise Sophie under his name to protect her.”
“Protect her from whom?”
“General Hale.”
“Why?”
“Because Hale wanted Sophie.”
“Why would he want a child?”
“Because Sophie saw something.”
“What?”
“The murder.”
My blood ran cold.
“What murder?”
Lauren's voice dropped.
“Your mother's.”
I couldn't breathe.
James immediately took the phone from me.
“Lauren.”
“Yes.”
“Explain.”
“She saw what happened.”
“Who?”
“Everyone.”
“Who killed Emily's mother?”
Lauren hesitated.
“General Hale ordered it.”
James's eyes hardened.
“And who carried it out?”
Silence.
Then Lauren said:
“Your father.”
I looked at James.
He froze.
“My father?”
“Yes.”
“That doesn't make sense.”
“It does.”
“No.”
“He was there.”
“My father?”
“Yes.”
Lauren's voice broke.
“He wasn't supposed to kill her.”
“Then what happened?”
“He panicked.”
“What did he do?”
“He gave the order.”
“To whom?”
Lauren whispered:
“To James.”
The room went silent.
I looked at my husband.
His face had gone pale.
“No,” he whispered.
Lauren continued.
“Your father told James to secure the house.”
James shook his head.
“That isn't what happened.”
“Then tell her.”
“I was told to protect Evelyn's mother.”
“You were told to make sure she couldn't leave.”
James looked like he had been punched.
“What?”
Lauren was crying.
“I heard the recording.”
“What recording?”
“The one Reed has.”
James stared at the phone.
“Where is it?”
“I don't know.”
“Lauren!”
“He showed it to me.”
“What did it say?”
“He said—”
She stopped.
“Lauren?”
“I can't.”
“You have to.”
“He said your father gave the order.”
“Which order?”
Lauren's voice trembled.
“To make sure she never reached the press.”
My stomach twisted.
“Did James know?”
“No.”
James closed his eyes.
“I didn't.”
“I know.”
“Then why did Reed blame me?”
“Because you were there.”
James stared at the floor.
Lauren whispered:
“He wanted you to believe you failed her.”
The call suddenly ended.
We drove to the motel.
James insisted we take precautions.
Two vehicles.
A secure route.
No phones connected to our normal accounts.
For the first time, I realized how far beyond ordinary family drama this had become.
We were no longer dealing with an angry sister.
We were dealing with people who had been lying for eight years.
People who had money.
Connections.
Information.
And possibly no limits.
When we reached the motel, Lauren was waiting beside a vending machine.
She looked completely different.
Her expensive coat was gone.
Her hair was messy.
Her face was swollen from crying.
She looked small.
Not dangerous.
Just broken.
James approached first.
“Where is Reed?”
“I don't know.”
“Are you sure?”
“Yes.”
“How did you get away?”
“I ran.”
“From where?”
“His house.”
“Where?”
She shook her head.
“I don't know.”
James didn't believe her.
I stepped forward.
“Why did you really help him?”
She looked at me.
“I told you.”
“Not enough.”
She looked away.
“Dad never loved me.”
I frowned.
“That isn't true.”
“It is.”
“He loved you.”
“He tolerated me.”
“That isn't the same thing.”
Lauren laughed bitterly.
“Do you know what Dad said when I asked him for help with my business?”
“What?”
“He said, ‘Ask Emily.’”
I felt guilty.
“I didn't know.”
“Of course you didn't.”
She wiped her tears.
“You never knew.”
“Because you never told me.”
“Would you have helped?”
“Yes.”
She laughed.
“You don't understand.”
“Then explain.”
She looked at me.
“I didn't want your help.”
“What did you want?”
“I wanted to be you.”
The words hurt more than I expected.
“I wanted Dad to look at me the way he looked at you.”
“Lauren…”
“I wanted Mom to trust me.”
“You could have.”
“I wanted to be the daughter people were proud of.”
I shook my head.
“You didn't need to hurt Emma.”
“I know.”
“You didn't need to hurt me.”
“I know.”
“You chose this.”
She nodded.
“Yes.”
Then she reached into her bag.
She pulled out a small recording device.
“This is why I called you.”
James took it.
“What is it?”
“Reed's recording.”
He looked at her.
“You stole it?”
“Yes.”
“Why?”
“Because I realized he was never going to let me go.”
James examined the device.
“What's on it?”
Lauren looked at me.
“The truth about your mother.”
We returned home.
James connected the recorder to his laptop.
A file appeared.
BLACKRIDGE_FINAL_08.
He clicked it.
Static.
Then voices.
My father's voice.
My mother's.
A younger James.
And another man.
General Hale.
The recording began.
Hale: “She knows.”
My father: “She won't speak.”
My mother: “You don't understand. I already sent copies.”
My breath caught.
Hale: “Then we have a problem.”
My father: “Don't touch her.”
Hale: “You promised cooperation.”
My father: “I promised silence.”
Hale: “And now?”
A pause.
Then my father spoke.
“Make sure she doesn't leave.”
James stopped breathing.
I looked at him.
His eyes were fixed on the screen.
The recording continued.
James: “Sir, what exactly are my orders?”
My father: “Keep her inside until we arrive.”
James: “Is she dangerous?”
My father: “No.”
A pause.
James: “Then why am I here?”
No answer.
Then my mother's voice.
“James, if you can hear me, don't trust them.”
The recording ended.
Silence.
James stared at the laptop.
“I didn't know.”
I touched his arm.
“I believe you.”
He looked at me.
“Do you?”
“Yes.”
He looked like he might cry.
Then the recorder suddenly played another file.
We all froze.
A man's voice.
Nathan Reed.
“This is not the whole recording.”
Lauren stepped backward.
“What?”
Reed continued.
“The missing section contains the name of the person who ordered the killing.”
James stared at the screen.
Then another voice appeared.
A woman's voice.
My mother.
“If they kill me, tell Emily that the man she calls her father is not her biological father.”
I stopped breathing.
James looked at me.
Lauren covered her mouth.
My father's voice followed.
“She can never know.”
The recording ended.
No one spoke.
I couldn't hear anything except my own heartbeat.
My father wasn't my biological father.
My mother had known.
James had never known.
Lauren had never known.
And somewhere, Nathan Reed possessed the missing section.
Then my phone buzzed.
A message.
Unknown number.
Now you understand why they wanted Emma.
Another message appeared.
She is not the first heir.
And then the final one:
You are.
I stared at the screen.
My entire life had just changed.
Not because Lauren had betrayed me.
Not because Reed was alive.
Not because Blackridge had returned.
But because the family I thought I belonged to—
might never have been my family at all.
And somewhere in the city, Nathan Reed was holding the final piece of the truth.
May you like
The piece that could tell me who my real father was.
And why my daughter had inherited a fortune that had already destroyed three generations of our family.
