Chapter 7: The Secret Written on Ethan's Birth Certificate
For several seconds, I couldn't move.
I stared at the birth certificate Harrison had placed on the table.
Ethan Hale.
Date of birth.
Mother: Laura Hale.
Father: Andrew Hale.
My brother's name.
The man who had stood beside me at my wedding. The man who had held my hand when Laura died. The man who had watched me raise a child he might have fathered.
“No,” I whispered.
Harrison slowly closed the folder.
“Marcus, we need to establish whether this document is authentic.””
I looked at him.
“Are you telling me my son might actually be my brother's child?””
“I'm telling you that we shouldn't jump to conclusions.””
I laughed bitterly.
“Three years of lies, a forged insurance policy, a suspicious death, and now this? How much more am I supposed to discover?””
Harrison didn't answer.
I picked up the birth certificate again.
There was a hospital stamp in the bottom corner, along with a handwritten correction.
The date was almost impossible to read.
“Where did Laura get this?””
Harrison sat down.
“She gave it to me shortly before she died. She said it was part of a larger investigation she was conducting into your family.””
“My family?””
“Yes.””
I turned toward the window.
For twelve years, I had believed Ethan was my biological son.
I remembered the day he was born.
I remembered Laura squeezing my hand during labor. I remembered crying when the nurse placed him in my arms.
I remembered whispering that he had my eyes.
Had I been wrong about everything?
“Was Laura having an affair with Andrew?”” I asked.
Harrison looked uncomfortable.
“I don't know.””
“Did she ever say anything?””
“She told me Andrew had crossed a line years earlier. But she never explained what she meant.””
My phone vibrated.
Detective Lawson.
I answered.
“Marcus, where are you?””
“At Harrison Vale's office.””
“Good. Don't leave yet. We just received information about Vanessa.””
“What information?””
“She was released from the initial questioning pending further investigation. But she hasn't gone home. She's been trying to contact someone named Rebecca Shaw.””
My stomach tightened.
“Rebecca?””
“Yes. And there's something else. Your brother Andrew has refused to cooperate. He requested legal representation, but before doing so, he made a statement.””
“What statement?””
Lawson paused.
“He told us that if you want to understand what's happening, you should ask Laura who Ethan's real father was.””
I closed my eyes.
“He already knows about the birth certificate.””
“Apparently.””
I looked at Harrison.
“Vanessa is downstairs.””
“I know,” he replied.
“Keep her away from that folder.””
Harrison nodded and called security.
But before anyone could move, the conference room door opened.
Vanessa stood in the doorway.
Her blue dress had been replaced by a black coat. Her makeup was smudged, and her hair was tied back.
She looked tired.
But her eyes were sharp.
“Marcus,” she said.
I stepped in front of the folder.
“What do you want?””
She looked at Harrison.
“I need the document Laura left.””
Harrison stood.
“You have no authority to request anything from this office.””
Vanessa ignored him.
“Marcus, please. We need to talk.””
“About what? My insurance policy? The drink you prepared? Or the fact that my brother's name appears on my son's birth certificate?””
Her face changed.
For the first time, I saw genuine fear in her eyes.
“You've seen it?””
I stared at her.
“So it's true?””
She closed the door behind her.
“Not everything is what it looks like.””
“Then explain it.””
Vanessa glanced toward the hallway.
“Not here.””
“I'm done protecting your secrets.””
She took a shaky breath.
“Ethan is your son, Marcus.””
“Then why does Andrew's name appear on his birth certificate?””
She looked down.
“Because Laura was trying to protect you.””
I felt my jaw tighten.
“Protect me from what?””
Vanessa hesitated.
Then she said something I never expected.
“Andrew and Laura had a relationship before you married her.””
I stared at her.
“That doesn't prove anything.””
“They were together before you met Laura.””
My head began spinning.
“That's impossible. Laura and I met at university.””
Vanessa shook her head.
“Andrew was engaged to Laura first.””
I looked at Harrison.
He seemed equally stunned.
“Why would Laura marry me if she was engaged to Andrew?””
Vanessa's voice dropped.
“Because Andrew cheated on her. He was already seeing another woman, and Laura found out. Your father intervened. He wanted Laura to remain connected to the family because of her inheritance and the business agreement.””
I felt sick.
“Why didn't anyone tell me?””
“Because Andrew begged Laura not to expose him.””
“And Ethan?””
Vanessa swallowed.
“Andrew claimed Ethan was his son. Laura refused to let him have anything to do with the baby.””
I shook my head.
“Then why did she put my name on his birth certificate?””
Vanessa looked directly at me.
“Because you were the only father Ethan had ever known.””
I couldn't speak.
She continued.
“Laura told me the truth after I married you. She made me promise that Ethan would never find out.””
I stared at her.
“You knew all along?””
“Yes.””
“And you still let me believe he was biologically mine?””
“You loved him. You raised him. You were his father in every way that mattered.””
I stepped closer.
“Then why did you try to hurt him?””
Her eyes filled with tears.
“I never wanted Ethan hurt.””
“Your brother wanted access to his trust. Andrew wanted control of my company. You put something in my drink. Don't stand there and tell me you cared about him.””
She lowered her head.
For a moment, the room was silent.
Then she whispered:
“Because I was supposed to marry Andrew.””
I froze.
“What?””
Vanessa looked at me.
“Andrew and I were together before I met you. He introduced us because he wanted to use me to get close to your finances. But I was supposed to remain his partner.””
My stomach turned.
“You married me to help him?””
“At first.””
“At first?””
She wiped her cheeks.
“Then things changed. I started caring about you. I started caring about Ethan.””
I laughed without humor.
“You slapped him in front of three hundred people.””
“I panicked!””
“You tried to poison me!””
“I didn't know what Richard put in that bottle!””
The words escaped before she could stop them.
Harrison stepped forward.
“What did you just say?””
Vanessa went completely still.
I stared at her.
“You didn't know what was in the bottle?””
She looked toward the door.
“I shouldn't have said anything.””
I moved closer.
“Who gave it to you?””
She shook her head.
“Marcus, please.””
“Who?””
“Richard.””
My phone was already recording.
Vanessa noticed it.
Her face went white.
She lunged toward me, but Harrison stepped between us.
“Don't move,” he said sharply.
She stopped.
Then she began crying.
“I was supposed to put it in your drink. Richard said it would only make you sleepy. He told me the doctors would handle everything afterward.””
My blood ran cold.
“And what about Ethan's drink?””
She covered her mouth.
“I didn't prepare that one.””
I stared at her.
“Who did?””
Before she could answer, the conference room door opened again.
Detective Lawson entered with two officers.
“Vanessa Hale, you're coming with us.””
She didn't resist.
But as the officers escorted her away, she turned toward me.
“Marcus, you need to understand something.””
I said nothing.
“Andrew isn't Ethan's biological father.””
I froze.
“What?””
She looked at me with tears running down her face.
“Laura lied about the father on that document. She did it because she was protecting someone.””
Then the officers took her away.
I turned toward Harrison.
He slowly opened the folder again.
Beneath the birth certificate was another document.
A DNA report.
And the name of the biological father was hidden beneath a folded page.
I pulled it open.
My hands began shaking.
Because the name wasn't Andrew Hale.
It was Daniel Brooks.
My best friend.
The man who had stood beside me through everything.
May you like
The man who had helped me protect Ethan.
And the man who was currently taking care of my son.
