Chapter 12: The Brother Who Never Existed
Daniel stood completely motionless.
The photograph on the screen showed him as an infant.
Beside him was the teenage boy named Michael.
But the strangest part wasn't the photograph.
It was the date.
The picture had been taken two years before Daniel's official birth.
“That can't be me,” Daniel whispered.
Eleanor wiped her tears.
“It is.””
“No.””
“Daniel—”
“I was born in 1987.””
“Yes.””
“This photograph says 1985.””
“I know.””
He turned toward her.
“Then who is the baby?””
Eleanor couldn't answer.
Celia did.
“Michael's son.””
Daniel stared at her.
“My father's grandson?””
“Yes.””
Dr. Voss stepped closer.
“Your father falsified the records after Michael died.””
“How did Michael die?””
“No one knows.””
Daniel looked at Eleanor.
“You knew about him.””
“Yes.””
“And you let me grow up believing I was an only child.””
“Your father ordered everyone to forget him.””
“How could an entire family forget a person?””
“He paid people.””
Daniel laughed bitterly.
“Of course he did.””
I stared at the photograph.
“What does this have to do with Lily?””
Marcus's voice came through the speaker.
“Everything.””
The screen lit again.
Lily appeared.
She was holding the same photograph.
“Mommy, this man looks like Daddy.””
I swallowed.
“He was Daddy's brother.””
“Did he live here?””
“Yes.””
“Was he nice?””
I couldn't answer.
Eleanor whispered, “He was.””
Marcus interrupted.
“Michael discovered the Foundation.””
Daniel looked toward the camera.
“And you killed him.””
“No.””
“Then who did?””
“Your father.””
Daniel closed his eyes.
“Why?””
“Michael wanted to expose him.””
“And Lily?””
“Michael left evidence.””
“What evidence?””
“His genetic records.””
I looked at Dr. Voss.
She nodded slowly.
“Michael preserved his DNA before he died.””
“Why?””
“He suspected your father was going to erase him.””
Daniel stared at the floor.
“And Lily has his DNA.””
“Yes.””
“Because Claire was part of the program?””
“No.””
Dr. Voss looked at me.
“Because your pregnancy was manipulated.””
My stomach dropped.
“What does that mean?””
“Your fertilized embryo was created from stored genetic material.””
Daniel stared at her.
“You're saying Lily isn't biologically mine.””
Dr. Voss hesitated.
“Not in the way you believe.””
Daniel looked at me.
I couldn't speak.
Seven years of memories rushed through me.
The first ultrasound.
Daniel crying when we heard the heartbeat.
The tiny pink blanket.
The night Lily was born.
All of it suddenly felt fragile.
Marcus's voice returned.
“Daniel, you were chosen because your father believed you would obey him.””
Daniel stepped toward the camera.
“I never obeyed him.””
“You did without knowing.””
“What did I do?””
“You married Claire.””
My heart stopped.
Marcus continued.
“She was selected because she had no connection to the Mercer family.””
I looked at Daniel.
“You knew me before we met?””
“No.””
Marcus laughed.
“Not personally.””
Daniel's expression hardened.
“Then how did you select her?””
“We didn't.””
“Who did?””
“Your father.””
Silence.
Then Eleanor said quietly:
“I need to correct something.””
Everyone turned.
She walked toward me.
“Claire wasn't selected because she was unrelated.””
“Then why?””
“Because she was already connected.””
“To whom?””
Eleanor looked at Daniel.
“To Michael.””
Daniel frowned.
“How?””
“Michael had a daughter.””
The room went silent.
I felt the blood drain from my face.
“No.””
Eleanor nodded.
“You are Michael's daughter.””
Daniel stared at me.
“That isn't possible.””
“It is.””
I shook my head.
“My parents were Robert and Susan Harper.””
“Those were the names you were given.””
“Given?””
Eleanor reached into her coat.
She pulled out a birth certificate.
She handed it to me.
My name was printed across the top.
*Claire Elizabeth Harper.*
But the father's name wasn't Robert.
It was:
*Michael Mercer.*
My hands went numb.
Daniel looked over my shoulder.
His face collapsed.
“You're my niece.””
I stared at the paper.
“No.””
“Yes,” Eleanor whispered.
Marcus's voice came through the speaker.
“Now you understand.””
I couldn't breathe.
The woman who had spent years manipulating my life wasn't just a stranger.
The family that had watched Lily wasn't just connected to Daniel.
They had been watching me long before I met him.
I looked at Daniel.
“If I'm Michael's daughter…”
His eyes filled with tears.
“Then Lily…”
Dr. Voss finished the sentence.
“Is Michael's granddaughter.””
Lily suddenly appeared on the screen again.
She was crying.
“Mommy, there's someone here.””
I turned toward the screen.
A shadow moved behind her.
Then a man's face appeared.
Older.
Scarred.
Alive.
He looked directly into the camera.
Daniel stumbled backward.
“Michael?””
The man smiled.
“No.””
He stepped closer.
“Michael died.””
He lifted his hand.
On his finger was the same gold bird ring.
“My name is Thomas.””
Eleanor screamed.
May you like
Thomas looked at me.
“And I'm the man who raised your mother.””
