Chapter 2: The Envelope My Father Left Behind
I didn't open the envelope in front of the guests.
I couldn't.
Not with Vanessa crying beside the stage, not with our newborn son screaming in her arms, and certainly not with a room full of business partners pretending they weren't listening.
I took Maya's hand.
“Come with me.””
Vanessa stepped between us.
“Daniel, we need to talk.””
“We've been talking for five years.””
“Please.””
“You can come with us. But don't expect me to believe anything you say without proof.””
She looked down at the baby.
“What about him?””
I paused.
That was the one question I couldn't answer.
The child was innocent. Whatever Vanessa had done, he hadn't chosen to be born into it.
“Bring him,” I said.
We left through the side entrance.
My driver, Thomas, was waiting beside the black Mercedes. He opened the rear door, took one look at our faces, and immediately stopped smiling.
“Everything all right, sir?””
“No.””
He glanced at Maya.
“Would you like me to take you home?””
“Take us to the office,” I said.
Vanessa looked at me.
“Daniel, it's almost midnight.””
“Good. Nobody will interrupt us.””
The drive was silent.
Maya sat beside me, holding the envelope. Vanessa sat opposite us with the baby sleeping against her shoulder.
Every few minutes, she looked at me.
I didn't look back.
When we arrived at the company headquarters, the lobby lights were still on. Our security supervisor, Martin, greeted us at the elevator.
“Mr. Hayes. I wasn't expecting you.””
“Is Richard here?””
Martin hesitated.
“No, sir.””
“Has he left?””
“I believe so.””
“Did he take anything from his office?””
Martin's eyes flickered toward Vanessa.
“Not that I'm aware of.””
I pressed the elevator button.
“Find out.””
The doors closed.
Our offices occupied the top three floors of the building. My father had bought the property when I was twelve, back when Hayes Holdings consisted of a modest investment company and a small manufacturing business.
He had built everything himself.
When he died, the company was worth nearly a billion dollars.
And most of it had passed to me.
At least, that was what I believed.
I led everyone into the private conference room.
“Vanessa, sit down.””
She placed the baby in the portable bassinet beside the wall.
Maya stayed close to me.
I opened the envelope.
Inside were three things.
A photograph.
A folded letter.
And a hospital bracelet.
The bracelet was yellowed at the edges. A name had been written in faded blue ink.
*Baby Boy — Patient: Unknown.*
I picked up the photograph.
It showed Richard outside St. Mary's Hospital, standing beside a woman I recognized immediately.
Vanessa.
She was younger, wearing a gray coat and holding a large handbag.
Richard had one hand on her shoulder.
The date was printed in the corner.
Nine months before our son's birth.
I turned the photograph over.
The handwriting matched the message on the envelope.
*The first lie was the pregnancy.*
My stomach tightened.
I unfolded the letter.
It was from my father.
Daniel,
If you're reading this, something happened that I hoped I would have time to prevent.
I made a mistake when I trusted Richard with the family's affairs. I believed his jealousy would disappear once I gave him responsibility. I was wrong.
There is something you must understand about the inheritance.
The company is not yours simply because I left it to you. It is held under a family trust, and the trust has conditions.
Richard knows those conditions.
So does the woman you married.
I stopped reading.
Vanessa covered her mouth.
“You knew?”” I asked.
She shook her head.
“Daniel, I swear—”
“Let me finish.””
I continued.
The largest portion of the estate is protected until you have established a direct heir. However, I included a safeguard because I knew Richard might try to exploit that condition.
No transfer can become permanent without an independent confirmation of the child's parentage.
If someone attempts to falsify that confirmation, the entire trust must be frozen.
I lowered the letter.
For several seconds, I heard only the hum of the air conditioner.
Then I looked at Vanessa.
“Was the pregnancy real?””
She began to cry again.
“Daniel, please.””
“Answer me.””
“Yes.””
“Was the baby born to you?””
She looked toward the bassinet.
“Yes.””
“Is he mine?””
Silence.
Maya reached for my hand.
Vanessa finally whispered, “I don't know.””
I stared at her.
“You don't know?””
“I was told he was yours.””
“By whom?””
She closed her eyes.
“Richard.””
A bitter laugh escaped my throat.
“You expect me to believe my brother told you who fathered your child?””
“He arranged everything.””
“What does that mean?””
Vanessa rubbed her forehead.
“I met Richard before I met you.””
The room seemed to tilt.
“What?””
“He was an investor in the charity foundation where I worked. He introduced me to people. He helped me when my apartment flooded.””
“And then?””
“He told me about you.””
I stared at her.
“He introduced us?””
She nodded.
“Not directly at first. He showed me photographs. He told me about Maya, about your company, about how lonely you were after Emily died.””
I stood.
“You're telling me my brother selected my wife?””
“That's not how it happened.””
“Then explain it.””
Vanessa looked down.
“Richard said you needed someone who understood family. He said you were a good man who had been hurt.””
I felt sick.
“What did he want?””
“At first, nothing. He said he wanted you to be happy.””
“And you believed him?””
“I was in debt, Daniel.””
“How much?””
“Almost two hundred thousand dollars.””
I stared at her.
“Richard paid it?””
She nodded.
“Then he asked you to marry me?””
“He never asked me to marry you.””
“What did he ask?””
Vanessa began twisting her wedding ring.
“He asked me to make sure you trusted me.””
I looked at the ring.
The diamond I had chosen.
The vows I had written.
The woman who had stood beside my daughter's hospital bed when Maya broke her arm.
All of it suddenly felt like a performance.
“Did you ever love me?””
She started sobbing.
“I did.””
“Past tense?””
“Daniel, I don't know what I feel anymore.””
Maya spoke for the first time.
“Did you ever love me?””
Vanessa turned toward her.
“Of course I did.””
“Then why did you say I wouldn't be a problem?””
Vanessa's face crumpled.
“I didn't mean—”
“You said nobody would believe me.””
“I was angry.””
“You said it on a recording.””
Vanessa reached toward her.
Maya stepped back.
“Don't touch me.””
The words were quiet.
They hurt more than shouting.
I sat beside my daughter.
“It's okay, sweetheart.””
“No, Dad. It's not.””
She wiped her eyes.
“I knew something was wrong months ago.””
I turned toward her.
“What?””
“Vanessa kept taking phone calls outside. Sometimes she would leave the house at night and say she was checking on the baby.””
Vanessa shook her head.
“Maya, that isn't true.””
“I saw you.””
“When?””
“Two weeks ago. You were in Uncle Richard's car.””
Vanessa went pale.
Maya continued.
“You were holding a folder. When I asked what it was, you said it was medical paperwork.””
I looked at my wife.
“What folder?””
She didn't answer.
I picked up my father's letter again.
There was another page folded inside.
This one contained a list of legal instructions and a name.
*Evelyn Carter — Family Trust Attorney.*
Beneath it was a handwritten sentence.
Do not trust Richard's version of the will. Evelyn has the original.
I reached for my phone.
“Thomas, find me Evelyn Carter's number.””
My driver answered immediately.
“Of course, sir.””
I turned toward Vanessa.
“Where is Richard going?””
She shook her head.
“I don't know.””
“Don't lie to me again.””
She looked at the baby.
Then she said something that made my blood run cold.
“He's going to the hospital.””
“Why?””
“To get the original birth records.””
I stood so quickly that my chair fell backward.
“What original records?””
Vanessa looked at me through tears.
“The ones that show who the father really is.””
Before I could respond, my phone rang.
An unknown number.
I answered.
A man's voice came through.
“Mr. Hayes, this is Dr. Samuel Reed from St.
Mary's Hospital. I'm calling because someone has just requested access to a sealed maternity file.””
“Who?””
There was a pause.
“Your brother, Mr. Richard Hayes.””
“Don't give him anything.””
“Sir, there's another problem.””
“What?””
“The file was already accessed this afternoon.””
My grip tightened.
“By whom?””
May you like
The doctor lowered his voice.
“Your wife.””
