Chapter 4: The Man Who Stole My Name
For one terrible second, I forgot about the man dragging Lily toward the hallway.
I forgot about the ledger in my hand, the open safe, and the woman who had raised me standing in front of me with a lifetime of lies behind her eyes.
All I could hear was my mother's voice.
Daniel is your father.
My brother stared at Eleanor.
“Why would you tell him that?”” Daniel demanded.
“Because the truth has finally become more dangerous than the lie,” Eleanor replied.
He took a step toward her.
“You promised me you would never bring this up again.””
I turned to him slowly.
“What did she mean?””
Daniel's face had gone gray.
“Marcus, listen to me. It's not what you think.””
“Then explain it.””
The man holding Lily tightened his grip. She cried out and kicked at his shin.
“Daddy!””
That single word broke through the fog in my head.
I lunged forward.
The man shoved Lily toward his partner and swung at me. His fist caught my cheek, sending me crashing into the edge of the study desk. Pain flashed across my face. The black notebook slipped from my fingers.
Daniel grabbed the attacker from behind.
“Get away from the child!””
The two men collided with a bookshelf. Glass shattered. Lily scrambled beneath the desk, sobbing.
I reached for her, but Eleanor stepped directly into my path.
“Marcus, stop this!””
I stared at her in disbelief.
“Your men are attacking us, and you're telling me to stop?””
“They're not my men.””
The man with the bird tattoo pulled a knife from his jacket.
Eleanor flinched.
That was all I needed to see.
She might not have ordered them to hurt Lily, but she knew exactly who they were.
I seized a heavy brass candlestick from the desk and struck the man's wrist. The knife clattered across the floor.
Daniel tackled him before he could recover.
From outside came the sharp wail of police sirens.
The second man released Lily and bolted toward the back door. One of the officers who had followed us tackled him in the garden.
Within minutes, the house was filled with uniforms, shouted instructions, and the smell of dust disturbed by hurried footsteps.
I held Lily against my chest while a paramedic examined the scrape on her knee.
She buried her face in my jacket.
“Don't let them take me away again,” she whispered.
I kissed the top of her head.
“No one is taking you anywhere.””
Across the room, Daniel sat on the stairs with his hands cuffed in front of him.
An officer had arrested him after finding a second weapon in his car. Daniel insisted it belonged to one of the men, but I barely heard his explanation.
I approached him once Lily was safe with the female officer.
“Tell me the truth.””
Daniel lifted his eyes.
“I never wanted this.””
“Did you know Rebecca?””
“Yes.””
“Was she my mother?””
He nodded.
“And are you my father?””
His silence lasted too long.
“Daniel.””
“Yes,” he whispered.
“Biologically, yes.””
I felt something inside me turn cold.
“How old were you when I was born?””
“Seventeen.””
I stared at him.
He looked away.
“Rebecca was eighteen. We were young, and her family wanted nothing to do with me. When she became pregnant, Eleanor helped arrange everything. She told me Rebecca had died during childbirth.””
“But she didn't.””
“No.””
“Why did you let Eleanor raise me?””
Daniel's eyes filled with tears.
“Because I believed my mother was protecting you. She told me Rebecca had made a choice. She said you would be better off without the truth.””
“And you never questioned it?””
“I did. Years later, when I learned Rebecca might still be alive, I started investigating. That's when I found the financial records. That's when I realized Eleanor had been lying about everything.””
I gripped the banister.
“Then why did you help her hide Anna?””
“I didn't know where Anna was. I swear it.””
“Yet you told me she was dead.””
“Because I believed she was.””
I wanted to hit him.
I wanted to demand that he explain how a man could watch his own son grow up believing he had no family, then stand beside him for thirty-five years and call him brother.
Instead, I asked the only question that mattered.
“Did you know about Lily?””
Daniel shook his head.
“No. I found out about her the same day you did.””
I studied his face, searching for the lie.
Before I could respond, Eleanor spoke from the doorway.
“Daniel is telling the truth about that.””
I turned toward her.
She was no longer wearing the expression of a respectable society matriarch. Her hair had come loose, and one of her diamond earrings was missing.
But her voice remained steady.
“I concealed your adoption because I thought I was saving you,” she said.
“And I helped hide Anna because she threatened to expose what Rebecca had stolen.””
“What did Rebecca steal?””
Eleanor's eyes shifted toward the black notebook on the floor.
“The original trust agreement. It proves that your biological father left you an inheritance worth more than the company you now own.””
I stared at her.
“My father?””
“His name was Alexander Hale. He built a financial empire, and he had enemies. When he died, his estate was supposed to pass to you. Rebecca discovered that someone had altered the documents.””
“Who?””
Eleanor looked at Daniel.
He lowered his head.
“You,” I said to her.
She didn't deny it.
Instead, she took a trembling breath.
“I believed the money would be safer under my control. I thought I could protect you from people who wanted to use you.””
“You stole my inheritance.””
“I managed it.””
“You stole my identity.””
“I raised you!””
Her voice cracked, and for the first time I saw the fury beneath her carefully polished manners.
“I fed you, educated you, stayed beside your hospital bed after the accident, and watched you struggle to remember your own life. Do you think I enjoyed seeing you suffer?””
I looked at Lily.
She was watching Eleanor with frightened eyes.
“You made a child believe her mother was dead,” I said.
“You made me believe the woman I loved had abandoned me. Whatever you did for me, you did not do it for free.””
Eleanor's mouth tightened.
“You have no idea what Rebecca was capable of.””
“Then show me the evidence.””
She looked at the notebook.
“The ledger isn't enough. There are original recordings hidden somewhere else. Anna knows where they are.””
“Where is she?””
Eleanor hesitated.
Then she looked toward the window.
“She's alive, Marcus. But if you find her before I do, she will tell you something that could destroy everything you believe about your father.””
“My biological father is dead.””
“Not Alexander Hale.””
The words struck me like ice water.
I stared at her.
“What are you talking about?””
Eleanor's eyes filled with tears.
“Alexander didn't die when the newspapers said he did. Someone arranged his disappearance, and Rebecca helped him.””
Behind me, Daniel whispered, “Mother, don't.””
Eleanor ignored him.
“Your biological father has been alive all these years. And he knows exactly where Anna is.””
Before I could demand another answer, the officer beside Eleanor's chair received a phone call.
He listened for several seconds, then looked directly at me.
“Mr. Hale, we've located a woman matching Anna's description.””
My heart began pounding.
“Where?””
The officer's expression changed.
“She was found unconscious in an abandoned warehouse outside town.””
He glanced toward Lily.
“And there was a second child with her.””
I grabbed my coat.
“Ethan.””
The officer shook his head.
“No, sir. The boy is missing.””
Then his radio crackled.
A voice came through, distorted by static.
“We've identified the woman. But there's something you need to know.””
The officer listened.
His face went pale.
May you like
When he looked at me again, his next words changed everything.
“Mr. Hale, the woman isn't Anna.””
