Chapter 7 - The Baby Hidden Beneath The Mansion
The security door opened.
And everyone stopped breathing.
Alessandro stood at the end of the hallway.
I was beside him.
Marco and his mother stood behind us.
Nobody spoke.
Because the person walking toward us was carrying a baby.
A tiny baby.
Wrapped in a white blanket.
My heart dropped.
Not because of the child.
Because of the woman holding her.
She looked exactly like the photograph.
The same face.
The same eyes.
But older.
Tired.
Broken.
The woman everyone believed was dead.
Adrian Duca.
She stopped when she saw Alessandro.
For a moment, neither of them moved.
Then she whispered:
"You look like him."
Alessandro's expression became cold.
"Like who?"
Her eyes filled with tears.
"Your father."
The hallway became silent.
She looked down at the baby in her arms.
Then back at Alessandro.
"I didn't come here to hurt you."
Alessandro stepped forward.
"Who is she?"
The woman looked at the child.
"My daughter."
Nobody expected that answer.
Even Marco looked shocked.
Alessandro stared.
"Your daughter?"
Adrian nodded.
"Yes."
His jaw tightened.
"Then why was she hidden inside my house?"
Adrian looked around the mansion.
"The same reason I was."
A pause.
"Because this place has always belonged to secrets."
The words hit harder than they should have.
Because they were true.
The Duca mansion was full of locked rooms.
Hidden files.
False deaths.
People who disappeared.
And now...
Hidden children.
Alessandro looked at the baby.
"What is her name?"
Adrian hesitated.
Then answered.
"Isabella."
The baby moved slightly.
A tiny sound.
And something changed in Alessandro's expression.
Because he saw the same thing he saw when he first held Mia.
A child.
Completely innocent.
Caught inside a war created by adults.
But then his eyes moved back to Adrian.
"Explain."
She looked at him.
"I was never supposed to survive."
Nobody spoke.
She continued.
"Your father found out I existed."
Alessandro frowned.
"You were his daughter."
"Yes."
Her voice became quieter.
"But I was not his heir."
The meaning was clear.
She was not part of the plan.
"I was born before you."
She looked at Alessandro.
"But your father didn't want another child."
"Why?"
Adrian smiled sadly.
"Because one child could be controlled."
She looked at Isabella.
"Two children could destroy his empire."
Alessandro's face hardened.
"What does that mean?"
Adrian looked at me.
Then at Mia's bedroom door.
"Your father built everything around one idea."
She paused.
"That the Duca name belonged to one person."
Alessandro waited.
"And who was that person?"
Adrian looked directly at him.
"You."
The answer should have satisfied him.
But it didn't.
Because everyone knew there was more.
Alessandro crossed his arms.
"Then why hide me from you?"
Adrian looked away.
"Because your father was afraid of what would happen if you knew the truth."
"What truth?"
She didn't answer.
Instead, she looked at Marco.
"You should tell him."
Marco's face became serious.
"I can't."
Alessandro turned.
"Can't?"
Marco swallowed.
"Because if I say it, there's no going back."
Alessandro stepped closer.
"Try me."
Marco looked at him.
Then finally said:
"Your father wasn't protecting the Duca empire."
A pause.
"He was protecting the person who was going to inherit it."
Alessandro frowned.
"Me."
Marco nodded.
"No."
The word shocked everyone.
"Someone else."
The hallway became colder.
"Who?"
Marco looked at Adrian.
Then at Isabella.
"The first child."
Alessandro stared.
"Adrian."
Marco nodded.
"Your father wanted Adrian to inherit everything."
Nobody moved.
Because that changed everything.
For years, Alessandro believed he was the chosen son.
The successor.
The man who carried the Duca name.
But maybe...
He was only a replacement.
Alessandro looked at Adrian.
"Then why did he choose me?"
Adrian's expression changed.
"Because he needed someone who could survive."
A pause.
"And because he knew Adrian would never become what he wanted."
Alessandro looked confused.
"What does that mean?"
Adrian looked down.
"Your father didn't want an heir."
She held Isabella closer.
"He wanted a weapon."
Silence.
Mia started crying from the other room.
A small sound.
But everyone heard it.
Alessandro immediately turned.
Without thinking.
Without hesitation.
He walked toward her.
And that told me everything.
No matter what secrets waited.
No matter what bloodlines existed.
No matter what names were written in old documents.
He had already chosen.
Mia was his daughter.
When he returned, he was holding her.
Her tiny hand wrapped around his finger.
Adrian watched.
And there was sadness in her eyes.
"You really are different from him."
Alessandro looked at her.
"I don't know if that's true."
"It is."
She looked at Mia.
"Your father never held his children like that."
Nobody answered.
Because that sentence carried more pain than anger.
Later that night, Alessandro gathered everyone inside the office.
No guards.
No assistants.
No outsiders.
Only the people connected to the truth.
He placed three folders on the desk.
One for his mother.
One for Adrian.
One for Elena.
"Tonight, everything ends."
I looked at him.
"You mean the secrets?"
He nodded.
"No more hidden children."
He looked at Marco.
"No more fake deaths."
Then at his mother.
"No more lies."
Nobody argued.
Because everyone knew he was right.
Alessandro opened the final folder.
Inside was a document.
An old legal agreement.
He read the first page.
Then stopped.
His expression changed.
I immediately knew.
Something was wrong.
"What is it?"
He didn't answer.
He turned the document toward us.
The signature was clear.
The date was clear.
And underneath...
A name.
My name.
I stared.
"I never signed that."
Alessandro looked at me.
"I know."
"Then why is it here?"
Nobody spoke.
Until Adrian whispered:
"Because your father didn't need your permission."
I looked at her.
"What does that mean?"
She looked terrified.
"Elena..."
Her voice shook.
"You weren't chosen because you worked for the Duca family."
My heart started racing.
"Then why?"
She pointed at the document.
"Because your family was part of the agreement before you were even born."
I stepped backward.
"No."
Alessandro immediately reached for me.
"Elena."
But I couldn't look away.
Because beneath my name...
There was another signature.
A signature I recognized.
A signature from someone who was supposed to be dead.
My father's.
The room went silent.
Alessandro picked up the document.
Then suddenly his phone rang.
Nobody moved.
Because the number on the screen was impossible.
He answered.
Slowly.
"Hello?"
A voice came through.
Old.
Calm.
Familiar.
Everyone watched Alessandro's face change.
Because the person on the phone said:
"Alessandro, stop searching for the truth."
A pause.
"Your father is not the person you should be afraid of."
Alessandro stood frozen.
"Who is this?"
The voice answered.
And every person in the room went pale.
Because it was the voice of the man whose signature was on the document.
May you like
The man who was supposed to be dead.
"Elena's father."
