Chapter 5 - The Daughter Nobody Was Supposed To Find
A photograph of my daughter appeared on my phone at 3:17 in the morning. A stranger stood beside Lily and wrote: "Your daughter was never supposed to survive." I rushed to Alexander’s private office searching for answers. But inside his locked drawer, I found a birth certificate with a name that changed everything.
I stared at the picture until my eyes burned.
Lily.
My Lily.
Standing beside a man I had never seen before.
The photograph looked old.
Not something taken recently.
But Lily was younger.
Maybe two years old.
The man beside her was holding her hand.
And the worst part was not the picture.
It was the message.
Your daughter was never supposed to survive.
My fingers trembled as I looked at the unknown number.
I typed one sentence.
"Who are you?"
No response.
I waited.
Ten seconds.
One minute.
Five minutes.
Nothing.
Then another message appeared.
Not a text.
A photograph.
This time it was a picture of Alexander.
Taken before the accident.
He was standing outside the Cole mansion.
Beside him was the same man from Lily’s picture.
Underneath was a short sentence.
"Alexander knew the truth before you did."
I dropped my phone onto the table.
Because that meant one thing.
Alexander had known.
For years.
I looked toward the hospital bed where he lay unconscious.
The man I trusted.
The man who had protected me.
The man who had kept secrets from me.
A thousand questions filled my mind.
Why did he never tell me?
Who was Lily’s father?
And why was someone trying to convince me my daughter should not exist?
I returned to Alexander's room before sunrise.
The lights were dim.
Lily was sleeping peacefully in the chair.
She had no idea the world around her was changing.
I sat beside Alexander.
"Why didn't you tell me?"
My voice cracked.
"You knew something about her."
The monitor continued quietly.
No answer.
Of course not.
Not yet.
But then I remembered something.
The file.
The emergency guardian agreement.
I had only seen part of it.
There had to be more.
I waited until Lily woke up.
Then I called the hospital nurse.
"I need to go somewhere for a few hours."
She looked concerned.
"Are you leaving Mr. Cole?"
I looked back at him.
"No."
I touched his hand.
"I'm finding out why he tried to protect us."
I returned to the Cole mansion.
The place felt different now.
Before, it had always felt like a beautiful home.
Now it felt like a place hiding secrets.
Every hallway.
Every room.
Every locked door.
I walked directly to Alexander's office.
Nobody stopped me.
Maybe because everyone thought I was only a maid.
Nobody believed I would look for answers.
Nobody believed I would open doors they thought were impossible to open.
I searched through his desk.
Nothing.
His bookshelf.
Nothing.
His computer.
Password protected.
Then I remembered something.
Alexander always told me one thing.
"People hide their biggest secrets in places they believe nobody will ever touch."
I looked around.
Then I saw it.
The old painting behind his desk.
I moved it.
A small safe was hidden behind it.
My heart started racing.
I entered the date from the photograph.
Nothing.
I tried Lily's birthday.
Nothing.
Then I tried Alexander's birthday.
The safe opened.
Inside were documents.
Photos.
Letters.
And one folder.
SARAH AND LILY.
My hands shook.
Again.
I opened it.
The first page was a medical report.
Not mine.
Lily's.
I read the words slowly.
"Genetic compatibility confirmed."
I froze.
What did that mean?
I turned the page.
Another document.
"Emergency protection agreement."
Then I saw Alexander's signature.
And another signature.
A name I had never heard before.
Michael Reed.
I continued reading.
The document said Alexander had legal responsibility for Lily if anything happened to me.
But why?
Why would he need that?
Then I found a letter.
Written by Alexander.
Sarah,
If you are reading this, then I failed to keep you away from this truth.
I stopped.
My eyes filled with tears.
I continued.
I never wanted you to know because knowing would put Lily in danger.
I looked toward the window.
Danger from who?
The letter continued.
Lily is connected to something much bigger than my company.
Someone wanted her hidden.
Someone wanted her gone.
My hands tightened around the paper.
No.
Nobody was taking my daughter.
The next sentence made me stop breathing.
The reason I protected Lily was because she is the last living person connected to...
The letter ended there.
The rest of the page had been torn away.
Someone had removed the most important part.
I searched through the folder desperately.
Nothing.
Only one more photograph.
It showed Alexander standing with a woman.
The same woman from the old picture.
The woman the doctor said was Victoria.
His wife.
But this time, there was something different.
She was holding a baby.
A baby who looked exactly like Lily.
I sat down.
Because the impossible thought entered my mind.
What if Lily wasn't just someone Alexander wanted to protect?
What if she was connected to him?
I needed answers.
I needed Victoria.
I searched every document.
Every name.
Every address.
Then I found a hospital record.
Victoria Cole.
Patient status:
Missing.
Not dead.
Missing.
The date matched the night Alexander had his accident.
I immediately called the number attached to the record.
It rang.
Once.
Twice.
Three times.
Then someone answered.
A woman's voice.
Quiet.
Afraid.
"Who gave you this number?"
I froze.
"Victoria?"
Silence.
Then the woman whispered.
"You found Alexander's files."
My heart raced.
"Where are you?"
She didn't answer.
Instead, she asked:
"Is Sarah Miller with you?"
I looked around the empty office.
"Yes."
Another silence.
Then her voice changed.
Fear.
Real fear.
"Sarah, listen carefully."
I grabbed the phone tighter.
"What?"
"You need to leave the mansion."
"Why?"
Because I heard something behind me.
A floorboard moving.
Someone was inside the office.
I turned slowly.
Nobody was there.
But the door that I had locked...
was opening.
Victoria's voice came through the phone.
"Sarah..."
I whispered.
"Who is there?"
Her answer was barely audible.
"The person who tried to kill Alexander."
May you like
The office door opened wider.
And a familiar voice said my name.
