Chapter 2 - THE SECRET BEHIND THE PERFECT FAMILY
Edward didn’t sleep that night.
Neither did Emma.
The mansion that once represented comfort now felt like a crime scene.
Edward sat in his office, staring at old photographs.
Pictures of Emma as a child.
Pictures of his first wife, Sarah.
Pictures of a family that had disappeared years ago.
Victoria had entered his life after Sarah’s death.
She had been supportive.
Patient.
Kind.
At least, that was what he believed.
Until tonight.
The door opened quietly.
“Dad?”
Edward looked up.
Emma stood there wearing an oversized sweater.
Not the maid uniform.
For the first time that day, she looked like his daughter again.
“Come in.”
She walked slowly into the office.
“I’m sorry you found out this way.”
Edward frowned.
“Found out what?”
Emma looked down.
“That I’ve been cleaning the house.”
“That’s not what I mean.”
Silence.
Then Edward asked the question he had been afraid to ask.
“How long?”
Emma swallowed.
“Almost eight months.”
His face changed.
Eight months.
Eight months his daughter had suffered under his roof.
Eight months he had been too busy building his company to notice.
“Why didn’t you tell me?”
Emma laughed softly.
But there was no happiness in it.
“Because every time I tried, Victoria already knew.”
Edward leaned forward.
“What do you mean?”
“She told me you wouldn’t believe me.”
Emma’s voice trembled.
“She said I was just jealous of her. She said you loved her more because she made you successful.”
Edward stood up.
“That’s impossible.”
“Is it?”
The question hit harder than anything.
Emma wiped her eyes.
“Dad, when Mom died, you disappeared into work. Victoria was the person who stayed around.”
Edward looked away.
Because he knew it was true.
He had spent years chasing revenge against the world.
Building his empire.
Trying to forget his pain.
And while he was building billions…
He had missed his own daughter falling apart.
“What else did she do?”
Emma hesitated.
“Dad…”
“Tell me.”
“She made me sign papers.”
Edward froze.
“What papers?”
“She said they were just house rules.”
Emma reached into her pocket.
“I found a copy hidden in my room.”
She placed a folded document on the desk.
Edward opened it.
His eyes moved across the page.
Then stopped.
Because at the bottom…
Was his signature.
A signature he did not remember making.
His heart began beating faster.
Someone had forged documents using his name.
Someone had been preparing for this moment.
And then Emma whispered something that changed everything.
“Dad…”
Edward looked up.
“What?”
“I don’t think Mom died in an accident.”
The room went silent.
Because everyone had accepted Sarah Hayes’ death for years.
Everyone except the person who was now sitting in front of him.
His daughter.
May you like
And she was about to reveal the truth.
TO BE CONTINUED…
