CHAPTER 4 — “The DNA Test That Changed Everything”
Emily couldn't breathe.
The birth certificate slipped from her trembling hands and landed on the cold basement floor.
"No..."
She looked at her mother's handwritten note again.
"You are not David Carter's biological daughter."
The words echoed inside her head.
Over and over.
David, already in handcuffs, suddenly stopped struggling.
A strange smile slowly appeared on his face.
Then...
He laughed.
Not loudly.
Not wildly.
Just enough to send chills through everyone in the room.
"I told you," he whispered.
"You don't know the whole story."
Emily stared at him through her tears.
"What does that mean?"
David looked directly into her eyes.
"I never hated you because you weren't my daughter."
"I hated you because every time I looked at you..."
"...I saw the man who destroyed my life."
The room fell silent.
Victoria frowned.
"What are you talking about?"
David took a deep breath.
"Sarah was already pregnant when we met."
Emily's knees almost gave out.
"I knew the baby wasn't mine."
"But I loved Sarah enough to marry her anyway."
"For years, I raised you as my own."
Emily shook her head.
"No..."
"You loved Mom?"
David's eyes filled with anger.
"I did."
"Until I found out she had never stopped looking for your real father."
The police officers exchanged uneasy glances.
One detective carefully opened another envelope inside the wooden box.
"There are more documents."
Inside were dozens of old letters.
Every one of them addressed to the same man.
Michael Hayes.
None had ever been mailed.
Emily unfolded the first letter.
"Michael... I wanted to tell you the truth, but David watches everything I do. If you ever read this, your daughter deserves to know who you are."
Emily burst into tears.
"My father..."
The detective searched the remaining documents.
Then his expression changed.
"There's an address."
Everyone leaned closer.
It wasn't an old address.
It was current.
Michael Hayes was alive.
And he lived less than fifty miles away.
Emily's heart raced.
For sixteen years she believed her father had abandoned her.
Now she discovered...
He might never have known she existed.
David lowered his head.
"I made sure those letters were never sent."
Victoria stared at him in horror.
"You stole her father from her..."
David closed his eyes.
"I couldn't lose Sarah."
"But I lost her anyway."
Just then, another officer rushed into the basement holding a tablet.
"Detective!"
"You need to see this."
He turned the screen toward everyone.
A security camera from a nearby gas station had finally been recovered.
The timestamp...
The night Sarah died.
The video began playing.
Sarah's car stopped at a red light.
Seconds later...
A black SUV appeared behind her.
The driver stepped out.
Even through the grainy footage...
Everyone recognized him instantly.
It wasn't David.
Emily's blood ran cold.
The driver removed his hood.
The detective whispered in disbelief.
"...Michael Hayes."
The room exploded into chaos.
Emily couldn't move.
The father she had spent her whole life searching for...
May you like
Had just become the prime suspect in her mother's death.
To Be Continued...
