Chapter 6: The Woman Who Knew Too Much
I didn’t sleep.
Not that night.
Not the next one.
Every time Claire cried, I picked her up.
Every time she slept, I stared at the ceiling.
My mind kept returning to the same question.
How long had everyone known?
How long had I been the only person in the room who didn’t understand the rules?
Three days after Diana’s discovery, I received a message.
No name.
No number.
Just a sentence.
*You want the truth about your father? Meet me where the first lie started.*
Attached was an address.
Sterling Ridge Estate.
I almost deleted it.
Almost.
Then I remembered something.
The Sterlings believed I was predictable.
They believed I was still the quiet accountant.
The woman who apologized.
The woman who stayed silent.
They had been wrong once.
I wasn’t going to let them be wrong twice.
I left Claire with my mother and drove to the estate.
The same place where my marriage had broken.
The same place where my daughter had entered the world.
The same place where the Sterling family thought they had control.
The vineyard looked different in daylight.
Less magical.
More empty.
Security gates opened as I approached.
That bothered me.
They were expecting me.
Inside the main house, I found Seraphina.
She was sitting in the library.
Still beautiful.
Still perfectly dressed.
Still carrying herself like the world belonged to her.
“You came.””
I closed the door behind me.
“You sent the message.””
“Yes.””
“Why?””
She looked down.
For the first time, she looked tired.
“Because I need your help.””
I almost laughed.
“Your family locked me in a bathroom.””
“I know.””
“Your brother abandoned me.””
“I know.””
“You told me Julian chose you over me.””
Her expression changed.
“I was wrong.””
Those words shocked me more than any insult.
Seraphina Sterling admitting she was wrong.
I waited.
She continued.
“My mother made me believe we were protecting the family.””
“Protecting from what?””
“The truth.””
I stared at her.
“You knew?””
She looked away.
“I knew there were financial problems.””
“That’s not enough.””
“I knew my father was moving money.””
“And Julian?””
Her eyes filled with regret.
“He knew less than I did.””
I hated hearing that.
Because some part of me wanted Julian to be the villain.
It was easier.
Villains didn’t make you question yourself.
“Why tell me now?””
Seraphina stood.
“Because my mother is going to destroy everyone to save herself.””
“How?””
She walked to a cabinet.
Pulled out a folder.
Then handed it to me.
Inside were photographs.
Emails.
Documents.
The same kind of evidence I had spent months collecting.
Except this evidence went deeper.
Much deeper.
I turned one page.
Then another.
And stopped.
A photograph.
My father.
Standing beside Eleanor Sterling.
Twenty years earlier.
I looked up.
“What is this?””
Seraphina whispered:
“The beginning.””
My fingers tightened around the paper.
“Beginning of what?””
She looked at me.
“The reason your father entered our family’s world.””
I stared at the photograph.
Then at her.
“Tell me.””
Seraphina took a deep breath.
“Your father and Eleanor weren’t enemies.””
The room seemed colder.
“They were partners.””
I felt my heartbeat slow.
“What?””
She nodded.
“For years.””
I looked back at the photograph.
My father smiling beside the woman who had locked me away.
The woman who had treated me like I was nothing.
The woman whose empire I had been investigating.
“How long?””
Seraphina’s voice became almost a whisper.
“Since before you were born.””
I couldn’t breathe.
Before I could ask another question, the library doors opened.
A voice came from behind me.
“Seraphina.””
We both froze.
Eleanor Sterling stood in the doorway.
Her expression was calm.
Too calm.
She looked at the folder in my hands.
Then at me.
“You really are your father’s daughter.””
I stepped back.
“What does that mean?””
Eleanor smiled.
A cold, familiar smile.
“It means you were never investigating the Sterling family.””
She walked closer.
“You were investigating your own bloodline.””
And then she said the one thing I never expected to hear.
“Your father didn’t help build this empire, Audrey.””
May you like
She paused.
“He built it.””
