Chapter 5 — The Woman Who Was Supposed to Be Dead
Chapter 5 — The Woman Who Was Supposed to Be Dead
The child's laughter continued for three seconds.
Then stopped.
Dominic stood perfectly still.
Mia had one arm around Harper.
Daniel had already drawn his weapon.
Nathan was staring at the dark windows.
Claire was crying silently.
Nobody spoke.
Then the emergency lights flickered on.
Red.
Dim.
Unsteady.
Dominic turned toward Daniel.
"Get Harper upstairs."
Mia immediately shook her head.
"No."
Dominic looked at her.
"She's safer upstairs."
"Not without me."
"Then both of you go."
Mia held Harper tighter.
"Dominic—"
"Please."
The word stopped her.
He rarely said please.
Mia nodded.
Daniel escorted them toward the corridor.
Dominic turned toward Nathan.
"You stay."
Nathan didn't move.
"I know."
"I want the truth."
"You'll get it."
"Tonight."
Nathan nodded.
"Tonight."
Then Dominic looked at Claire.
"And you."
She swallowed.
"Yes?"
"Don't move."
Claire lowered her eyes.
"I won't."
Dominic walked toward the front entrance.
The estate was silent.
Outside, snow covered the driveway.
No vehicle.
No footprints.
No stranger.
Nothing.
Daniel returned.
"Sir."
"What?"
"The gates are secure."
"Then how did the man get inside?"
"He didn't."
Dominic turned.
Daniel's expression was grim.
"The cameras show nobody entering."
Dominic stared at him.
"Then who was standing outside?"
"We don't know."
Dominic looked toward the snow.
His instincts told him one thing.
The man had never been outside.
He had wanted Dominic to believe he was.
Because fear was easier to control when you didn't know where the enemy was.
At 5:12 a.m., Dominic entered the guest bedroom.
Mia sat beside Harper.
The little girl was asleep.
Mia wasn't.
She looked at Dominic.
"You shouldn't have come."
"I need answers."
"I know."
"Who is Harper's father?"
Mia closed her eyes.
"I don't know."
Dominic stared.
"You said the man outside was dangerous."
"He is."
"Then you know him."
"I know what he is."
"What is he?"
Mia hesitated.
"Alexander's son."
Dominic's jaw tightened.
"What is his name?"
"I don't know."
"You're lying."
"I'm not."
"Then tell me how you know him."
Mia looked at Harper.
"When I was pregnant, I was taken."
Dominic's expression changed.
"By whom?"
"Your father's people."
"Why?"
"They wanted to test the baby."
"What kind of test?"
"Blood."
"DNA?"
"Yes."
"Why?"
"They were looking for a genetic match."
"To what?"
Mia whispered:
"Richard Vale."
Dominic went still.
"My father."
"Yes."
"Why would they test an unborn child against my father?"
Mia looked at him.
"Because they believed your father had created something that could be inherited."
"Like what?"
"I don't know."
Dominic stepped closer.
"Then what do you know?"
Mia's eyes filled with tears.
"I know they took blood from me."
"How much?"
"Enough."
"Did they take blood from the baby?"
"No."
"Then how did they test Harper?"
"They used the umbilical cord."
Dominic's expression hardened.
"And the result?"
Mia looked away.
"They said she was a match."
"For Richard?"
"Yes."
Dominic shook his head.
"That's impossible."
"I know."
"Then the test was wrong."
Mia didn't answer.
Dominic stared at her.
"What?"
"There was another result."
"What result?"
Mia's voice became barely audible.
"They said Harper wasn't just related to Richard."
Dominic waited.
"They said she was genetically closer to him than you were."
Silence.
Dominic's mind raced.
"That doesn't make sense."
"I know."
"Unless..."
Mia nodded.
"Unless the records were wrong."
Dominic stared.
"Or unless Richard wasn't my biological father."
Mia said nothing.
The possibility hit him harder than a bullet.
His entire life.
His name.
His inheritance.
His family.
All based on a bloodline that might have been fabricated.
Dominic left the room.
He walked directly to the hidden laboratory.
Daniel followed.
"Sir?"
"Find my DNA records."
"Your medical records?"
"Everything."
"Why?"
"Because I want to know who my father was."
Daniel stopped.
"You think Richard wasn't—"
"Don't think."
Dominic looked at him.
"Investigate."
Daniel nodded.
"Yes, sir."
They entered the laboratory.
The Project 17 files remained scattered across the table.
Dominic opened the oldest folder.
There were medical records from his birth.
One page was missing.
Another had been replaced.
He could tell because the paper was newer.
"Someone altered this."
Daniel examined it.
"Recently?"
"No."
Dominic shook his head.
"Years ago."
He turned another page.
A hospital name appeared.
St. Vincent's Medical Center.
Date:
October 18, 1989.
Dominic's birth.
He stared.
"Get me the original."
Daniel frowned.
"That hospital closed fifteen years ago."
"Then find the archives."
"We can try."
"No."
Dominic looked at him.
"We're going there."
At 7:30 a.m., Dominic left the estate.
Three SUVs followed.
Nathan was ordered to remain behind.
Claire was locked in a secured guest room.
Mia and Harper stayed with Daniel.
The snowstorm had intensified.
As the convoy moved through the mountains, Dominic stared out the window.
His father's face kept appearing in his mind.
The man he had spent his entire life trying to understand.
The man who had taught him that weakness was death.
The man who had told him blood was everything.
Now Dominic wondered if any of it was true.
His phone rang.
Unknown number.
He answered.
"Dominic."
A woman's voice.
Old.
Calm.
"Who is this?"
"You don't remember me."
"Tell me your name."
The woman laughed softly.
"You've been looking for me for years."
"I don't look for ghosts."
"That's why you never found me."
Dominic's expression hardened.
"What do you want?"
"To warn you."
"About?"
"The hospital."
Dominic sat forward.
"How do you know where I'm going?"
"Because I was there."
"When?"
"The night you were born."
Dominic froze.
"Who are you?"
The woman whispered:
"Your mother."
The line went dead.
Dominic stared at the phone.
For several seconds, he couldn't breathe.
His mother had died when he was six.
He had seen her body.
He had attended the funeral.
He remembered the coffin.
The flowers.
His father's grief.
Everything.
Yet someone claiming to be his mother had just called him.
Dominic looked at Daniel.
"Change destination."
"Where?"
"Find out who called me."
The call came again.
This time, a location appeared on the screen.
A small town two hours north.
A nursing home.
Dominic stared at the address.
His heart beat faster.
"That's where she is."
Daniel nodded.
"Sir?"
"She's alive."
The nursing home was nearly empty.
Old brick walls.
White windows.
A small garden buried beneath snow.
Dominic entered with two guards.
The receptionist looked frightened when she saw him.
"I'm looking for a patient."
"Name?"
"Isabella Vale."
The woman's face changed.
Dominic noticed.
"She's here."
"I can't disclose—"
Dominic placed his identification on the desk.
"Call the director."
Five minutes later, an elderly administrator appeared.
He looked at Dominic.
Then at the photograph Dominic had brought.
His expression softened.
"You're Richard's son."
Dominic's jaw tightened.
"Where is she?"
The administrator hesitated.
"Before I take you there, you need to understand something."
"What?"
"She doesn't know who you are."
Dominic frowned.
"What?"
"Her memory comes and goes."
"How long has she been here?"
"Twenty-seven years."
Dominic froze.
"Twenty-seven?"
"She was brought here under another name."
"By whom?"
The administrator looked uncomfortable.
"Your father."
Dominic's blood ran cold.
"Why?"
"He said she was mentally unstable."
"Was she?"
The administrator looked directly at him.
"No."
Dominic stared.
"Then why?"
"Because she knew something."
The door opened.
Dominic stepped inside.
An elderly woman sat beside the window.
Her hair was silver.
Her body thin.
Her hands trembled slightly.
She looked outside at the snow.
Dominic stopped.
He knew that face.
Not from photographs.
From his own face.
The same eyes.
The same mouth.
The same scar beneath the left eyebrow.
His breath caught.
"Mom?"
The woman slowly turned.
Her eyes widened.
For a moment, there was no recognition.
Then something changed.
She whispered:
"Dominic."
His knees nearly gave way.
He stepped closer.
"How?"
She smiled sadly.
"Your father told you I was dead."
Dominic couldn't speak.
"Why?"
"Because he thought I was dangerous."
"To him?"
She shook her head.
"To you."
Dominic sat beside her.
"Tell me everything."
Isabella looked toward the door.
"Is Nathan with you?"
Dominic froze.
"Why?"
"Because he was the one who brought me here."
Dominic's expression darkened.
"Nathan?"
She nodded.
"He was young then."
"Why would he do that?"
"Because your father ordered him to."
Dominic clenched his fists.
"Did Nathan know you were alive?"
"Yes."
"All these years?"
"Yes."
Dominic stood.
"I trusted him."
Isabella looked at him.
"Your father trusted him more."
Dominic turned.
"Tell me about Alexander."
Her face went pale.
"You know his name?"
"Yes."
She closed her eyes.
"He was your father's greatest mistake."
"Who is he?"
"My husband's son."
Dominic frowned.
"Richard's son?"
"Yes."
"Then why was he hidden?"
"Because Alexander wasn't his biological son."
Dominic stared.
"Whose was he?"
Isabella's voice dropped.
"Mine."
Silence.
"What?"
"Alexander was my son before I married Richard."
Dominic's mind raced.
"Then why did Richard claim him?"
"Because Richard needed him."
"For what?"
"To build the empire."
Dominic shook his head.
"I don't understand."
Isabella took his hand.
"Richard couldn't have children."
Dominic froze.
"That's impossible."
"He wasn't your biological father."
The room seemed to disappear.
"Who was?"
Isabella looked at him.
"Your mother's first husband."
Dominic stared.
"My father?"
"No."
She squeezed his hand.
"Your father was a man Richard killed."
Dominic's breathing stopped.
"Why?"
"Because he knew the truth."
"What truth?"
Isabella's eyes filled with tears.
"That you weren't the heir."
Dominic whispered:
"Then who am I?"
Isabella looked toward the window.
"The child Richard stole."
Dominic sat in silence.
Every belief he had ever held was collapsing.
Richard wasn't his father.
Alexander wasn't his brother.
The Vale bloodline wasn't what he thought.
And yet somehow Harper was connected to all of it.
He looked at Isabella.
"Who is Harper's father?"
His mother's face changed.
She looked frightened.
"You know her?"
"She's under my protection."
Isabella shook her head.
"Then you have to get her away from the estate."
"Why?"
"Because Harper is the reason Alexander survived."
Dominic frowned.
"What does that mean?"
"Richard tried to kill Alexander."
"Why?"
"Because Alexander discovered what Richard had done."
"Which was?"
"Richard had created a false bloodline."
Dominic stared.
"How?"
"Through Project 17."
"Genetic records."
"Yes."
"Why?"
"To make sure the Vale empire could never be taken away."
Dominic slowly understood.
"Richard fabricated heirs."
"Yes."
"And Harper?"
Isabella looked at him.
"Harper is the one person whose DNA exposes the lie."
Dominic's expression hardened.
"How?"
"Because her father carries the original Vale bloodline."
Dominic stared.
"Who?"
Isabella whispered:
"Alexander."
Dominic froze.
"But Mia said she didn't know."
"She doesn't."
"Then how do you know?"
Isabella looked toward the door.
"Because I was there when Harper was conceived."
Dominic's face went cold.
"What?"
"Richard wanted Alexander dead."
"He failed."
"Alexander escaped."
"And Mia?"
"She was used."
"For what?"
Isabella's voice broke.
"To carry Alexander's child."
Dominic stood.
"Harper is Alexander's daughter."
"Yes."
"And Mia knew?"
"No."
"Then why did she protect her?"
"Because she loved her."
Dominic closed his eyes.
Everything suddenly made sense.
The obsession.
The surveillance.
The laboratory.
The blood tests.
The warnings.
The attempts to take Harper.
But one question remained.
"Why does Alexander want her?"
Isabella looked at him.
"He doesn't."
Dominic frowned.
"What?"
"He doesn't want Harper."
"Then why—"
"He wants you to believe he does."
Dominic went still.
Isabella whispered:
"Harper is bait."
Dominic's phone rang.
Daniel.
He answered.
"Talk."
"Sir, we have a problem."
"What?"
"Mia is gone."
Dominic's heart stopped.
"What?"
"She disappeared twenty minutes ago."
"Harper?"
"She's still here."
Dominic closed his eyes.
"Where is she?"
"We're searching."
"How did she leave?"
"Someone opened the medical room from inside."
Dominic's voice became deadly.
"Who had access?"
Daniel hesitated.
"Only three people."
"Names."
"You."
"Me?"
"Dr. Moore."
"And?"
Daniel went silent.
Dominic already knew.
"Nathan."
"Yes."
Dominic looked at Isabella.
His mother had heard the conversation.
Her face was filled with fear.
"Dominic."
"What?"
"You have to understand."
"Understand what?"
"Nathan isn't working for Alexander."
Dominic froze.
"Then who?"
Isabella whispered:
"The woman who was supposed to be dead."
Dominic stared.
"Who?"
His mother looked directly into his eyes.
"Your father's first wife."
Dominic's face went pale.
"That's impossible."
Isabella shook her head.
"She's alive."
"Where?"
"Inside your house."
Dominic's blood turned cold.
"What is her name?"
Isabella whispered:
"Margaret Vale."
At that exact moment, back at Vale Estate, Harper woke.
She sat alone in the guest bedroom.
The room was dark.
She looked toward the door.
A woman stood there.
Old.
Elegant.
Smiling.
Harper stared.
"Who are you?"
The woman knelt.
Her eyes were strangely familiar.
"My name is Margaret."
Harper hugged her blanket.
"Where's Mommy?"
Margaret smiled.
"She'll come back."
"When?"
"After your father arrives."
Harper frowned.
"I don't have a daddy."
Margaret's smile disappeared.
"Oh, sweetheart."
She reached out and touched Harper's hair.
"You do."
Harper stared at her.
"Who?"
Margaret looked toward the window.
Then whispered:
"The man your mother has been hiding from everyone."
A car engine sounded outside.
Margaret smiled.
"He's finally home."
And somewhere beneath the estate, a locked door opened.
Someone stepped into the darkness.
May you like
Someone who had been waiting for Dominic Vale to discover the truth.
For twenty-seven years.
