Chapter 2 - The Name Hidden In The Letter
The front door opened behind Dominic.
Everyone inside the mansion froze.
A man stepped into the doorway.
He was older than Dominic, maybe in his late sixties.
His gray hair was perfectly combed.
His suit was expensive.
His expression was calm.
Too calm.
Because the moment he saw me, Lily, and the letter in Dominic’s hand, his face changed.
Only for a second.
But Dominic noticed.
"Adrian."
The older man looked at Dominic.
"Yes?"
Dominic held up the letter.
"Why is your name written here?"
Silence.
The room suddenly felt smaller.
I watched the man carefully.
Adrian.
The name at the bottom of Sofia’s hidden page.
The name that had made Dominic look like the world had shifted beneath his feet.
Adrian slowly walked closer.
"I don't know what you're talking about."
Dominic’s eyes became cold.
"I think you do."
The guards around us immediately became alert.
Lily moved closer to me.
She grabbed my hand.
I could feel her shaking.
She had been brave outside the gate.
She had been brave when facing the man everyone feared.
But she was still only eight years old.
And she could feel when something was wrong.
Dominic noticed.
His expression softened slightly.
He stepped between Lily and Adrian.
A small movement.
But everyone in the room understood what it meant.
He was protecting her.
"Leave the child out of this."
Adrian looked at Lily.
Then back at Dominic.
"Child?"
His voice was almost a whisper.
"You really believe that?"
Dominic's jaw tightened.
"What does that mean?"
Adrian did not answer.
Instead, he looked at the letter.
Then at the photograph.
Then at me.
"You shouldn't have brought her here."
Those words made my stomach drop.
Not because of what he said.
Because of how he said it.
Like he had been waiting for this moment.
Like he already knew Lily existed.
Dominic noticed too.
"How do you know about her?"
Adrian stayed silent.
That silence was the answer.
Dominic stepped forward.
"You knew."
The older man's face remained controlled.
"I knew there were things you were better off not knowing."
Dominic laughed quietly.
But there was no humor in it.
"My entire life was changed because someone decided what I was allowed to know."
He lifted the letter.
"My daughter was hidden from me."
The word echoed through the room.
My daughter.
Lily looked up at Dominic.
She heard it.
For the first time, she heard him say it.
And something changed in her face.
A child who had spent years wondering where she belonged suddenly looked like she had found the answer.
Dominic noticed.
His eyes moved to her.
And for a moment, the anger disappeared.
Then it returned.
Stronger.
"Who changed the records?"
Adrian looked away.
"Dominic."
"No."
His voice became sharper.
"You don't get to say my name like nothing happened."
The room went silent.
Dominic Moretti was not a man people challenged.
But Adrian was not afraid.
That scared me more than anything.
Because if someone could stand in front of Dominic without fear, they were either powerful...
Or they knew something Dominic did not.
Adrian finally spoke.
"Sofia was in danger."
I stepped forward.
"From who?"
He looked at me.
"You don't understand what happened."
"Then explain."
He shook his head.
"Not here."
Dominic immediately responded.
"Then where?"
Adrian looked around the room.
At the guards.
At the cameras.
At the walls.
Then he said something that made everyone uncomfortable.
"Because you are not alone."
Dominic frowned.
"What?"
Adrian lowered his voice.
"Someone has been watching this house."
I felt cold.
Not because of the words.
Because of Lily.
I looked down at her.
She was staring at the room.
Confused.
Scared.
Dominic noticed my expression.
He turned toward the guards.
"Check every camera."
They moved immediately.
Adrian watched them.
Then quietly said:
"It's too late."
Dominic looked at him.
"What did you do?"
"I didn't do anything."
Adrian looked toward the window.
"That's the problem."
A guard returned moments later.
His face was pale.
"Mr. Moretti..."
Dominic turned.
"What?"
The guard hesitated.
"The security system was accessed from outside."
Dominic’s eyes narrowed.
"When?"
The guard swallowed.
"Before you arrived at the gate."
Everyone became still.
I felt Lily squeeze my hand harder.
Someone had known we were coming.
Someone had been watching.
Someone wanted to know what Dominic would do when he discovered the truth.
Dominic walked toward the table.
He picked up the medical records.
The documents were old.
But the payments were clear.
Someone had paid for Lily's treatment for years.
Someone had followed her life.
Someone had hidden her.
And then Dominic noticed something else.
A hospital name.
A signature.
A name under the payment authorization.
His fingers stopped moving.
"What?"
I asked.
He didn't answer.
He just stared.
"Dominic?"
He turned the paper toward Adrian.
"You signed these."
Adrian's face finally changed.
Not fear.
Regret.
"I had to."
Dominic stared at him.
"You paid for my daughter's medical bills."
Adrian closed his eyes.
"Yes."
"Why?"
The older man looked at Lily.
And for the first time, he looked broken.
"Because Sofia asked me."
The room went silent.
I felt my heartbeat increase.
Dominic stepped closer.
"Sofia asked you to hide my daughter?"
"No."
Adrian looked at him.
"Sofia asked me to protect her."
"From me?"
Adrian hesitated.
"From the people around you."
Dominic shook his head.
"Who?"
Adrian didn't answer.
Instead, he walked toward the desk.
He opened a drawer.
Inside was a small black box.
He placed it on the table.
"I kept this because I knew one day you would find the truth."
Dominic looked at the box.
"What is it?"
"Something Sofia left behind."
My breath stopped.
Sofia.
Even after all these years.
Her name still had the power to change everything.
Dominic opened the box.
Inside was another photograph.
But this one was different.
It showed Sofia holding baby Lily.
And standing beside her...
Was Dominic.
But Dominic had never seen the picture before.
He picked it up slowly.
His expression changed.
"Where was this taken?"
Adrian looked away.
"At the hospital."
Dominic stared.
"The night Lily was born."
A silence followed.
Then Dominic noticed writing on the back.
Small handwriting.
Sofia's handwriting.
He turned the photo around.
Read it.
And froze.
"What does it say?"
I asked.
Dominic didn't respond.
His eyes moved across the words again.
Then he whispered:
"No..."
I stepped closer.
The writing was visible from where I stood.
Only one sentence.
One sentence that changed everything.
"Dominic, if you are reading this, it means they already found Lily."
The room went silent.
Because everyone understood the same thing.
Sofia wasn't warning Dominic about the past.
She was warning him about now.
Dominic slowly looked toward the security monitors.
The screens flickered.
One by one.
Then every camera feed turned black.
The guard reached for the controls.
"Someone just shut down the entire system."
Dominic looked at Adrian.
"Who?"
Adrian didn't answer.
Because his phone suddenly vibrated.
Everyone looked at it.
Unknown number.
One message.
Adrian opened it.
And his face turned pale.
He slowly showed the screen to Dominic.
May you like
The message contained only four words.
"They found your daughter."
