Chapter 6 - The Truth Buried Under My Own Name
The door opened.
Slowly.
Nobody moved.
The warehouse lights flickered above us as a shadow appeared in the entrance.
Marcus reached for his weapon.
Ethan stepped backward.
Lily grabbed my hand.
And I stared at the person standing there.
Because I knew him.
Not from my memories.
Not from my life.
But from the photographs.
From the impossible truth I had spent the last hour trying to understand.
Julian Cole.
The man who had my face.
The man who was supposed to be my brother.
He stood in the doorway wearing a dark coat, his expression calm.
Almost peaceful.
Like he had expected this moment.
"Hello, Adrian."
Hearing my own voice come from another person was the most disturbing thing I had ever experienced.
I couldn't speak.
I couldn't move.
I just stared.
Julian looked at Marcus.
Then Ethan.
Then finally at me.
"You found out."
My fists tightened.
"You took my son."
Julian didn't deny it.
Instead, he looked disappointed.
"That's what they told you?"
The anger inside me exploded.
"Where is Noah?"
His expression changed slightly.
Pain.
Real pain.
"He is safe."
"Safe?"
I stepped forward.
"You kept him away from his father."
Julian looked directly into my eyes.
"I kept him away from people who wanted him dead."
The room went silent.
I wanted to hate him.
I needed to hate him.
But something about his voice stopped me.
Because he didn't sound like a villain.
He sounded like someone who had been carrying a burden for years.
"You expect me to believe that?"
"No."
He looked at Marcus.
"I expect you to ask him."
Everyone turned.
Marcus froze.
My chest tightened.
"No."
Julian continued.
"Ask Marcus what happened the night Noah disappeared."
I looked at Marcus.
The silence was enough.
"Tell me."
Marcus didn't answer.
"Tell me!"
His jaw tightened.
"I made a mistake."
I laughed bitterly.
"A mistake?"
My voice shook.
"You call losing my son a mistake?"
Marcus looked broken.
"I was supposed to get Noah out."
The words hit me.
"You were supposed to?"
He looked down.
"I found out what the facility was doing. I found out Julian was trying to expose it."
Julian remained silent.
Marcus continued.
"I thought I could handle it."
"And?"
His eyes filled with regret.
"And they knew."
I stared at him.
"Who knew?"
Marcus looked at Julian.
"The people above us."
The room became quiet.
"Who?"
Nobody answered.
Then Julian spoke.
"The people who created us."
The words sounded unreal.
But somehow, nothing felt impossible anymore.
I looked at Julian.
"What does that mean?"
He stepped inside.
Closing the door behind him.
"Adrian, you think you were born into a normal family."
I said nothing.
"You weren't."
My heart sank.
"You think you became successful because you worked harder than everyone else."
He shook his head.
"You were chosen."
"Chosen for what?"
Julian looked around the warehouse.
"For control."
I felt sick.
"I don't understand."
"No one was supposed to tell you."
He looked at the files.
"Your entire identity was built around making you useful."
I shook my head.
"You're lying."
Julian smiled sadly.
"I wish I was."
He walked toward the table.
Picked up my file.
"You were raised by people who loved you."
His voice softened.
"But they weren't the people who created you."
I looked away.
My entire childhood flashed through my mind.
My father's voice.
My mother's stories.
The small house.
The family dinners.
Were they real?
Or another carefully created memory?
"What happened to my real parents?"
Julian looked at me.
"They tried to escape."
"And?"
"They failed."
The simplicity of his answer hurt more than anything.
I looked at Lily.
She was still holding my hand.
The only person in this entire nightmare who had told me the truth without wanting anything from me.
"Where is Noah?"
Julian looked at the computer screen.
"The facility."
"Take me there."
"No."
My anger returned.
"Excuse me?"
"You can't go there."
"He's my son."
"And that's exactly why."
Julian stepped closer.
"They know you are coming."
I looked at him.
"Who?"
He didn't answer.
Because suddenly the warehouse lights turned red.
An alarm started.
Marcus moved instantly.
"They found us."
Ethan looked toward the entrance.
"No."
Julian's expression changed.
Not fear.
Recognition.
"They were waiting."
I turned toward him.
"You knew?"
He didn't answer.
That was becoming a pattern.
I grabbed him.
"You knew they were coming?"
Julian didn't fight back.
"Yes."
My anger almost took over.
"You brought them here?"
"No."
He looked at me.
"They followed you."
Those words stopped me.
Because he was right.
Every step.
Every location.
Every person.
Someone had known.
Someone had been watching.
Marcus moved toward the back exit.
"We have to leave now."
But Julian didn't move.
He looked at me.
"Adrian."
Something in his voice made me stop.
"What?"
He reached inside his coat.
I immediately prepared myself.
But he pulled out something small.
A necklace.
A child's necklace.
Blue.
With a small metal tag.
Noah's.
My breath caught.
"Where did you get that?"
Julian looked at it.
"He gave it to me."
My eyes widened.
"He met you?"
Julian nodded.
"When he found out who I was, he came looking for me."
I felt tears building.
"My son found you?"
"Yes."
"Why?"
Julian looked at me.
"Because he wanted answers."
I looked at the necklace.
That sounded like Noah.
Brave.
Curious.
Never afraid to ask questions.
"What did he tell you?"
Julian hesitated.
Then he said:
"He told me you weren't the person they wanted you to become."
I frowned.
"What does that mean?"
Julian looked at Marcus.
"Your son found the original files."
My stomach tightened.
"The files about me?"
"No."
He looked at me.
"The files about all of us."
The alarm grew louder.
Footsteps echoed outside.
Many footsteps.
Julian grabbed my arm.
"There is one thing you need to know before we leave."
"What?"
His eyes locked onto mine.
"Noah didn't disappear because he found the truth."
I waited.
"He disappeared because he found the person who caused it."
The warehouse door shook.
Someone hit it from outside.
Once.
Twice.
Marcus looked at us.
"We have seconds."
Julian reached into the file folder.
Pulled out a photograph.
Then handed it to me.
I looked down.
And my entire body went cold.
Because the picture showed Noah standing beside the person who had betrayed us all.
The person who had controlled everything.
The person I trusted more than anyone.
On the back of the photograph were four words.
"Your father is alive."
May you like
I looked up at Julian.
But before I could speak, the warehouse doors exploded open.
