CHAPTER 5 — The Maid Was My Father's Greatest Secret
The photograph slipped from my trembling fingers.
It floated onto the marble floor between Clara and me.
Neither of us spoke.
Neither of us could.
The ballroom, moments earlier filled with panic and police sirens, suddenly felt impossibly quiet.
I picked up the faded picture again.
My father stood in the center, twenty-five years younger.
Beside him was a little girl with bright eyes, holding his hand.
That little girl was Clara.
On the back, his handwriting was unmistakable:
"Protect your sister, no matter what it costs."
I looked at Clara.
"My sister?"
Tears rolled down her cheeks.
"I never wanted you to find out like this."
"What does that mean?" I demanded.
She took a shaky breath.
"My mother worked for your family long before you were born."
"My father loved her."
"He promised to leave everything behind and marry her."
My heart pounded.
"But your grandfather found out."
"He threatened to destroy her life."
"So my father made a choice."
"He publicly married your mother..."
"...while secretly supporting mine."
The room fell silent again.
Every guest who had mocked me minutes earlier now listened without daring to interrupt.
"My mother died when I was eight," Clara continued.
"Your father placed me in a boarding school under another name."
"He paid for everything."
"He visited every birthday."
"He promised that one day..."
"...he would tell you the truth."
I could barely breathe.
"So why become a maid?"
Clara smiled sadly.
"Because your father called me six months ago."
"He said someone inside the family was stealing company secrets."
"He needed someone nobody would notice."
"So I came."
"Not as your sister."
"But as your servant."
Suddenly, dozens of memories crashed into my mind.
The extra blanket she brought when everyone else forgot.
The nights she stayed outside my room after the accident.
The medicine she quietly replaced.
The fear in her eyes whenever Uncle Martin entered the room.
She hadn't been protecting an employer.
She had been protecting her brother.
Before I could speak, Marcus burst back into the ballroom.
His suit was covered in dust.
"We lost Martin," he said grimly.
"The SUV exploded on the highway."
Gasps echoed across the room.
"Exploded?" I asked.
Marcus nodded.
"There was enough explosives inside to erase every piece of evidence."
"Did Martin die?"
Marcus looked down.
"We found two bodies."
"But neither could be identified."
Everyone assumed Martin was dead.
Everyone...
Except Clara.
She slowly shook her head.
"No."
Marcus frowned.
"What?"
"He planned this."
"He always has an escape."
She looked directly at me.
"If Martin is alive..."
"...he's going after Dad."
At that exact moment...
My phone rang.
The caller ID showed one word.
FATHER.
I answered immediately.
"Dad?"
There was only heavy breathing.
Then a weak whisper.
"Alex..."
"They're inside..."
A loud crash echoed through the phone.
A gunshot.
Then...
May you like
Silence.
The call disconnected.
