Chapter 7 - THE CHILD WHO WAS ERASED FROM HISTORY
I stared at the document until the words stopped making sense.
The room around me disappeared.
The only thing I could see was that name.
Richard Vale.
Adrian’s father.
My mother’s secret.
A child.
A child who was supposed to have never existed.
“Emma…”
Adrian’s voice sounded distant.
I looked up slowly.
“That’s impossible.”
My voice cracked.
“My mother would have told me.”
Nobody answered.
Because everyone in that room knew the truth.
Sometimes the biggest secrets were not hidden because they were complicated.
They were hidden because they could destroy everything.
Daniel placed another file on the table.
“We verified the records three times.”
I shook my head.
“No.”
I stepped backward.
“My mother was married to my father.”
Adrian looked at me.
“Emma…”
“No.”
My eyes filled with tears.
“She loved him.”
Daniel lowered his voice.
“I’m not saying she didn’t.”
“Then what are you saying?”
He looked at the document.
“I’m saying there was another part of her life she never told you about.”
I felt betrayed.
Not by Adrian.
Not even by Beatrice.
By the woman who raised me.
The woman who taught me honesty.
The woman who told me secrets always destroyed families.
And yet…
She had kept one.
Adrian reached for my hand.
But I pulled away.
“I need a minute.”
His face showed pain.
But he respected it.
I walked out of the office.
The Vale estate felt different now.
Every hallway.
Every painting.
Every locked door.
It felt like the entire house had been built on secrets.
I reached the old library.
A place I had cleaned hundreds of times.
But that morning, something caught my attention.
A portrait.
An old painting of the Vale family.
Richard Vale.
Beatrice.
Young Adrian.
But there was something strange.
A small space beside Adrian.
Like someone had been removed.
I touched the frame.
Then I noticed something.
A hidden mark.
A tiny scratch near the corner.
Someone had moved this painting before.
I carefully pulled it away from the wall.
Behind it was a small compartment.
Inside was an old envelope.
My heart started racing.
The name written on it made my hands freeze.
Sarah.
My mother.
I opened it slowly.
The letter was old.
The handwriting was unmistakable.
My mother’s handwriting.
Dear Emma,
If you are reading this, then the truth has finally found you.
I stopped breathing.
The letter continued.
I wanted to protect you from the Vale family.
I wanted you to have a normal life.
But some secrets do not disappear.
They wait.
I covered my mouth.
My mother knew.
She knew this day could come.
The next sentence made my heart pound.
Richard Vale was not the only person who knew about my existence.
Someone else knew.
Someone who wanted me silent.
The library door suddenly opened.
I turned.
Beatrice stood there.
For a moment, neither of us spoke.
Then she looked at the letter in my hand.
Her face changed.
“You found it.”
I tightened my grip.
“You knew.”
She didn’t deny it.
“You knew about my mother.”
“Yes.”
“You knew about the child.”
Silence.
Then she whispered:
“Yes.”
My anger exploded.
“How could you?”
Beatrice looked tired.
Not cruel.
Not powerful.
Just tired.
“Because I was there when everything happened.”
I stepped closer.
“Tell me.”
She looked at me.
“Your mother didn’t leave the Vale family.”
My heart stopped.
“She was forced out.”
“By who?”
Beatrice looked toward the hallway.
And for the first time…
I saw real fear in her eyes.
“By the same person who is trying to destroy you now.”
The lights suddenly flickered.
May you like
Then Beatrice whispered:
“He knows you found the letter.”
