CHAPTER 8 — AMANDA'S CONFESSION
CHAPTER 8 — AMANDA'S CONFESSION
Amanda called me at 2:17 in the morning.
I almost didn't answer.
After everything that had happened, I had learned one lesson very quickly:
When someone from the Caldwell family called after midnight, it was never because they wanted to wish me goodnight.
My phone vibrated again.
AMANDA.
I stared at the name.
Then answered.
“Hello?”
For several seconds, there was only breathing.
Then Amanda whispered:
“Vivienne?”
“Yes.”
“Don't tell anyone I called you.”
I sat up.
“Why?”
“Because they're watching my apartment.”
My stomach tightened.
“Who?”
“I don't know.”
“You do.”
Silence.
Then she began crying.
“I'm sorry.”
“For what?”
“For the ring.”
I closed my eyes.
“Tell me everything.”
“I can't over the phone.”
“Then where?”
“The old chapel.”
“Which chapel?”
“The one behind the Caldwell estate.”
I frowned.
“That place has been abandoned for years.”
“I know.”
“Amanda—”
“Come alone.”
I almost laughed.
After the previous night's warning, the words would once have frightened me.
Now they irritated me.
“No.”
She went silent.
“You said you're being watched.”
“Yes.”
“Then I'm not coming alone.”
“Vivienne, please.”
“I'm bringing security.”
“No.”
“Then I don't come.”
She started crying again.
“You don't understand.”
“Then explain.”
“They'll kill me.”
My body went cold.
“Who?”
Amanda whispered:
“The same people who killed Clara.”
The line went dead.
I woke my father.
Ten minutes later, the entire security team was moving through the house.
My mother insisted on coming.
Dominic did too.
I didn't object.
Not because I trusted him completely.
But because I had finally realized something.
The more dangerous the truth became, the less useful isolation was.
We reached the chapel before dawn.
Amanda was waiting beneath the broken stone arch.
She looked nothing like the confident woman who had stood beside Chloe at the wedding.
Her makeup was gone.
Her hair was messy.
She wore a gray coat and kept looking over her shoulder.
When she saw me, she almost ran toward me.
Then she noticed my father.
She stopped.
“You brought him.”
“Yes.”
“I told you not to.”
“I don't take instructions from people who ask me to walk into abandoned buildings alone.”
Amanda looked at me.
“You sound different.”
“I am.”
She lowered her head.
“I deserve that.”
“What happened?”
Amanda took a breath.
“I lied.”
“About the ring?”
“Yes.”
“About what else?”
She looked toward Dominic.
Then at my father.
Then back at me.
“About everything.”
My father stepped forward.
“Start talking.”
Amanda flinched.
I stopped him.
“Let her speak.”
She nodded.
“I was never supposed to steal the ring.”
I frowned.
“What?”
“Chloe told me to hide it.”
“That part I know.”
Amanda shook her head.
“You don't understand.”
She pulled a small envelope from her coat.
“She didn't give me the ring.”
She opened it.
Inside was a photograph.
It showed Chloe entering the bridal suite.
The ring was already missing from her finger.
I stared at the photograph.
“Then when did she lose it?”
“She didn't.”
Amanda's voice trembled.
“She gave it to someone.”
“Who?”
Amanda looked at me.
“Eleanor.”
My father's face hardened.
“Why?”
Amanda swallowed.
“Because Eleanor had a second ring.”
“A duplicate?”
“Yes.”
My mother stepped forward.
“What kind?”
Amanda looked at her.
“Not a duplicate.”
She turned the photograph over.
“An identical ring.”
My stomach tightened.
“Why?”
Amanda whispered:
“To make it look like the Laurent ring had been stolen.”
I stared at her.
“But why frame me?”
Amanda looked down.
“Because of the card.”
The access card.
The one I had found.
The one with the Laurent emblem.
“They knew I had it,” I said.
Amanda nodded.
“Chloe was told you would bring it to the wedding.”
“By whom?”
Amanda hesitated.
“Marcus.”
My father cursed under his breath.
I asked:
“How did Marcus know?”
“I don't know.”
“You do.”
Amanda shook her head.
“I swear I don't.”
I stepped closer.
“Then tell me what you do know.”
She looked at me.
“Your father wasn't the only one protecting the Laurent Trust.”
I frowned.
“Who else?”
“Your grandmother.”
“I know.”
“No.”
Amanda shook her head.
“You don't.”
She lowered her voice.
“She never trusted your father.”
My father stiffened.
Amanda continued.
“She created another security network.”
My mother whispered:
“The Ravens.”
Amanda nodded.
My father looked at her.
“How do you know that name?”
“My father worked for them.”
I stared.
“Your father?”
“He was one of their accountants.”
“And now?”
“He's dead.”
“How?”
Amanda looked away.
“Three years ago.”
The same year my grandmother died.
The same year Clara disappeared.
The same year my mother supposedly died.
Too many coincidences.
I felt a chill.
“Was he killed?”
Amanda nodded.
“After he discovered the payments.”
“What payments?”
“The ones going through Caldwell Holdings.”
Dominic stepped forward.
“My company?”
Amanda nodded.
“Your mother has been moving money for years.”
“Why?”
“To fund the people searching for Vivienne.”
Dominic looked stunned.
“They were searching for her?”
Amanda looked at me.
“No.”
She paused.
“They were searching for what she carried.”
“What did I carry?”
Amanda stared at my stomach.
I instinctively placed a hand over it.
“What?”
Amanda's eyes widened.
“Your baby.”
Silence.
Dominic stepped forward.
“What does my child have to do with this?”
Amanda shook her head.
“I don't know.”
“Then don't say it.”
“I was told the baby mattered.”
“By whom?”
Amanda looked terrified.
“Eleanor.”
My father pulled Dominic aside.
“What exactly did your mother tell you about the pregnancy?”
Dominic looked confused.
“Nothing.”
“Nothing?”
“She congratulated us.”
Amanda laughed bitterly.
“That isn't true.”
Dominic turned.
“What?”
Amanda's face was wet with tears.
“Eleanor asked me to find out whether the baby was a boy or a girl.”
Dominic froze.
“Why?”
“I didn't know.”
“When?”
“Five months ago.”
My stomach tightened.
“What did she say?”
Amanda looked at me.
“She said if it was a boy, everything changed.”
My father went still.
“And if it was a girl?”
Amanda swallowed.
“She said the Laurent Trust would remain locked.”
I stared at her.
The inheritance.
The contract.
The baby.
Everything was connected.
My grandmother's trust wasn't simply waiting for me.
It was waiting for my child.
Amanda sat on the chapel steps.
“I never wanted any of this.”
I sat opposite her.
“Then why did you help Chloe?”
“Because she threatened me.”
“With what?”
“My brother.”
I frowned.
“Where is he?”
Amanda looked away.
“Missing.”
“When?”
“Two years ago.”
My blood ran cold.
“Was he involved with the Ravens?”
She nodded.
“He discovered what Eleanor was doing.”
“What happened?”
“She told him to stay quiet.”
“And he didn't.”
“No.”
Amanda began crying.
“They found his car abandoned.”
My father crouched beside her.
“Did the police investigate?”
“Yes.”
“What did they conclude?”
“Suicide.”
My father looked disgusted.
“Did you believe that?”
“No.”
“Why?”
“Because he left me a message.”
“What message?”
Amanda reached into her coat.
She handed me a folded piece of paper.
I opened it.
Only four words were written.
DON'T TRUST THE BRIDE.
I stared at it.
Then looked at Amanda.
“Chloe?”
Amanda shook her head.
“No.”
“Then who?”
She looked directly at me.
“Your husband.”
The world seemed to stop.
Dominic stepped forward.
“What?”
Amanda stood.
“I don't know what he did.”
“Then why say that?”
“Because that's what my brother wrote.”
Dominic stared at the note.
“That isn't my handwriting.”
“I know.”
“Then why would he say not to trust me?”
Amanda whispered:
“Because someone wanted him to believe you were involved.”
I looked at Dominic.
“Were you?”
“No.”
His answer was immediate.
I believed him.
But something still bothered me.
“What happened to Clara?”
Amanda's face changed.
“I don't know.”
“You do.”
“No.”
“You knew her.”
“Yes.”
“You knew she disappeared.”
“Yes.”
“You knew Gabriel.”
Amanda looked at me.
“Yes.”
I felt my heart pound.
“Did Gabriel know Clara?”
“They were related.”
“Brother and sister?”
Amanda nodded.
Then she whispered:
“And Gabriel wasn't your brother.”
My mother's face went white.
“What?”
Amanda looked at her.
“I found the original birth record.”
My mother stepped forward.
“What did it say?”
Amanda reached into her bag.
She removed another document.
I took it.
The name at the top was mine.
VIVIENNE MARIANNE LAURENT.
Below it:
Mother: Marianne Laurent.
Father: Alexander Laurent.
Then another line.
Sibling: Gabriel Laurent.
I stared.
My mother covered her mouth.
My father sat down.
Dominic whispered:
“You really had a brother.”
My hands shook.
“Where is he?”
Amanda looked at me.
“I don't know.”
“Then why tell me?”
“Because I know who does.”
“Who?”
She pointed toward the road.
A black vehicle had appeared in the distance.
Amanda's face drained of color.
“They found me.”
My father immediately stood.
“Everyone back.”
The vehicle stopped.
A man stepped out.
He wore a dark coat.
He didn't approach.
He simply stood there.
Amanda grabbed my wrist.
“That's him.”
“Who?”
“The man who took my brother.”
My father looked through the binoculars.
His expression changed.
“Marcus.”
I looked at him.
“Again?”
My father nodded.
Marcus lifted his hand.
He was holding a photograph.
He turned it toward us.
Even from a distance, I recognized the face.
Gabriel.
My supposed brother.
Alive.
Standing beside a woman.
Clara.
Alive.
My heart stopped.
Dominic stared at the photograph.
“That's Clara.”
I looked at him.
“You know her?”
He nodded slowly.
“She was my fiancée.”
Marcus smiled from across the road.
Then he dropped the photograph onto the pavement.
He turned around.
And walked back to his vehicle.
Before leaving, he shouted:
“Ask Amanda what she saw the night Clara disappeared!”
Then the car vanished.
Everyone turned toward Amanda.
She was shaking violently.
I approached her.
“Amanda.”
She couldn't look at me.
“What happened that night?”
“I can't.”
“You have to.”
“No.”
“Amanda.”
She began crying.
“I saw Clara.”
“When?”
“The night she disappeared.”
“Where?”
Amanda closed her eyes.
“In the Caldwell estate.”
My stomach tightened.
“Why was she there?”
“She came to confront Eleanor.”
“About what?”
“The marriage.”
“What marriage?”
Amanda looked at Dominic.
“Yours.”
Silence.
“Clara knew about the plan.”
Dominic looked stunned.
“She knew?”
“Yes.”
“What did she want?”
Amanda whispered:
“She wanted to stop your wedding.”
I stared at her.
“Why?”
“Because she had proof.”
“What proof?”
Amanda looked at me.
“Proof that Eleanor had been planning to marry Dominic to a Laurent heir for years.”
My father closed his eyes.
Amanda continued.
“But Clara discovered something else.”
“What?”
“She discovered that the Laurent heir wasn't supposed to be you.”
I felt the blood leave my face.
“Then who?”
Amanda looked toward my mother.
“Your grandmother had another plan.”
My mother shook her head.
“No.”
Amanda whispered:
“She wanted Gabriel to inherit everything.”
My heart stopped.
“Why?”
“Because Gabriel was the firstborn.”
Dominic looked at me.
“And you?”
Amanda shook her head.
“You were the backup.”
I stared at her.
“A backup for what?”
She looked directly into my eyes.
“For the marriage.”
My stomach twisted.
“If Gabriel disappeared, you would take his place.”
Silence.
I looked at my mother.
She couldn't meet my eyes.
Then I understood the secret I had been avoiding.
My entire life had been designed around a family member I didn't even know existed.
And my marriage to Dominic hadn't been a love story that went wrong.
It had been Plan B.
I looked at Dominic.
He looked devastated.
“I didn't know.”
“I believe you.”
He swallowed.
“But that doesn't make it less true.”
“No.”
I stepped backward.
“It doesn't.”
Amanda grabbed my arm.
“Vivienne.”
I looked at her.
“There is one more thing.”
“What?”
She whispered:
“Clara wasn't killed.”
My heart stopped.
“What?”
“She escaped.”
“Where is she?”
Amanda looked toward the road.
“She has been hiding with Gabriel.”
I couldn't breathe.
“Where?”
Amanda shook her head.
“I don't know.”
“Then who does?”
She hesitated.
“Eleanor.”
I stared at her.
“What?”
Amanda whispered:
“She has been negotiating with them.”
“For what?”
Amanda looked at Dominic.
“For your marriage.”
Then she turned toward me.
“And for your baby.”
I felt something inside me break.
The wedding had been a setup.
The ring had been bait.
The contract had been a weapon.
And now my unborn child had become the center of a war I had never agreed to fight.
My father moved beside me.
“We're going home.”
I nodded.
But before we reached the car, Amanda grabbed my hand one last time.
“Vivienne.”
I turned.
She looked terrified.
“Whatever happens next…”
“What?”
“Don't let Dominic go alone.”
I frowned.
“Why?”
Amanda looked toward the road.
“Because Eleanor knows he is starting to remember.”
“Remember what?”
Amanda whispered:
“His first meeting with Gabriel.”
Then she stepped back.
“And if Dominic remembers that night…”
She swallowed.
“He'll remember who really started this.”
I stared at her.
“Who?”
Amanda's answer came so softly I almost missed it.
May you like
“Your grandmother.”
And for the first time, I wondered whether the woman who had supposedly died three years ago had ever really been gone at all.
