Chapter 5 - The Truth Hidden In The Blood
The man standing outside Clare's hospital room didn't move.
Neither did I.
For several seconds, the only sound was the steady beeping of the machines beside Clare's bed.
Then I looked down at the paper in his hand.
A DNA test.
My name was printed across the top.
Daniel Mercer.
My fingers went cold.
"No."
The word came out before I even realized I had spoken.
The man stepped into the room.
He looked older than he did in the hallway.
Tired.
Angry.
Like he had spent years carrying a secret that was destroying him.
Clare tightened her grip around my wrist.
"Daniel, don't listen to him."
The man looked at her.
A strange sadness crossed his face.
"Still protecting him after all these years?"
Clare's expression hardened.
"Get out."
He ignored her.
His eyes returned to me.
"I know you don't remember me."
My jaw tightened.
"Should I?"
The man looked at the DNA test.
"You should remember everything."
I stared at him.
"Who are you?"
A long silence followed.
Then he answered.
"My name is Ethan Whitmore."
Clare's face changed.
Not fear.
Something worse.
Pain.
"Ethan..."
I looked between them.
"Your brother?"
She didn't answer.
Ethan smiled without happiness.
"She never told you about me."
"No," I said.
"She didn't."
He nodded slowly.
"Of course she didn't."
He placed the DNA test on the table beside the bed.
"Because telling you about me would mean telling you about everything."
I stepped closer.
"Stop talking in riddles."
My voice was louder than I intended.
"I have spent the last few hours finding out that my entire life might be a lie. I have a son I didn't know existed. I have memories missing. People keep telling me I was supposed to remember something."
I pointed at the paper.
"And now you walk in here with this."
My chest rose and fell.
"So tell me the truth."
Ethan looked at Clare.
Then back at me.
"The truth is that Noah is your son."
I already knew.
But hearing it again still hurt.
"And?"
Ethan hesitated.
"He's also my nephew."
The room became silent.
I looked at Clare.
She closed her eyes.
Like she knew this moment would come eventually.
"You knew where he was."
It wasn't a question.
It was an accusation.
Ethan didn't deny it.
"Yes."
My stomach turned.
"For ten years?"
"Yes."
I stepped back.
The anger came instantly.
"You knew I was looking for answers?"
"I knew you were looking for pieces of a life that had been taken from you."
"Then why didn't you tell me?"
His face changed.
Because for the first time, he looked ashamed.
"Because I was afraid."
I laughed bitterly.
"Afraid of what?"
"That if I told you, they would come after Lily."
Everything stopped.
My anger disappeared for a second.
Because he knew her name.
"Lily?"
Ethan nodded.
"The little girl in the picture."
My eyes narrowed.
"What do you know about my daughter?"
Clare suddenly sat up slightly.
"Daniel."
Her voice was urgent.
"Listen to me."
I turned toward her.
"How does he know Lily?"
Clare looked at Ethan.
Then at me.
"Because Ethan was the one who saved her."
The words didn't make sense.
"Saved her from what?"
Nobody answered.
That was the answer.
Something terrible.
Something nobody wanted to say.
I looked at Clare.
"You knew?"
She looked away.
And that hurt more than anything.
"You knew about Lily?"
"I knew she existed."
My heart sank.
"You knew my daughter existed and you said nothing?"
"Daniel..."
"No."
I shook my head.
"No, don't do that."
My voice cracked.
"Don't say my name like that makes this easier."
Clare looked like she wanted to explain.
But she didn't know how.
Because there was no explanation that could fix ten years of silence.
Ethan walked closer.
"Daniel, you need to understand something."
I didn't look at him.
"Understand what?"
"Your life was destroyed because someone wanted Clare under control."
I turned.
"Your father?"
Ethan's expression darkened.
"Yes."
"Why?"
"Because Clare was going to leave."
I looked at her.
She didn't deny it.
"Leave the company?"
Ethan shook his head.
"Leave everything."
He looked at Clare.
"She was going to disappear with you."
The room felt smaller.
"I don't understand."
Ethan took a breath.
"Ten years ago, Clare found out her father had been using illegal methods to control the company. She discovered financial crimes. Blackmail. Threats."
He looked at me.
"And she was going to expose him."
I looked at Clare.
The woman who built an empire.
The woman everyone thought was untouchable.
She had been running from her own family.
"My father found out."
Ethan continued.
"He knew about you. He knew about Noah."
My hands curled into fists.
"What did he do?"
Ethan looked at the floor.
"He made sure you couldn't stay."
The room went quiet.
"How?"
"He arranged the accident."
The words hit like a physical blow.
My breathing stopped.
"What accident?"
Ethan looked at Clare.
She whispered:
"The one you survived."
I froze.
I remembered.
Fragments.
A road.
Headlights.
A loud sound.
Then nothing.
Everyone told me it was bad luck.
A random accident.
But it wasn't.
Someone had tried to erase me.
"Why don't I remember?"
Ethan answered quietly.
"Because the doctors were paid to make sure you didn't."
I stared at him.
"What?"
"They gave you medication. They altered records. They convinced everyone you had no connection to Clare."
I looked at my hands.
Ten years.
Ten years of missing pieces.
Ten years of feeling like something was wrong.
And now I knew.
Someone had stolen them.
A loud alarm suddenly sounded outside.
Everyone turned.
A nurse rushed past the open door.
"Security breach on the pediatric floor."
My heart stopped.
Pediatric floor.
Children.
Lily.
I grabbed my phone.
No new messages.
No calls.
Nothing.
Then it rang.
Unknown number.
I answered immediately.
"Hello?"
No voice.
Only breathing.
Then a child's voice whispered:
"Daddy?"
My entire body went numb.
"Lily?"
I looked at Clare.
Her face turned white.
Because she recognized the voice too.
Then another voice came through the phone.
A man's voice.
Calm.
Cold.
"You finally found the truth, Daniel."
I couldn't move.
"Where is my daughter?"
A pause.
Then:
"Come to the old Whitmore estate if you want to see her."
My grip tightened around the phone.
"Who are you?"
The man laughed quietly.
"You already know."
The call ended.
I looked at Ethan.
His face had lost all color.
"Daniel..."
"What?"
He stared at the phone.
Then whispered the name of the one person who could destroy all of us.
"Your father."
May you like
The hospital room door suddenly opened.
And standing there was a woman holding Lily's jacket in her hands.
