Chapter 6 - The Name Written On The Birth Certificate
A woman opened the old file and whispered: "Someone changed your son's identity before he was born."
Ethan Blackwood grabbed the document from the screen.
The father's name on Leo's birth certificate was not a stranger's.
It was Ethan's closest friend.
The name written there was Daniel Carter.
I watched Ethan turn toward Daniel.
Slowly.
Like he was afraid that moving too quickly would make the truth become real.
Nobody spoke.
Not me.
Not Victoria.
Not Daniel.
The only sound in the security room was the quiet humming of the computer.
The birth certificate remained frozen on the screen.
Leo Blackwood.
Born eighteen months ago.
Father: Daniel Carter.
I felt my entire body go cold.
Because that name wasn't just a random mistake.
Daniel had been the person standing beside us since the beginning.
The person who helped uncover the lies.
The person who claimed he wanted to reveal the truth.
And now his name was sitting on the one document that could destroy everything.
Ethan slowly looked at him.
"Explain."
Daniel didn't move.
"Ethan..."
"No."
Ethan's voice was different.
Calm.
Too calm.
"Don't say my name like that fixes anything."
Daniel looked at Leo.
Then at me.
Then back at Ethan.
"I can explain."
Ethan laughed once.
But there was no humor in it.
"That's what everyone says."
Victoria stepped forward.
"Daniel didn't do this."
Ethan looked at her.
"You knew?"
Victoria shook her head quickly.
"No."
"Then why are you defending him?"
"Because I know what happened."
Ethan looked back at the screen.
"My son's birth certificate says he is Daniel's son."
He pointed at the document.
"How?"
Nobody answered.
I looked at Daniel.
I wanted to believe him.
Because for the last few hours, he had been the only person who seemed to understand what happened to us.
But there was something different in his face now.
Not guilt.
Pain.
Like he had been waiting for this moment.
"I need to tell you something."
Ethan stared at him.
"Start talking."
Daniel took a deep breath.
"Before I say anything, you need to understand one thing."
He looked at Leo.
"I never wanted my name there."
My heart stopped.
"What?"
Daniel looked at me.
"Sarah, I never claimed he was my son."
I held Leo closer.
"Then why is your name on his birth certificate?"
Daniel looked at Ethan.
"Because someone needed Ethan Blackwood to believe his son was not his."
The words hit harder than anything else.
Ethan stepped closer.
"Who?"
Daniel didn't answer.
Not immediately.
And that hesitation made Ethan angry.
"Who?"
Daniel finally spoke.
"Rebecca."
The room froze.
Again.
That name.
Rebecca.
The woman connected to everything.
The nurse.
The person in the photograph.
The person Ethan's father warned him about.
Ethan's expression changed.
"Rebecca changed the birth certificate?"
Daniel nodded.
"Yes."
"Why?"
Daniel looked at me.
"Because she knew if Ethan discovered the truth, everything she built would collapse."
I shook my head.
"But how could she change an official document?"
Daniel looked at the screen.
"Because she wasn't just a nurse."
Nobody moved.
"She had access."
Victoria whispered:
"She worked for the Blackwood family."
Ethan looked at his sister.
"What?"
Victoria looked ashamed.
"Rebecca was hired by your father years ago."
"Why?"
Victoria swallowed.
"Because she was good at hiding things."
A cold feeling moved through me.
The person who helped me during childbirth.
The person I trusted.
The person who held Leo when I was too exhausted to stand.
Had been part of this.
I remembered that night.
The hospital room.
Rebecca smiling.
Telling me everything would be okay.
I remembered how she asked questions.
Questions that seemed harmless.
"What name will the baby have?"
"Will Ethan be involved?"
"Are you sure you want him to know?"
At the time, I thought she was being kind.
Now...
I wasn't sure.
Ethan looked at me.
"Sarah."
I looked up.
"Did she ask you about me?"
I stayed silent.
Because she did.
Too many questions.
And suddenly I realized something.
She wasn't comforting me.
She was collecting information.
"Yes."
Ethan's jaw tightened.
"What did she ask?"
I closed my eyes.
"She asked if you knew about Leo."
"And?"
"I told her no."
Silence.
Daniel looked down.
"That's when she knew."
Ethan looked confused.
"Knew what?"
Daniel's voice became quiet.
"That Leo was the one thing she could use to control you."
Ethan stared.
I watched the realization slowly appear on his face.
Someone hadn't just separated us.
Someone had planned everything.
The breakup.
The lies.
The missing letters.
The false messages.
The birth certificate.
All of it.
For one reason.
To keep Ethan away from his own child.
But why?
Why would anyone care so much about destroying our family?
Ethan looked at Daniel.
"Why would Rebecca do this?"
Daniel hesitated.
Then he reached into his jacket.
He pulled out a small envelope.
"This is why."
Ethan took it.
The envelope had one word written on it.
"BLACKWOOD."
Daniel continued.
"I found this inside your father's hidden room."
Ethan opened it.
Inside was a photograph.
His father.
Rebecca.
And another person.
I watched Ethan's face change.
Because he knew the third person.
A person I had never met.
A person who was not supposed to be connected to this.
"Who is that?"
I asked.
Ethan didn't answer.
He couldn't.
Victoria looked at the picture.
Then covered her mouth.
"No..."
Daniel looked at Ethan.
"You recognize him."
Ethan stared at the photograph.
His hands started shaking.
"That's impossible."
"Who is it?"
I asked again.
Ethan finally whispered:
"My brother."
The room went silent.
Victoria looked at him.
"Ethan..."
"My brother died before I was born."
Nobody spoke.
Daniel looked at the photograph.
"That's what your father wanted everyone to believe."
My heart raced.
Because this was no longer just about me and Ethan.
This was about a family secret that existed long before we met.
Ethan turned the photograph over.
There was writing on the back.
A date.
A location.
And one sentence.
"Protect him from the person who raised him."
Ethan stared at the words.
"Who raised him?"
Daniel looked at Victoria.
Then at Ethan.
"Your mother."
The silence after that felt unbearable.
Victoria stepped backward.
"No."
Ethan looked at her.
"Victoria..."
She shook her head.
"No, that's impossible."
Daniel's phone suddenly rang.
Everyone looked at it.
Unknown number.
He answered.
Nobody spoke.
Then his face changed.
"What?"
He listened for a few seconds.
Then slowly lowered the phone.
Ethan looked at him.
"Who was it?"
Daniel looked directly at me.
And I knew something terrible had happened.
"Sarah..."
His voice was barely audible.
"They found Rebecca."
I exhaled.
"Where?"
Daniel looked at Ethan.
"At the old Blackwood building."
A pause.
Then he added:
"And she wasn't alone."
The security room door suddenly unlocked from the outside.
May you like
Someone was standing there.
Holding Leo's missing hospital bracelet.
