Chapter 14: The Blackwood Family's Final Betrayal
Two police officers immediately restrained Dr. Whitmore.
He didn't resist.
He simply smiled at Marcus.
“Your family has always been remarkably good at hiding things.””
Marcus stepped toward him.
“Tell me who fathered my children.””
Whitmore looked at Patricia.
“She hasn't told you?””
Patricia shook her head.
“Don't listen to him.””
Whitmore laughed.
“Still protecting the Blackwoods, Patricia?””
Marcus grabbed the man's jacket.
“Answer me!””
An officer separated them.
Whitmore straightened his collar.
“Your father had an illegitimate son. A son he never acknowledged. That man is the reason Daniel became so desperate to control the company.””
Marcus frowned.
“What does that have to do with my children?””
Whitmore opened the photograph.
It showed Richard Blackwood standing beside a young woman holding a newborn baby.
On the back was a handwritten name.
*ALEXANDER BLACKWOOD.*
Marcus stared.
“My father had a son named Alexander?””
Whitmore nodded.
“Your older half-brother.””
Patricia lowered her eyes.
“Richard never told the family because Alexander's mother died shortly after childbirth. He arranged for the child to be raised by another family.””
Marcus shook his head.
“Where is he?””
Whitmore smiled.
“Closer than you think.””
He turned toward the apartment window.
Outside, a black sedan was parked across the street.
A man stepped out.
He looked around forty-five.
Tall.
Dark-haired.
With the same scar above his left eyebrow as Marcus.
Marcus stared through the glass.
“Who is that?””
Whitmore answered.
“Alexander.””
The man crossed the street and entered the building.
When he appeared in the doorway, Marcus took a step backward.
The resemblance was undeniable.
Alexander looked at Marcus.
Then at the three children.
Finally, his eyes settled on me.
“Danielle Carter,” he said.
I stiffened.
“How do you know my name?””
He gave a sad smile.
“Because I was the person who found you after the accident.””
Marcus turned sharply.
“You?””
Alexander nodded.
“I was working with your father. He asked me to investigate Daniel's financial activities.””
I remembered fragments.
A dark road.
Rain against glass.
A man's voice shouting my name.
Could it have been him?
Alexander continued.
“I reached your car before the ambulance. You were alive. You kept repeating three names.””
I whispered, “Noah. Lily. Ethan.””
He nodded.
“I didn't understand at the time. Later, I learned they were your children.””
Marcus looked furious.
“Why didn't you contact me?””
“Because Daniel had already threatened my family. He knew I was investigating him.””
Alexander removed a small flash drive from his pocket.
“Your father gave me this.””
Whitmore suddenly lunged toward him.
“Don't!””
The officers pushed Whitmore against the wall.
Alexander placed the drive on the table.
“It contains the original recordings, the hospital transfer orders, and the real DNA results.””
Marcus inserted the drive into a laptop.
A video appeared.
Richard Blackwood sat in his study, looking directly into the camera.
His voice was weak but clear.
“If this recording is being watched, then Daniel has succeeded in separating my family.””
Marcus covered his mouth.
The recording continued.
“I discovered that Daniel was stealing from Blackwood Enterprises. But what I discovered afterward was worse.””
Richard paused.
“Daniel was not acting alone.””
The screen changed.
A series of financial transactions appeared.
Payments to Vanessa.
Payments to Whitmore.
And a large transfer to Alexander.
Marcus turned toward his newly discovered brother.
“You were paid?””
Alexander nodded.
“Yes.””
“Why?””
“To keep the children safe.””
The recording continued.
Richard looked into the camera again.
“The person behind the entire scheme was the one I trusted most.””
A name appeared on the screen.
ELEANOR BLACKWOOD.
Marcus stood frozen.
“No.””
The recording showed Eleanor entering Richard's study.
She was younger, dressed in a blue coat.
She placed a document on his desk.
Then she said something that made everyone in the apartment go silent.
“You promised me the children would be mine if anything happened to Danielle.””
Richard shook his head.
“Eleanor, they belong with their parents.””
She leaned forward.
“Then perhaps you should have protected your family better.””
The recording ended.
Marcus stumbled backward.
“My mother…”
I looked at Alexander.
“Was Eleanor responsible for the accident?””
He shook his head.
“No. She discovered Daniel's plan afterward. She made a terrible decision because she believed she could protect the children by controlling their future.””
Marcus looked devastated.
“But she signed the documents.””
“Yes,” Alexander replied.
“She also helped me hide the children from Daniel when I realized what he intended to do.””
I stared at the screen.
The truth was complicated.
Eleanor had been frightened, manipulated, and guilty.
But she had also made choices that had destroyed lives.
Marcus called her.
She answered immediately.
“Marcus?””
He put the phone on speaker.
“Mother, I watched the recording.””
Silence.
Then Eleanor began crying.
“I can explain.””
“Why did you want my children?””
“I wanted to protect them.””
“You signed away their identities!””
“I thought Daniel would kill them if I didn't cooperate!””
Marcus's voice broke.
“You should have trusted me.””
“I know.””
“Where are you?””
“At the hotel.””
“Stay there. We're coming.””
Eleanor whispered, “Marcus, there's something else.””
He closed his eyes.
“What now?””
“Your father left a final document. It names the person who should control the family trust.””
Marcus looked at the laptop.
“Who?””
Eleanor's answer came softly.
“Danielle.””
I froze.
“Me?””
“Yes. Richard believed you were the only person who could reunite the family without using the children as weapons.””
Marcus looked at me.
I couldn't speak.
Then Eleanor added one final sentence.
“But you must understand something. The trust contains more than money.””
“What does it contain?””
“A recording of the night your car crashed.””
My blood ran cold.
“Where is it?””
Eleanor hesitated.
“Inside the Blackwood family chapel.””
Then the line went dead.
Marcus looked at Alexander.
“We're going to the chapel.””
Alexander nodded.
But before we could leave, Patricia grabbed my wrist.
“Danielle, wait.””
I turned.
She looked terrified.
“There's one thing Richard never knew.””
“What?””
Patricia swallowed.
“The person who tampered with your car was not Daniel.””
She leaned closer.
“It was Marcus.””
The room went silent.
I stared at her.
“What?””
Patricia's eyes filled with tears.
“I have the original security footage.””
Marcus shook his head.
“No. That's impossible.””
May you like
Patricia looked at him.
“Then why did you ask me to destroy it six years ago?””
