Chapter 9 — The Betrayal Inside the Family
Chapter 9 — The Betrayal Inside the Family
The word on the nursery wall seemed to grow larger the longer Dominic stared at it.
NATALIE.
One name.
One accusation.
Twenty-five years of secrets suddenly pointing toward the woman he had spent his entire life protecting.
Natalie stood behind him, trembling.
“I didn't do it.”
Dominic turned.
“I know.”
“You don't.”
Her voice broke.
“You just heard the recording.”
“I heard my mother say someone she loved betrayed her.”
“And my name is on the wall.”
“I didn't write it.”
“But you think I did.”
Dominic stepped closer.
“No.”
Natalie looked into his eyes.
For a moment, neither spoke.
Then Emma noticed something.
“Sir.”
Dominic turned.
“What?”
She pointed toward the wall.
“The paint.”
“What about it?”
“It isn't old.”
Dominic touched the letters.
The black paint was still slightly wet.
Someone had written the name recently.
Very recently.
He looked at Natalie.
“This isn't evidence.”
“It isn't?”
“No.”
He wiped his finger across the wall.
“This is a message.”
A floorboard creaked behind them.
Everyone turned.
Richard stood in the doorway.
He looked at the word.
Then at Natalie.
His face became unreadable.
“You need to leave this house.”
Natalie frowned.
“Why?”
“Because whoever wrote that knows exactly what they're doing.”
Dominic looked at him.
“Do you know who betrayed my mother?”
Richard hesitated.
“Yes.”
Natalie stared at him.
“Who?”
Richard looked away.
“I can't tell you.”
Dominic's voice hardened.
“Enough.”
“I've spent my entire life hearing that.”
Richard said nothing.
“You know who killed my father.”
“You know why my mother hid the money.”
“You know why Gabriel wants the ledger.”
“And now you claim to know who betrayed her.”
Dominic stepped closer.
“You're going to tell me.”
Richard's eyes filled with regret.
“The betrayal wasn't one act.”
“What does that mean?”
“It was a chain.”
Dominic frowned.
“Explain.”
Richard took a breath.
“Your mother trusted three people.”
“Who?”
“Me.”
He looked at Natalie.
“Your sister.”
Then at Dominic.
“And you.”
Dominic stared.
“I was a child.”
“Exactly.”
Richard's voice became quiet.
“You were the easiest one to manipulate.”
Natalie stepped forward.
“What did I do?”
Richard looked at her.
“You didn't betray Catherine intentionally.”
“Then what did I do?”
“You gave someone access.”
“To what?”
“The trust.”
Natalie's face went pale.
“I never gave anyone access.”
“You did.”
“When?”
Richard hesitated.
“When you were nineteen.”
Natalie shook her head.
“I don't remember.”
“You were told your father needed your help.”
“My father was dead.”
Richard nodded.
“That's what you believed.”
Natalie stared.
“What did I sign?”
“A power of attorney.”
Silence.
Dominic's face hardened.
“Who gave it to her?”
Richard looked toward the door.
“Your father.”
Natalie whispered:
“He was alive.”
“Yes.”
“And I signed something for him?”
“Yes.”
“What did it authorize?”
“Access to the family trust.”
Natalie covered her mouth.
“But I didn't know.”
“I know.”
“Then why didn't you stop me?”
Richard's eyes filled with shame.
“Because I arrived too late.”
Dominic paced across the nursery.
“So my father used Natalie.”
“Yes.”
“And someone used the document to steal the money.”
“Yes.”
“Who?”
Richard didn't answer.
Dominic stopped.
“Who?”
Richard looked at him.
“Marcus.”
Brooke's face changed.
“Marcus?”
“Yes.”
“That's impossible.”
“He was working for your father.”
Brooke shook her head.
“My father trusted him.”
“Your father was wrong.”
Brooke's eyes filled with anger.
“You said Marcus killed him.”
“He did.”
“Then why was he still working with Catherine?”
“He wasn't.”
Richard pointed toward the blue fragments.
“Marcus was working for Gabriel.”
Dominic froze.
“Gabriel?”
“Yes.”
“So Gabriel has been controlling Marcus.”
“Since the beginning.”
Brooke whispered:
“Then the missing millions…”
“Were moved through accounts Marcus controlled.”
Dominic looked at the financial records.
Everything suddenly connected.
The shell companies.
The trust.
Natalie's identity.
The missing millions.
Marcus had been the bridge.
But one question remained.
“Who authorized the final transfer?”
Richard looked at Dominic.
“You.”
Dominic frowned.
“What?”
“Your signature was used.”
“I never signed it.”
“I know.”
“Then who did?”
Richard's eyes shifted toward Natalie.
Dominic followed his gaze.
“No.”
Natalie shook her head violently.
“I didn't.”
Richard whispered:
“Someone copied both your signatures.”
“Who?”
“I don't know.”
Dominic stared at him.
“You keep saying that.”
“Because it's true.”
“Then tell me what you do know.”
Richard looked toward the window.
“I know the person who copied the signatures had access to Catherine's private office.”
Dominic's eyes narrowed.
“Who had access?”
“Your father.”
“He's gone.”
“Then someone who inherited his access.”
Dominic's face hardened.
“Gabriel.”
Richard nodded.
“No.”
Brooke whispered.
“Gabriel couldn't have copied their signatures.”
Everyone looked at her.
She continued.
“Because Gabriel wasn't in the mansion.”
“How do you know?”
“Because I saw him.”
Dominic frowned.
“When?”
“Three months ago.”
“You met him?”
“Yes.”
“Where?”
Brooke hesitated.
“At a private bank in Geneva.”
Dominic stared.
“Why?”
“He asked me to help him access the trust.”
“And you agreed.”
“I thought he was going to help me find the ledger.”
Dominic's voice became cold.
“You've been working with him.”
“I was being manipulated.”
“You still helped him.”
Brooke looked away.
“Yes.”
Dominic turned from her.
The family was collapsing around him.
And every person he trusted had touched the conspiracy.
A sound came from downstairs.
A door slammed.
Dominic immediately drew his weapon.
“Stay here.”
He ran down the stairs.
Emma followed.
The library door stood open.
Inside, drawers had been pulled from cabinets.
Documents covered the floor.
The blue room door was wide open.
Dominic entered.
The five fragments were gone.
“Where are they?”
Emma shook her head.
“I don't know.”
Dominic looked around.
Then he saw the window.
Broken glass.
Someone had entered from outside.
He rushed to it.
A figure disappeared into the rain.
Dominic fired once into the air.
The figure stopped.
Then turned.
For one second, lightning illuminated his face.
Marcus.
Dominic's blood ran cold.
“Marcus!”
The man ran.
Dominic jumped through the window.
The chase began.
Marcus ran through the gardens.
Dominic followed.
Rain soaked his clothes.
“Stop!”
Marcus didn't.
He reached the stone wall surrounding the estate.
Dominic tackled him.
They crashed onto the wet grass.
Marcus fought desperately.
Dominic pinned him.
“Where is Noah?”
Marcus laughed.
“You're too late.”
Dominic punched him.
“Where is he?”
“You'll never find him.”
“Where is Gabriel?”
Marcus smiled.
“Closer than you think.”
Dominic grabbed his collar.
“Tell me where my nephew is.”
Marcus stared at him.
Then his smile disappeared.
“He isn't with Gabriel.”
Dominic froze.
“What?”
Marcus whispered:
“Gabriel took him.”
“That's what I asked.”
“No.”
Marcus shook his head.
“You don't understand.”
“Then explain.”
“Gabriel isn't the one holding Noah.”
Dominic's stomach dropped.
“Who is?”
Marcus looked toward the mansion.
“Your sister.”
Dominic released him.
“What?”
Marcus laughed.
“Natalie.”
“No.”
“She took the boy.”
“Why?”
“Ask her.”
Dominic grabbed Marcus again.
“You're lying.”
“Am I?”
Marcus pointed toward the mansion.
“Check the nursery.”
Dominic stared.
“What will I find?”
“A hidden room.”
Marcus smiled.
“Your sister has been keeping secrets there for years.”
Dominic's expression hardened.
He knocked Marcus unconscious.
Then ran back.
Natalie was gone.
Richard was gone.
Emma stood alone in the nursery.
“Where are they?”
“I don't know.”
Dominic looked around.
“Noah?”
“Gone.”
“Natalie?”
“Gone.”
“Richard?”
“Gone.”
Dominic's heart raced.
Then he noticed something.
The old wardrobe.
One door was slightly open.
He pulled it aside.
Behind it was a narrow passage.
Emma whispered:
“Sir…”
Dominic entered.
The passage descended beneath the mansion.
At the bottom was a room.
A child's room.
Toys.
Books.
Photographs.
And a bed.
The bed was empty.
But on the pillow lay a note.
Dominic picked it up.
I DIDN'T TAKE NOAH.
I TOOK HIM TO PROTECT HIM.
IF YOU LOVE YOUR NEPHEW, DON'T FOLLOW ME.
Signed:
Natalie.
Dominic stared at the note.
Emma looked over his shoulder.
“She took him.”
Dominic shook his head.
“No.”
“Sir?”
“If Natalie wanted to hurt Noah, she wouldn't leave a message.”
He looked around.
“She wants me to find something.”
He searched the room.
A bookshelf.
A desk.
A small wooden box.
Inside was a key.
And beneath it:
FOR DOMINIC.
He opened the box.
A memory card lay inside.
He inserted it into his phone.
A video appeared.
Natalie.
She was sitting in a dark room.
Noah was beside her.
He was safe.
She looked directly into the camera.
“Dominic, if you're watching this, then they have already found you.”
Dominic's heart tightened.
Natalie continued.
“I need you to understand something.”
“I didn't betray Mom.”
“I betrayed Dad.”
Dominic froze.
She continued.
“Twenty years ago, Dad came to me.”
“He told me he was alive.”
“He told me Catherine had betrayed him.”
“I believed him.”
A pause.
“Then he asked me to sign the power of attorney.”
Natalie's eyes filled with tears.
“I signed.”
“But before I handed it over, Mom found out.”
Dominic stared.
“She stopped the transfer.”
Natalie continued.
“She also made me promise something.”
“What?”
“If Dad ever came back, I was never to trust him.”
Dominic's face changed.
Natalie whispered:
“I broke that promise once.”
“I won't break it again.”
The video ended.
Dominic stared at the screen.
Then another video began.
Catherine.
“Dominic.”
His breath caught.
“If you're watching this, Natalie has told you the truth.”
Catherine smiled sadly.
“She was never my betrayer.”
“She was my shield.”
Dominic closed his eyes.
“She took the blame because I asked her to.”
The recording continued.
“I knew your father would return.”
“I knew he would use Natalie.”
“So I gave him what he wanted.”
“The trust.”
Dominic whispered:
“Why?”
Catherine answered:
“Because the trust was empty.”
Dominic opened his eyes.
The recording continued.
“The real fortune was moved long before.”
“Into seven accounts.”
“Each account can only be accessed with one piece of the ledger.”
Dominic stared at the blue fragments.
“The seven pieces are not keys to money.”
“They are keys to names.”
Catherine paused.
“And those names will reveal the person who controls everything.”
Dominic's pulse quickened.
“Not Gabriel.”
“Not Marcus.”
“Not your father.”
Catherine's expression became sorrowful.
“The person you are looking for is someone you trust.”
The screen went black.
Then a final sentence appeared:
LOOK AT THE PERSON WHO HAS BEEN HELPING YOU FIND THE TRUTH.
Dominic stared.
Emma stood behind him.
“What does that mean?”
Dominic didn't answer.
He slowly turned toward her.
Emma's face changed.
“Sir?”
Dominic remembered every time she had appeared.
Every document she had found.
Every secret she had overheard.
Every clue she had delivered.
She had always been there.
Too conveniently.
Dominic's hand moved toward his weapon.
Emma stepped backward.
“No.”
“You knew too much.”
“I was trying to help.”
“You found the payroll records.”
“Yes.”
“You found the notebook.”
“Yes.”
“You knew about the greenhouse.”
“Yes.”
“You knew about the hidden room.”
“I've worked here for eleven years.”
Dominic stared at her.
“Exactly.”
Emma began crying.
“I swear I'm not working against you.”
“Then tell me who you're working for.”
“I can't.”
“Why?”
“Because if I say his name, Noah dies.”
Dominic froze.
“You've been communicating with Gabriel.”
Emma shook her head.
“No.”
“Then who?”
She looked at him.
And whispered:
“Your father.”
Dominic's world stopped.
“My father is alive.”
“Yes.”
“Where?”
Emma's eyes filled with fear.
“He's in this house.”
A sound came from behind them.
Slow footsteps.
Dominic turned.
A man stepped from the darkness.
Older.
Gray-haired.
But unmistakably familiar.
Dominic stared at him.
His father.
Alive.
The man smiled.
“You've grown into a difficult son.”
Dominic raised his gun.
“You're supposed to be dead.”
His father looked at the blue fragments.
“So is the truth.”
Dominic's finger tightened around the trigger.
“Where is Noah?”
His father smiled.
“With Natalie.”
“Why?”
“Because your sister finally chose the right side.”
Dominic stared.
“What do you want?”
His father looked at Emma.
“Ask her.”
Emma lowered her head.
Dominic turned.
“Emma?”
She whispered:
“Your father didn't come here to steal the money.”
“Then why?”
Emma looked directly at Dominic.
“To warn you.”
“About what?”
Her voice broke.
“He isn't the person you need to fear.”
Dominic frowned.
“Then who?”
Emma pointed toward the ceiling.
“The person who owns this mansion.”
Dominic froze.
“This mansion belongs to me.”
Emma shook her head.
“No.”
She whispered:
“Your mother never transferred ownership to you.”
“Then who owns it?”
Emma's answer was barely audible.
“Gabriel.”
Suddenly every light in the mansion turned on.
The speakers crackled.
Gabriel's voice filled the house.
“Welcome home, Dominic.”
A pause.
“You've finally discovered the first betrayal.”
May you like
Then the locks clicked shut again.
“But you still haven't discovered the last.”
