CHAPTER 4 — The Girl Nobody Knew
As security led Richard away, a young maid stepped forward.
"Madam Eleanor... there's something you need to see."
Her name was Lily.
She had worked in the hotel laundry room for two years, invisible to everyone.
With shaking hands, she gave Eleanor an old photograph.
In it was Richard... holding a baby.
Eleanor stopped breathing.
"Where did you get this?"
Lily’s eyes filled with tears.
"My mother said my father was a rich man who abandoned us."
Richard suddenly shouted from across the room.
"She's lying!"
But Eleanor saw the truth in his panic.
The entire hotel watched as Lily whispered the words that shattered the Astoria family forever.
"I think... I'm your granddaughter."
Eleanor slowly reached for Lily’s face.
Then came the twist no one expected.
Eleanor smiled through tears.
"No, child."
She opened her arms.
May you like
"You are not just my granddaughter."
"You are the only heir I have left."
