Chapter 14 - THE BETRAYAL
The blanket made no sense.
Claire’s baby had not been born.
Then Rosa saw the embroidery.
“That blanket is old.”
Lucas looked at her.
“How old.”
“More than thirty years.”
Helena closed her eyes.
Claire turned toward her.
“What aren’t you telling us.”
Helena said nothing.
Evelyn entered.
She had been crying.
“I know.”
Everyone looked at her.
Evelyn held a photograph.
Two newborn girls lay beside each other.
Matching blankets.
Matching bracelets.
Helena sat down.
Evelyn’s voice broke.
“You told me Rebecca was your daughter from before Dad.”
“She wasn’t.”
Claire felt the truth approaching.
“She was Dad’s daughter too.”
Evelyn nodded.
“My twin.”
Lucas stared at his mother.
“Rebecca is Evelyn’s twin sister.”
“Yes.”
Helena finally surrendered.
Rebecca had been born first.
Evelyn seven minutes later.
Henry’s father had controlled the family then.
He considered two daughters a succession complication.
Helena, young and powerless, was pressured to let relatives secretly raise Rebecca.
Years later, Rebecca discovered the truth.
She returned.
Henry wanted to acknowledge her publicly.
Helena refused.
“Why.”
Claire asked.
“Because acknowledging Rebecca would have changed the inheritance structure.”
Graham answered for her.
“Under Henry’s father’s trust, the eldest Sterling child received an additional ten-percent legacy stake.”
Claire stared at Helena.
“Rebecca was the eldest.”
“Yes.”
“That means Evelyn’s inheritance was never legally hers.”
Evelyn backed away from her mother.
“You knew.”
“I protected you.”
“You erased my sister.”
“I protected you.”
Evelyn screamed.
“You erased my sister.”
The room fell silent.
Then Claire understood Nathan’s role.
“What does Nathan gain.”
Lucas looked suddenly sick.
“Nathan’s mother.”
He closed his eyes.
“Her maiden name was Shaw.”
Graham stood.
“Oh, God.”
Claire felt the pieces snap together.
Nathan Cole was Rebecca’s son.
Which meant Henry Sterling was his grandfather.
Lucas stared into nothing.
“My best friend is my nephew.”
Mason immediately began issuing orders.
Then Lucas’s phone rang.
Nathan’s name appeared.
Everyone froze.
Lucas answered on speaker.
“Nathan.”
His voice came calmly through the phone.
“You finally figured it out.”
“Where are you.”
“Does it matter.”
“You almost killed Claire.”
“No.”
Nathan’s tone sharpened.
“That was never the plan.”
Claire stepped closer.
“What was.”
Silence.
Then Rebecca’s voice came through.
“The plan was to make the Sterlings finally tell the truth.”
Claire gripped the table.
“You put oil on the stairs.”
“No.”
Rebecca sounded almost offended.
“Someone else did.”
Lucas looked at Helena.
Helena looked furious.
Nathan continued.
“You’re still looking at this like one conspiracy.”
“It isn’t.”
“There are two.”
Claire stopped breathing.
“Two.”
Nathan laughed softly.
“My mother and I came to expose Helena.”
“But somebody inside that house used our plan as cover to try to kill you.”
The line disconnected.
Claire stared around the room.
May you like
If Nathan and Rebecca were telling the truth, then the person who wanted the Sterling secrets exposed and the person who wanted Claire’s baby gone were not the same person.
And one of them was still inside the mansion.
