Chapter 14 - The Aunt Who Stole a Dead Woman's Name
“YOU'VE BEEN STANDING BESIDE ME ALL NIGHT—AND YOU NEVER TOLD ME YOU WERE MY SISTER?”
Maria stared at the woman she had known for only a few hours as Elena Santos.
The woman had claimed to be Isabella's sister.
She had led them to the chapel.
She had explained the blue trust.
She had described Grace as a missing child whose fate she didn't know.
And now the man claiming to be Thomas Vance was accusing her of being Grace herself.
Elena's face had turned white.
For several seconds, she said nothing.
Then she whispered, “He's lying.”
Alexander looked at her.
“Then explain why you resemble the woman in his photograph.”
Elena shook her head.
“Because I resemble my sister.”
Maria stared.
“Your sister Isabella?”
“Yes.”
The man in the dark coat stepped forward.
“No. Elena Santos died fourteen years ago.”
Maria felt a chill.
“What?”
He looked toward Bennett.
“The real Elena was killed in a traffic accident outside Albany. I found the report when I was searching for Isabella.”
Bennett's expression sharpened.
“Do you have a copy?”
“Yes.”
“Then provide it.”
Elena laughed bitterly.
“Of course he has documents. Men like Thomas Vance always have documents.”
Alexander's eyes narrowed.
“What does that mean?”
She looked directly at him.
“It means your father has spent his entire life deciding which truths other people are allowed to know.”
The words struck Alexander with uncomfortable force.
He turned toward the man.
“Is that true?”
Thomas lowered his eyes.
“I've hidden things.”
Elena laughed.
“That's one way to describe it.”
Maria stepped between them.
“Enough.”
Everyone fell silent.
She looked at Elena.
“Are you Grace?”
Elena's lips trembled.
Maria waited.
Finally, the woman whispered, “Yes.”
Maria closed her eyes.
For a moment, she couldn't move.
Grace.
The missing child.
The sister she had never known existed.
Had been standing in front of her all night.
“Why?” Maria whispered.
Grace began crying.
“Because I didn't know whether I could trust you.”
Maria stared.
“I'm your sister.”
“You didn't know that until tonight.”
“And you did?”
Grace nodded.
“I suspected it for years. But I didn't have enough proof.”
Maria's voice trembled.
“So you pretended to be our aunt?”
Grace looked ashamed.
“I used Elena's identity because I needed to get close to the chapel without Richard recognizing me.”
Bennett stepped forward.
“Using a deceased person's identity is a serious matter. You'll need to explain exactly how you obtained those documents.”
Grace nodded.
“I will.”
Alexander crossed his arms.
“Start with the truth about the messages.”
Grace looked toward him.
“I sent the first invitation to the chapel. I wanted Maria to bring the pendant because I believed it would open the compartment.”
“And the threatening messages?”
“I didn't send those.”
Bennett studied her.
“We'll verify that.”
Maria looked at Grace.
“What about Mom?”
Grace's eyes filled with tears.
“I haven't seen Isabella in years.”
Maria's heart sank.
“Then why did you tell me she was alive?”
“I believed she was.”
“Based on what?”
Grace swallowed.
“A recording.”
Alexander's expression hardened.
“Who sent it?”
“Richard Sterling.”
The room grew silent.
Grace continued.
“He sent me a short video six months ago. Isabella was sitting in a chair. She looked older, but I recognized her.”
Maria stepped closer.
“Did she speak?”
“Yes.”
“What did she say?”
Grace began crying.
“She said she was sorry she couldn't protect me.”
Maria's eyes filled with tears.
The words sounded like something Isabella might have said.
But after everything that had happened, Maria no longer knew what to believe.
Bennett looked toward Grace.
“Do you still have the video?”
Grace nodded.
“It's on a secure drive.”
“Give it to us.”
“I will.”
Alexander turned toward the man claiming to be Thomas.
“Why didn't you tell us Grace was alive?”
Thomas looked devastated.
“I didn't know for certain until six years ago.”
“And then?”
“I tried to contact her.”
Grace laughed bitterly.
“You sent men to follow me.”
Thomas shook his head.
“They were trying to protect you.”
“That's what Richard's men always said.”
Alexander looked between them.
“Both of you are going to stop speaking in riddles.”
He turned toward Grace.
“What happened at the engagement announcement six years ago?”
Grace's expression darkened.
“I went there because Richard Sterling was attending. I had learned he was connected to the trust that destroyed my childhood.”
Maria stared.
“What did you do?”
“I tried to get close enough to photograph his private documents.”
Alexander frowned.
“Did you succeed?”
Grace nodded.
“Yes.”
“What did you find?”
She looked toward Thomas.
“A list of payments.”
Thomas went still.
Grace continued.
“Payments made every year to someone at St. Catherine's Academy. Payments that continued long after I left.”
Alexander stared.
“Why would Richard keep paying the school?”
Grace swallowed.
“Because the school wasn't just hiding me.”
Maria felt a chill.
“What do you mean?”
Grace looked toward the window.
“There were other children.”
Bennett leaned forward.
“What children?”
“Children whose identities had been changed. Children whose families had been told they were dead or missing.”
The room fell silent.
Alexander stared.
“How many?”
Grace shook her head.
“I don't know. I found records for at least four.”
Bennett immediately asked for copies.
Grace nodded.
“They're on the drive.”
Maria felt sick.
Grace's disappearance had been terrible enough.
But now the possibility of other children being separated from their families made the conspiracy seem even darker.
Alexander turned toward Thomas.
“Did you know?”
Thomas shook his head.
“Not when it happened.”
Grace stared at him.
“But you knew later.”
He closed his eyes.
“Yes.”
Alexander's voice rose.
“WHEN?”
Thomas hesitated.
“After I disappeared.”
Alexander stepped backward.
“So you knew children were being hidden, and you still didn't come home?”
Thomas looked broken.
“I was trying to collect evidence strong enough to stop Richard and the people above him.”
Grace laughed through her tears.
“And how many childhoods were lost while you waited?”
Thomas had no answer.
For several seconds, the only sound came from the rain against the windows.
Then Bennett's phone rang.
She answered.
Her expression changed as she listened.
“Are you certain?”
A pause.
“Send me the records immediately.”
She ended the call.
Alexander looked toward her.
“What happened?”
Bennett turned toward Thomas.
“We've located a death certificate for Elena Santos.”
Grace nodded.
“I told you she died.”
Bennett continued.
“But there's something unusual.”
Maria felt her stomach tighten.
“What?”
“The woman who died was identified through personal belongings. There was no family DNA comparison.”
Grace frowned.
“What are you saying?”
Bennett looked toward her.
“We don't yet know whether Elena Santos was actually the person who died.”
The room fell silent.
Maria stared at Grace.
“Then my aunt might still be alive?”
Bennett nodded cautiously.
“It's possible.”
Grace looked shaken.
“I thought she was dead.”
Before anyone could speak, Alexander's phone vibrated.
A message from an unknown number.
He opened it.
A photograph appeared.
It showed an older woman standing beside a hospital bed.
Her face was unmistakable.
She looked exactly like Grace.
But older.
Beneath the photograph was a single sentence.
YOU FOUND ONE SANTOS SISTER. NOW COME FIND THE OTHER.
Maria stared.
Then she noticed the hospital bracelet on the woman's wrist.
A name was printed across it.
ELENA SANTOS.
Grace began trembling.
“No…”
Alexander looked at the photograph.
Then at Thomas.
And Thomas whispered something that made everyone turn.
“THAT'S NOT ELENA.”
Maria froze.
Thomas continued.
May you like
“THAT'S ISABELLA.”
TO BE CONTINUED…
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