Chapter 3 — The Woman Who Helped Victoria
Chapter 3 — The Woman Who Helped Victoria
Hannah's phone was still warm.
Mark stood over it in the dark kitchen, staring at the cracked screen.
There was no blood.
No broken window.
No sign of a struggle.
Just the phone.
And the note.
THE THIRD TAPE ISN'T WITH LEO.
IT'S WITH THE WOMAN WHO FOUND HIM.
Hannah.
The woman who had discovered Leo.
The woman who had stood between Victoria and the hidden wall.
The woman who had saved his son's life.
Mark's first instinct was to reject the implication.
Hannah couldn't be involved.
He had watched her kneel beside Leo.
He had seen her cry.
He had heard her tell the police exactly what happened.
But the second thought was worse.
What if someone had known she would find him?
What if the discovery had been part of a larger plan?
Mark picked up the phone.
One notification remained on the screen.
A message sent twelve minutes earlier.
Hannah: Don't trust anyone in the house.
Mark's stomach tightened.
He checked the timestamp.
The message had been sent after Hannah disappeared.
Which meant she had either sent it before being taken—
or someone had taken her phone and sent it for her.
Neither possibility was comforting.
Then Mark heard a floorboard creak behind him.
He spun around.
Nobody.
Only the long corridor disappearing into darkness.
Mark reached for his phone.
His hand stopped.
A faint sound came from upstairs.
A door closing.
He moved toward the staircase.
And then he heard a woman's voice.
Soft.
Terrified.
“Mark?”
He looked up.
Hannah stood at the top of the stairs.
Her blouse was torn.
Her hair was disheveled.
There was a bruise near her cheek.
Mark rushed toward her.
“Hannah!”
She came down two steps.
Then stopped.
“Don't come closer.”
Mark froze.
“What happened?”
“I don't know who I can trust.”
“You called me.”
“I didn't.”
Mark looked at her.
“What?”
“That message wasn't from me.”
His stomach dropped.
“Where were you?”
Hannah glanced toward the west wing.
“Locked in the old laundry room.”
“By whom?”
“I never saw her face.”
“Her?”
Hannah nodded.
“It was a woman.”
Mark's voice became tense.
“What did she want?”
“The tape.”
Mark stared at her.
“The third tape?”
Hannah swallowed.
“She said I was the only person who knew where it was.”
Mark looked toward the kitchen.
“Do you know where it is?”
Hannah nodded.
“Yes.”
“Where?”
Hannah looked at him.
“In the wall.”
The Woman Behind the Door
Detective Harris arrived twenty minutes later.
He examined Hannah's injuries.
“They're superficial.”
Hannah nodded.
“But whoever took you knew the house.”
“Why?”
“She never got lost.”
Harris frowned.
“What does that mean?”
“She moved through the servants' corridors without hesitation.”
Mark looked at Hannah.
“Could it have been Victoria?”
Hannah shook her head.
“No.”
“Why?”
“Because I heard her voice.”
Mark's expression hardened.
“What did she say?”
Hannah looked at the floor.
“She said, ‘Victoria told me you would be difficult.’”
Silence.
Harris exchanged a look with Mark.
“So someone else was working with Victoria.”
“Yes.”
“Do you know who?”
Hannah shook her head.
“No.”
Mark crouched beside her.
“Tell me everything.”
Hannah hesitated.
Then she spoke.
“When I started working here, Victoria told me there were parts of the mansion I was never allowed to enter.”
“The west wing.”
“Yes.”
“But there was another place.”
“Where?”
“Below the house.”
Mark frowned.
“The basement?”
“No.”
Hannah shook her head.
“Below the basement.”
The hidden staircase was behind a wine rack.
Mark had walked past it hundreds of times.
He had never noticed the gap.
Hannah pushed three bottles aside.
A click sounded.
The entire shelf moved.
Behind it was a narrow staircase leading down.
Harris raised his flashlight.
“Stay behind me.”
They descended.
The air became colder.
The walls changed from stone to concrete.
At the bottom was a steel door.
There was no handle.
Only a keypad.
Hannah entered four numbers.
The door opened.
Mark stared.
Inside was a room filled with filing cabinets.
Old photographs.
Medical records.
Bank statements.
And dozens of cassette tapes.
Harris whispered:
“This isn't a storage room.”
Mark stepped inside.
“No.”
He looked around.
“This is an archive.”
Victoria's Secret Archive
Every file carried a date.
Some were more than twenty years old.
Mark opened one.
His own name was on it.
MARK HARRINGTON — PERSONAL HISTORY.
He stared.
“This was created before I met Victoria.”
Hannah nodded.
“They were watching you.”
Mark opened another.
LEO HARRINGTON — BIRTH RECORDS.
Then another.
NATALIA REED — MEDICAL HISTORY.
Then—
HANNAH COLLINS — EMPLOYMENT RECORD.
Hannah went pale.
“They had a file on me.”
Mark looked at her.
“When did you start working here?”
“Eight months ago.”
Leo had supposedly died eleven months earlier.
Mark understood.
“Victoria hired you after Leo disappeared.”
Hannah nodded.
“Why?”
“I don't know.”
Mark opened the file.
There was a photograph of Hannah standing outside a small apartment.
Taken before she had ever applied for the job.
Harris looked at it.
“She was selected.”
“For what?”
“To find something.”
Mark turned another page.
A handwritten note was clipped to the back.
SHE WILL FIND THE WALL.
Mark stared at it.
Hannah's breathing stopped.
“They knew.”
Mark looked at her.
“They knew you would discover Leo.”
Hannah's eyes filled with tears.
“I swear I didn't know.”
“I believe you.”
Harris interrupted.
“Look at this.”
He held up a file.
PROJECT NIGHTFALL.
Inside was a photograph of Victoria.
Beside her stood a woman.
Mark recognized her.
He had seen her at the mansion many times.
An older woman.
Gray hair.
Always dressed in black.
Always quiet.
Always invisible.
Mark whispered:
“Evelyn.”
Hannah nodded.
“The housekeeper.”
The Woman Who Knew Everything
Evelyn had worked for the family for eighteen years.
She had cooked for Mark.
Cleaned the west wing.
Prepared Leo's birthday parties.
And stood at Victoria's side during the funeral.
Mark had trusted her.
Now he couldn't remember why.
They found her in the chapel.
She was kneeling before a candle.
She didn't look surprised when Mark entered.
“You found the archive.”
Mark stopped.
“You knew.”
Evelyn smiled sadly.
“I knew you would eventually.”
Harris raised his weapon.
“Hands where I can see them.”
Evelyn obeyed.
“Is Hannah safe?”
Mark frowned.
“You're asking about Hannah?”
“Yes.”
“Why?”
“Because she wasn't supposed to be hurt.”
Hannah stepped forward.
“You knew I would find Leo.”
Evelyn looked at her.
“Yes.”
“Why?”
“Because I needed someone Victoria didn't control.”
Mark stared.
“So you helped her.”
Evelyn lowered her eyes.
“Yes.”
“Why?”
“I had no choice.”
Mark's voice hardened.
“Everyone says that.”
Evelyn looked at him.
“Your wife threatened my granddaughter.”
Silence.
Mark's anger faltered.
“What?”
“She was nineteen.”
“Where is she?”
“Safe.”
“Because of Victoria?”
Evelyn nodded.
“She threatened to have her arrested for a crime she didn't commit.”
Mark stared.
“And you helped Victoria hide Leo.”
Evelyn closed her eyes.
“Yes.”
“Why didn't you save him?”
“I tried.”
“When?”
“The night he disappeared.”
The Night Leo Died
Evelyn began speaking.
“Victoria brought Leo into the west wing.”
“Gabriel was with her.”
“They argued.”
“Leo was crying.”
“Victoria told him to be quiet.”
“Gabriel wanted to take him somewhere else.”
“But Victoria refused.”
Mark asked:
“Why?”
“Because she needed Leo alive.”
“For the trust?”
“Yes.”
“Then why tell me he was dead?”
Evelyn looked at him.
“Because Gabriel wanted the trust immediately.”
“And Victoria?”
“She wanted you.”
Mark's expression hardened.
“She wanted me to sign willingly.”
Evelyn nodded.
“Gabriel wanted to force you.”
“So they fought.”
“Yes.”
“What happened?”
“Victoria drugged you.”
Mark's chest tightened.
“She gave me something.”
“Yes.”
“What?”
“I don't know.”
“And Leo?”
“She hid him.”
“Where?”
Evelyn pointed toward the floor.
“Inside the wall.”
Mark closed his eyes.
The truth was becoming unbearable.
The Woman Who Made the Plan
Harris asked:
“Who designed the hidden room?”
Evelyn hesitated.
“Not Victoria.”
“Then who?”
Evelyn looked at Mark.
“Your mother.”
Mark froze.
“My mother?”
“Yes.”
“My mother died before Leo was born.”
“I know.”
“Then how?”
Evelyn reached into her coat.
She pulled out an envelope.
“This was left for you.”
Mark took it.
His mother's handwriting was unmistakable.
He opened it.
Inside was one page.
Mark,
If Leo is ever hidden inside this house, don't search for him first.
Search for the person who knew where to put him.
Mark looked at Evelyn.
“Why would my mother know this?”
Evelyn whispered:
“Because she knew Victoria before you did.”
Mark's blood ran cold.
“What does that mean?”
“She hired Victoria.”
Silence.
Hannah stared.
Harris lowered his weapon slightly.
Mark couldn't speak.
His mother had introduced Victoria into his life.
His mother had trusted her.
His mother had apparently known what she was capable of.
Why?
The Third Tape
Evelyn walked toward a cabinet.
She entered a combination.
The drawer opened.
Inside was a cassette.
Mark recognized the label.
LEO — 11:47 P.M.
His hands trembled.
“This is it.”
Evelyn nodded.
“Your mother hid it.”
“Why didn't you give it to me?”
“Because Victoria was watching.”
Mark placed the tape into the recorder.
Static.
Then Leo's voice.
“Daddy…”
Mark closed his eyes.
“I saw Mommy talking to Grandma.”
A pause.
“They were fighting.”
Mark opened his eyes.
Leo continued:
“Grandma said Mommy couldn't take the money.”
Another pause.
“Then Mommy said she would tell Daddy that Grandma was sick.”
Mark stared.
Hannah whispered:
“His grandmother was already dead.”
The recording continued.
Leo's voice became quieter.
“Then Grandma said something.”
A long silence.
“She said, ‘If you hurt my son, the trust will go to Leo.’”
Mark's eyes widened.
The trust.
His mother had designed the inheritance specifically to protect Leo.
Victoria had known.
Gabriel had known.
And that explained everything.
The recording continued.
Then came Victoria's voice.
“You won't be here tomorrow.”
Leo cried.
“Why?”
“Because your father has to choose.”
“What?”
“Me or you.”
Mark stopped the tape.
The room was silent.
He looked at Hannah.
Then at Evelyn.
Then at Harris.
“My mother knew.”
“Yes,” Evelyn said.
“She knew Victoria would come after Leo.”
“Yes.”
“Then why did she let me marry her?”
Evelyn's eyes filled with tears.
“Because she believed you could change her.”
Mark laughed bitterly.
“She was wrong.”
“No.”
Evelyn shook her head.
“She believed you could choose your son.”
The Trap
Suddenly every light in the archive went out.
Harris drew his weapon.
“Everyone stay still.”
A metallic click sounded.
Then another.
The steel door slammed shut.
Hannah grabbed Mark's arm.
“We're trapped.”
A voice came through the intercom.
Victoria.
“Hello, Mark.”
Mark stepped toward the speaker.
“You're going to prison.”
Victoria laughed.
“Perhaps.”
“Where is my son?”
“Safe.”
“Where?”
“You'll see him.”
“When?”
“When you bring me the tape.”
Mark looked at the recorder.
“You already know what's on it.”
“Yes.”
“Then why do you need it?”
“Because one copy exists.”
Mark frowned.
“One copy?”
Victoria laughed.
“You think Leo made that tape?”
Mark froze.
“What?”
Victoria continued.
“Leo didn't make the first recording.”
Mark looked at Hannah.
Then Evelyn.
Victoria whispered:
“Someone taught him what to record.”
The intercom went silent.
Mark's face hardened.
“Who?”
No answer.
Then a final message.
“Ask your mother.”
The lights came back on.
The steel door opened.
Victoria was gone.
But a new photograph lay on the floor.
Mark picked it up.
It showed his mother holding a baby.
Leo.
Beside her stood another woman.
A woman Mark had never seen.
On the back was a handwritten sentence:
SHE IS THE REAL REASON LEO SURVIVED.
The Call
Mark's phone rang.
This time, it was the hospital.
He answered.
“Hello?”
A nurse spoke quickly.
“Mr. Harrington, you need to come immediately.”
“What happened?”
There was a pause.
“Leo is gone.”
Mark's blood turned to ice.
“What?”
“The security cameras show someone entered his room.”
“Who?”
“We don't know.”
Mark ran.
Hannah followed.
Evelyn stayed behind.
Harris shouted for his team.
But Mark heard only one thing.
Leo was gone.
Again.
The elevator doors opened.
His phone vibrated.
A message.
YOU SHOULD HAVE LISTENED TO THE TAPE.
Another appeared.
NOW YOU'LL LEARN WHY LEO WAS NEVER SAFE.
Then a photograph.
Leo.
Sitting in a dark room.
Alive.
Terrified.
And beside him—
Victoria.
Mark stared at the image.
At the bottom was one final message.
BRING THE ORIGINAL TRUST.
COME ALONE.
OR YOUR SON DISAPPEARS FOR GOOD.
Mark lowered the phone.
Hannah looked at him.
“What are you going to do?”
Mark looked toward the hospital corridor.
For eleven months, he had believed his son was dead.
Then he had found him.
Now someone had taken him again.
This time, Mark wasn't the grieving father who had accepted a lie.
He knew the truth.
He knew the people responsible.
And he knew what they wanted.
The trust.
But there was one thing Victoria didn't understand.
The trust was only paper.
Leo was his son.
And Mark would burn every document, every account, and every piece of the Mercer fortune before allowing anyone to use his child as a bargaining chip.
He looked at Hannah.
“I'm going to get my son.”
“And the trust?”
Mark's eyes hardened.
“They can have it.”
Hannah stared.
“You'd give them everything?”
Mark shook his head.
“No.”
He looked at the photograph of Leo.
“I'd give them the thing they think they want.”
A pause.
“Then I'll take my son back.”
Behind them, Evelyn quietly picked up the photograph Mark had dropped.
She looked at the unknown woman beside Catherine.
Her face went pale.
Because she knew her.
And she knew something Mark didn't.
The woman in the photograph wasn't a stranger.
May you like
She was Leo's real mother.
And she had been alive the entire time.
