Chapter 13: The Daughter Nobody Knew Existed
I stared at the photograph until my eyes hurt.
Rose.
My sister.
The woman who had helped us find our father.
The woman who had claimed to be another victim of Vincent's lies.
She was standing beside him in a family portrait.
And beneath the photograph were the words:
THE REAL HEIR IS ALREADY IN THE HOUSE.
"Adrian," I whispered.
"What if Rose has been lying to us?""
He took the phone and enlarged the image.
"Look at the date.""
The photograph had been taken three days earlier.
Thomas approached.
"That can't be Rose.""
"Why not?"" Adrian asked.
"Because Rose has been missing since yesterday morning.""
I turned toward him.
"What?""
Thomas nodded.
"She called me before we went to the farmhouse. She said someone had discovered her location. She wanted me to stay away from her.""
Adrian's expression darkened.
"Why didn't you tell us?""
"Because I thought she was protecting herself.""
Marco examined the photograph.
"There's something else.""
He pointed to the background.
A small wooden sign was visible above the doorway.
WHITMORE MEDICAL FOUNDATION.
Marco searched the name.
A private medical facility appeared on the screen.
It was located outside Manhattan, on property once owned by my grandfather.
Adrian grabbed his coat.
"We're going.""
I stepped forward.
"I'm coming.""
He looked at me.
"This time, you're staying behind.""
I shook my head.
"Emily is my sister. Rose might be in danger. My mother is somewhere in that building. I'm not sitting in another hotel while everyone else decides what happens to my family.""
Thomas placed a hand on my shoulder.
"She's right.""
Adrian sighed.
"Fine. But you stay beside Marco.""
We arrived at the facility shortly before midnight.
From the outside, it looked like a luxury rehabilitation center.
White walls.
Perfect landscaping.
A fountain in the entrance courtyard.
But Marco found something unusual.
"There are no public patient records.""
Adrian examined the security cameras.
"And no visible security company.""
Thomas stared at the building.
"I remember this place. Samuel used to bring patients here when he wanted their medical histories kept private.""
I looked at him.
"Your brother owned it?""
"He managed it.""
Marco checked the side entrance.
"There's a security panel.""
Adrian handed him a small device.
"Open it.""
Within seconds, the lock clicked.
We entered.
The hallway was brightly lit, but there were no nurses at the reception desk.
A television played quietly in an empty waiting room.
Then I heard a familiar voice.
"Isabella?""
I turned.
Rose stood at the end of the hallway.
Her hands were trembling.
I rushed toward her.
"Rose!""
She grabbed my shoulders.
"You shouldn't be here.""
"Where's Emily?""
Rose looked toward the stairwell.
"She's downstairs.""
"Is she hurt?""
"Not yet.""
Adrian approached.
"Rose, explain the photograph.""
She lowered her eyes.
"I didn't know Vincent had taken it.""
"Why were you standing beside him?""
"Because he told me he had my father.""
Thomas stepped forward.
"Where is Margaret?""
Rose looked at him.
"Which one?""
Thomas froze.
Rose continued.
"The woman who raised Isabella is upstairs. Your real wife is in the basement.""
My heart stopped.
"She's alive?""
Rose nodded.
"She's been here for years.""
Adrian turned toward the stairwell.
"Take us to her.""
Rose hesitated.
"There's something you need to know first.""
She looked at me.
"The woman in the portrait isn't Margaret's twin.""
I frowned.
"Then who is she?""
Rose swallowed.
"She's Margaret's daughter.""
Thomas shook his head.
"Margaret never had another daughter.""
"She did. Before she married you.""
Rose pulled a folded medical record from her pocket.
It showed a birth certificate from twenty-eight years earlier.
Mother: Margaret Whitmore.
Father: Samuel Whitmore.
I stared at the names.
Samuel.
Thomas's younger brother.
Rose continued.
"Margaret and Samuel had a daughter. They hid her because the family would never accept their relationship.""
Adrian's expression changed.
"Who was the daughter?""
Rose looked at me.
"Victoria.""
I remembered the woman who had insulted me in Adrian's penthouse.
The elegant woman in the cream-colored dress.
The woman who had threatened to tell Vincent about me.
"Victoria Kane?""
Rose nodded.
"She isn't Vincent's wife. She's his daughter.""
Thomas covered his mouth.
"And she was pretending to be Margaret?""
"Not exactly," Rose answered.
"She was helping her mother maintain the identity.""
Adrian stared at the document.
"Why?""
"Because the real Margaret disappeared, and Victoria wanted the Whitmore estate. She needed someone to believe she was the rightful surviving daughter.""
I looked toward the stairs.
"Then where does that leave me?""
Rose took my hand.
"You're the only legitimate heir.""
A noise came from downstairs.
A door slammed.
Then a woman's scream echoed through the building.
"Isabella!""
I recognized the voice.
My mother.
We ran.
The basement corridor was lined with locked rooms.
At the end stood a glass door.
Inside was a woman sitting on a bed.
Her hair was silver.
Her face was thin.
But her eyes were unmistakable.
"Mother?""
She stood slowly.
"Sweetheart.""
I pressed my hands against the glass.
A nurse appeared behind her.
Before anyone could open the door, a man stepped out of the adjoining room.
Dr. Samuel Whitmore.
He held a syringe.
"Nobody moves.""
Adrian raised his weapon.
"Put it down.""
Samuel smiled.
"You're all so predictable.""
He looked at me.
"Isabella, do you know why your grandfather left the entire estate to you?""
I shook my head.
"Because he loved me?""
Samuel laughed.
"Because he knew something about your birth that even your father never discovered.""
He raised the syringe.
"You weren't supposed to survive.""
Then he looked directly at Thomas.
"Because Isabella isn't Margaret's daughter.""
May you like
He pointed at Rose.
"She's mine.""
