Chapter 4: The Men Outside My Door
The first man knocked three times.
The second didn't bother knocking.
He walked straight toward the back entrance of my aunt's alterations shop, carrying a pair of industrial scissors in one hand and a black toolbox in the other.
Elise stood beside me, staring at the security monitor.
“Madison,” she whispered, “please tell me those are delivery guys.””
“They aren't.””
I grabbed the flash drive from the laptop and slipped it into the small pocket inside my champagne-gold gown.
The man with the scissors pulled something from his jacket.
A key.
My mother's spare key.
The lock turned.
I had approximately five seconds to decide what to do.
“Elise, call the police.””
She pulled out her phone.
I grabbed the wooden box containing Aunt Eleanor's original documents and hurried toward the storage room.
The door opened.
“Hello?”” a man's voice called.
Neither of us answered.
Footsteps crossed the wooden floor.
“Ms. Carter?”” he called again.
“We're here to collect some property.””
Elise stepped into the doorway.
“This is a private business. You need to leave.””
The taller man looked at her.
“Are you Madison?””
“No.””
“Then stay out of this.””
He walked past her.
I emerged from the storage room.
“I'm Madison. What do you want?””
The man with the toolbox smiled without warmth.
“Your mother sent us.””
“My mother doesn't own this building.””
“She says there's a wedding dress here that belongs to her daughter.””
“Which daughter?””
He ignored the question.
“Just give us the gown, and nobody has to make this difficult.””
I crossed my arms.
“You mean the gown my sister stole?””
The second man placed his toolbox on the cutting table.
“We're not here to discuss family problems.””
He opened it.
Inside were cutting blades, a seam ripper, and several small tools.
My stomach tightened.
“You're planning to destroy it.””
“Remove the recording mechanism,” he corrected.
So they knew.
I glanced at Elise.
She was still holding her phone, but her expression had changed.
She had activated the recording.
I took a slow breath.
“Who hired you?””
The taller man shrugged.
“Someone who doesn't want tomorrow's ceremony interrupted.””
“Victoria?””
He didn't answer.
“Or Carter Bridal Holdings?””
The man with the toolbox looked at his partner.
That tiny exchange told me everything.
Then the taller man reached toward the garment rack.
I stepped in front of it.
“Don't touch anything.””
He sighed.
“Lady, we're trying to be reasonable.””
“Then leave.””
He grabbed my wrist.
Before I could pull away, Elise shouted.
“THE POLICE ARE ON THEIR WAY!””
Both men turned.
The man holding my wrist released me.
He glanced toward the entrance, then toward the rear exit.
“Let's go.””
His partner grabbed the toolbox.
But before leaving, he leaned close enough for me to smell the stale coffee on his breath.
“Tell your aunt's lawyer that some things should stay buried.””
The door slammed.
For several seconds, neither Elise nor I moved.
Then she lowered her phone.
“I got all of it.””
I looked at her.
“Everything?””
“Their faces. The tools. The threats. And one of them mentioned Carter Bridal Holdings.””
I exhaled.
“Good.””
She stared at me.
“Good? Madison, they just tried to break into your shop.””
“They didn't get the dress.””
“That's not what I'm worried about.””
She pointed toward the laptop.
The video of Aunt Eleanor was still open.
“Someone knows about the recording. Someone knows about the inheritance. And apparently, Nathan's father is involved.””
I sat down.
For the first time that day, my hands began shaking.
Elise poured coffee into a paper cup and pushed it toward me.
“Drink.””
I took a sip.
It tasted like burnt cardboard.
Then my phone buzzed.
An unknown number.
You have until midnight to surrender the original documents.
Another message arrived.
Your sister is already wearing the dress. Don't make tomorrow worse.
I showed Elise.
She read it twice.
“Can they actually do anything?””
“Not legally.””
“That's not the same as saying they won't.””
She was right.
I called Daniel.
He answered immediately.
“Madison, I've been trying to reach you.””
“Two men just came to the shop. They knew about the clasp.””
There was a long silence.
“Did they damage anything?””
“No. But they threatened me.””
“Listen carefully. I'm sending a security team to the shop. Do not leave alone.””
I lowered my voice.
“Daniel, I need to know what happened the night Caroline died.””
He exhaled.
“I was hoping we could discuss that after the wedding.””
“I'm not waiting anymore.””
“All right. The hospital records you received are incomplete. Caroline was admitted after a car accident. She was conscious when she arrived.””
“And?””
“Someone changed her emergency contact information. Your aunt discovered the alteration years later.””
“Who changed it?””
“Your father.””
I closed my eyes.
“My father?””
“Your biological father was never listed on the original birth certificate. But there was a man who claimed to be your legal guardian after Caroline's death. His name was Richard Reed.””
Nathan's father.
The room seemed to grow colder.
“Why would he have any authority?””
“That's what we are still investigating. But he signed several documents concerning Caroline's estate.””
I looked at the old photograph on my desk.
Aunt Eleanor had known all of this.
“Daniel, did Caroline leave a recording?””
“Yes. Eleanor mentioned it in her final instructions. She said the complete recording was stored inside the original design archive.””
“Where is that?””
“Bellamere Estate.””
I almost laughed.
The place where my wedding was scheduled to happen.
The place where my sister was planning to parade around in my stolen gown.
“Why would it be there?””
“Your aunt worked on the original collection with Caroline. Some of the archive materials were temporarily stored in the estate's old music room.””
“Who has access?””
Daniel hesitated.
“Richard Reed.””
Before I could ask another question, the security alarm began sounding.
Someone was at the front entrance.
Elise looked at the monitor.
A familiar figure stood outside.
Nathan.
He was alone.
He held up both hands when I opened the door.
“Please,” he said.
“I need five minutes.””
I didn't invite him inside.
“What do you want?””
He looked exhausted.
“I found something in my father's office.””
He handed me a sealed envelope.
Inside was a photograph of Caroline standing beside a much younger Richard Reed.
On the back, someone had written:
The original agreement. The truth about Madison.
Nathan looked at me.
“My father has been lying to both of us.””
I opened the envelope further.
A second photograph slipped out.
It showed Caroline holding a newborn baby.
On the baby's wrist was a hospital identification band.
The name printed on it wasn't Madison Carter.
It was Madison Reed.
May you like
And suddenly, the question wasn't why my mother had stolen my inheritance.
It was why she had spent twenty-six years pretending I was someone else's daughter.
