Chapter 7: The Woman in the Photograph
My hand was shaking so badly that the phone nearly slipped from my fingers.
I looked at the photograph again.
The woman standing beside Charles Mercer was older than the mother I remembered, but there was no mistaking her.
The same dark eyes.
The same slight tilt of her head.
The same silver bracelet she wore in every family photograph from my childhood.
My mother.
Alive.
Vanessa stepped closer.
“Ethan?””
I couldn't answer.
Arthur took the phone from my hand.
The color drained from his face.
“No.””
He zoomed in.
His fingers trembled.
“That's her.””
The vault seemed to shrink around us.
Diane stared at the screen.
“No,” she whispered.
Victoria looked at her.
“You knew.””
“I didn't.””
“You said she was dead.””
“She was supposed to be.””
Arthur looked up sharply.
“What does that mean?””
Diane's eyes filled with panic.
“It means Charles told me she died.””
My father stepped toward her.
“You spoke to Charles?””
“Years ago.””
“When?””
“After the accident.””
My father froze.
“What accident?””
Diane covered her mouth.
I felt my chest tighten.
“You told everyone my mother died in a car crash.””
Diane nodded.
“That is what Charles told me.””
Arthur's voice became dangerously quiet.
“And you believed him?””
“I had no reason not to.””
“You attended her funeral.””
“So did you!””
“I buried my wife.””
Diane's eyes dropped.
“You buried an empty coffin.””
Nobody moved.
My father's face looked like stone.
I couldn't breathe.
“Dad…”
He turned toward me.
“I didn't know.””
I believed him.
That was the strange part.
After everything I'd learned that night, the only thing I still believed without question was him.
I took the phone back.
The message was still on the screen.
*She has been waiting for you.*
A second message appeared.
*Come alone.*
Then a location.
The old Bennett-Hawthorne factory.
I showed it to my father.
He immediately shook his head.
“No.””
“I have to go.””
“Absolutely not.””
“She’s my mother.””
“We don't know if that's really her.””
“It is.””
“You saw one photograph.””
“Dad, I know her face.””
“You were nineteen when she died.””
“I know.””
“And grief changes memory.””
I stared at him.
“I know my mother.””
Arthur closed his eyes.
For a few seconds, he seemed to be fighting with himself.
Then he looked at Mr. Lewis.
“How many security people do we have?””
“Six in the building.””
“Send four to the factory.””
I shook my head.
“She said alone.””
“No.””
“She might run.””
“She might be trying to lure you there.””
“I don't care.””
Arthur grabbed my shoulder.
“You should.””
His eyes were wet.
“I already lost your mother once.””
I understood what he meant.
He wasn't going to lose me too.
Graham stepped forward.
“I'll take him.””
My father looked at him.
“You're the last person I'd trust with my son.””
Graham nodded.
“I understand.””
Victoria crossed her arms.
“I'll go.””
Everyone looked at her.
Diane immediately said, “No.””
Victoria ignored her.
“My mother lied to me. Richard lied to me. Charles apparently lied to everyone.””
She looked at me.
“If that woman is really your mother, I need answers too.””
I hesitated.
Arthur sighed.
“Fine.””
I looked at him.
“You're coming?””
“No.””
He reached into his jacket and pulled out a small pistol.
My eyes widened.
“Dad?””
His expression was grim.
“I said I wasn't going to the factory with you.””
He handed the weapon to Mr. Lewis.
“But I'm sending a team.””
I looked at the gun.
Then at him.
“How long have you had that?””
“Long enough.””
I almost smiled.
It was the first normal thing anyone had said all night.
Then Arthur became serious again.
“Whatever you see there, don't trust anyone until you verify it.””
I nodded.
“Okay.””
He took my hand.
“Ethan.””
“Yeah?””
“Whatever the DNA says…”
He paused.
“You are my son.””
I swallowed hard.
“I know.””
Victoria and I left through a side entrance.
A black SUV was waiting.
Graham sat in the front.
I climbed into the back.
Victoria sat beside me.
For several minutes, neither of us spoke.
The city slid past the windows.
Wedding guests were still spilling onto the streets behind us.
Some were crying.
Some were filming.
Some were probably already calling reporters.
My wedding day had turned into something no one could have imagined.
Victoria finally spoke.
“You really didn't know about me?””
“No.””
“What was your childhood like?””
I looked at her.
“Normal.””
She laughed softly.
“Lucky.””
“Not always.””
“What do you mean?””
I looked out the window.
“Dad worked all the time. Money was tight.””
She frowned.
“Arthur had money.””
“Not when I was young.””
“He built Bennett Engineering before you were born.””
“I know.””
“Then he must have had money.””
“Not much.””
Victoria studied me.
“He never told you about the company?””
“He told me he owned a small engineering firm.””
She looked down.
“And you believed him.””
“He was my dad.””
A faint smile touched her face.
“I think I would have liked him.””
“You would.””
She turned toward me.
“Your mother.””
I couldn't speak.
“Was she good to you?””
I nodded.
“She was.””
“Then why would she disappear?””
“I don't know.””
Victoria looked toward the windshield.
“My father was cruel.””
I looked at her.
“Did you know him?””
“For a few years.””
“What was he like?””
She thought about it.
“Charming.””
That surprised me.
“Everyone says he was a monster.””
“He was.””
She looked at me.
“That was what made him dangerous.””
The SUV slowed as we entered the industrial district.
The old factory appeared through the fog.
Its windows were black.
Its brick walls were covered in weeds.
I remembered being there once as a child.
My mother had brought me.
She had told me it was where my father used to work before the company moved.
I had forgotten the memory almost completely.
Now it came back.
A red door.
A broken clock.
The smell of machine oil.
And my mother holding my hand.
The SUV stopped.
Graham looked back.
“We're here.””
I opened the door.
Victoria followed.
Graham grabbed my arm.
“Wait.””
“What?””
He looked toward the building.
“The message may not have come from your mother.””
“How do you know?””
“Because Charles uses this location.””
I stared at him.
“For what?””
“Meetings.””
Victoria stiffened.
“With Diane?””
“No.””
“Then who?””
Graham looked toward the factory.
“People who work for him.””
I took out my phone.
“No signal.””
Victoria checked hers.
“None.””
Graham swore under his breath.
“That's not normal.””
We approached the building.
The red door was unlocked.
Inside, darkness swallowed us.
Graham turned on a flashlight.
The factory floor was enormous.
Rusting machinery stood beneath hanging chains.
Dust floated through the beam.
I walked toward the center.
Then I heard something.
A piano.
One soft note.
Victoria grabbed my arm.
“That came from upstairs.””
We looked toward a metal staircase.
I started climbing.
Graham followed.
Victoria behind us.
At the top was an office.
The door was slightly open.
Warm yellow light spilled onto the floor.
I pushed it open.
And stopped.
There was a woman sitting behind a desk.
Her hair was gray now.
Her face was thinner.
Older.
But her eyes were exactly the same.
My mother's.
She slowly stood.
Her hands trembled.
“Ethan.””
My entire body went numb.
I couldn't move.
She took one step toward me.
“It's me.””
I shook my head.
“No.””
Tears filled her eyes.
“I know.””
“No.””
She reached for the desk.
“Your father told you I was dead.””
I couldn't breathe.
“You died.””
“I nearly did.””
Victoria stepped forward.
“Who are you?””
The woman looked at her.
Then froze.
“Victoria.””
Victoria's face changed.
“You know me.””
“I should.””
She walked around the desk.
“I gave you to Charles.””
“What?””
The woman broke down.
“I thought he would protect you.””
Victoria stared at her.
“You abandoned me.””
“I saved you.””
“You weren't there.””
“I couldn't be.””
I stepped between them.
“Why?””
My mother looked at me.
“Because Charles had proof.””
“Proof of what?””
“That he could destroy Arthur.””
My heart stopped.
She continued.
“He had the financial records. The corruption payments. The offshore accounts.””
She pointed toward a locked cabinet.
“But that wasn't what he threatened us with.””
“What then?””
She stared at me.
“You.””
I frowned.
“Me?””
“Charles discovered who your biological father was.””
The room became silent.
My mother whispered,
“And he used that secret to control everyone.””
I looked toward the cabinet.
“What is in there?””
She hesitated.
“The DNA results.””
My pulse accelerated.
“You have them?””
“Yes.””
“Then we can prove Richard wasn't my father.””
My mother looked at me with unbearable sadness.
“No.””
She slowly shook her head.
“The test says something else.””
I stepped backward.
“What?””
She opened the cabinet.
Inside was a single sealed envelope.
She lifted it carefully.
Then held it toward me.
“The truth isn't that Richard was your father.””
Her eyes locked onto mine.
“The truth is that Arthur isn't your biological father either.””
I stared at the envelope.
“Then who is?””
Before she could answer, the factory doors below slammed shut.
Graham spun around.
Footsteps echoed through the building.
Dozens of them.
My mother looked terrified.
“Charles found us.””
Then a man's voice boomed through the factory.
“Ethan.””
I knew that voice.
Charles Mercer.
“Put the envelope down and step away from my sister.””
My mother closed her eyes.
And whispered the words that made my blood freeze.
“Ethan, whatever he tells you…”
May you like
She looked at me.
“Don't let him show you the original birth certificate.””
