CHAPTER 7 – "The Woman Behind Every Lie"
The chapel fell silent.
No one dared to breathe.
Richard stared at the elegant woman standing beneath the stained-glass windows.
"Grandmother..."
His voice cracked.
"You died in the plane crash."
The woman smiled.
"That was the story your grandfather wanted the world to believe."
She removed a pair of black leather gloves and revealed the unmistakable Ashford family ring.
"I never left."
"I simply disappeared."
Emma stepped forward.
"If you're really my grandmother... then why did you destroy my mother's life?"
The old woman's smile faded.
"I didn't."
"She betrayed me first."
Richard shook his head.
"No... my father created the Succession Program."
The woman laughed.
"No, Richard."
"He only perfected it."
"I created it."
The words struck like thunder.
Emma felt her knees weaken.
"You...?"
The old woman nodded without regret.
"Power doesn't survive on kindness."
"It survives on sacrifice."
She slowly walked toward the altar.
"For three generations, weak heirs nearly destroyed everything our family built."
"So I made one rule."
"There would only ever be one true heir."
Silence.
Richard clenched his fists.
"You murdered children..."
"I saved an empire," she replied coldly.
Detective Mason quietly reached for his radio.
The old woman noticed.
Without even looking back, she snapped her fingers.
More than twenty armed guards emerged from hidden doors inside the church.
The detective froze.
They had been surrounded from the moment they arrived.
Then...
The chapel doors opened once more.
A woman wearing a gray coat slowly walked inside.
Emma dropped the diary.
"No..."
Tears flooded her eyes.
"Mom...?"
The woman looked older.
Her face carried scars.
But Emma recognized her instantly.
After twenty-two years...
Her mother was alive.
They rushed toward each other and embraced.
Neither could stop crying.
"I searched for you every day," Emma whispered.
"I never stopped searching for you," her mother replied.
Richard wiped tears from his eyes.
Finally...
The nightmare was ending.
But the old woman began clapping.
Slowly.
Mockingly.
"You still don't understand."
Emma turned.
"What do you mean?"
The old woman smiled.
"Ask your mother why she disappeared."
Emma looked at her mother.
Her smile faded.
The color drained from her face.
Her hands began to shake.
Richard noticed first.
"What are you hiding?"
Emma's mother whispered,
"I'm sorry..."
"I never wanted you to know."
She slowly reached into her coat...
...and pulled out a small silver remote.
One blinking red light flashed on its screen.
Detective Mason's eyes widened.
"Everyone get down!"
Emma looked at her mother in disbelief.
"What is that?"
Tears streamed down her mother's face.
"The church..."
"...is wired with explosives."
She looked at Emma one last time.
"I was never hiding from them."
"I was working for them."
The timer began counting down.
00:59...
00:58...
00:57...
And the old woman smiled.
"Now, Emma..."
May you like
"Let's see which member of this family you're willing to sacrifice."
To Be Continued...
