CHAPTER 5 — The Third Child
The words on Ethan's laptop refused to make sense.
PROJECT HEIR
Subjects: Ethan Calloway. Noah Calloway. Child #3.
His fingers hovered over the keyboard.
For several seconds...
He couldn't breathe.
"There were only two of us..."
he whispered.
"Noah and me."
Slowly...
He clicked the folder.
Dozens of classified files appeared.
Medical reports.
DNA analyses.
Adoption records.
Security camera footage.
Every file carried the same red stamp.
CONFIDENTIAL
At the top of the list was a single video labeled:
Delivery Room – July 17, 1999
Ethan pressed Play.
The screen flickered.
An old hospital room appeared.
His mother lay exhausted on the delivery bed, tears streaming down her face as three newborn babies cried in the background.
Not two.
Three.
A nurse lifted the first infant.
"Healthy baby boy."
Another nurse smiled.
"Second baby boy."
Then a doctor turned toward the third crib.
"...And a healthy baby girl."
Ethan's heart stopped.
A sister.
His entire life...
He had believed he was an only child.
Then he learned he had a brother.
Now...
He discovered he also had a sister.
The recording continued.
Richard Calloway entered the room wearing a dark suit.
He looked at the three newborns without smiling.
The doctor handed him a document.
"According to your father's will, the inheritance will be divided equally among all three children."
Richard's expression changed instantly.
Cold.
Calculating.
He quietly folded the document.
Then looked toward two men waiting outside the room.
"Take the boys separately."
He paused before looking at the baby girl.
"...Leave her with me."
The video ended.
Ethan slammed the laptop shut.
"No..."
His voice cracked.
"He separated us on purpose."
A knock echoed through the empty cabin where Ethan had taken refuge.
Three slow knocks.
Then silence.
Ethan reached for the pistol Noah had forced into his hands before they were separated.
"Who's there?"
A familiar female voice answered.
"You already know."
He cautiously opened the door.
Standing outside...
Was the elderly woman from the gala.
Alive.
Untouched.
She smiled weakly.
"You thought I died."
Ethan stared in disbelief.
"They took you away."
"They wanted you to think that."
She stepped inside and quietly locked the door.
"My name is Margaret."
"I was your mother's nurse."
"I helped deliver all three of you."
She placed a worn leather journal on the table.
"I've been hiding this for twenty-seven years."
Inside were photographs Ethan had never seen.
Three toddlers playing together in a hospital nursery.
His mother holding all three children.
Richard standing in the background...
Already looking distant.
Then Margaret turned to the final page.
It contained a recent photograph.
A young woman.
About twenty-six years old.
Dark blonde hair.
Blue eyes identical to Ethan's.
She stood on the steps of a courthouse, unaware she was being photographed.
On the back was written:
Emily Carter
Current Occupation: Federal Prosecutor
Identity Protected Since Birth
Ethan looked up, stunned.
"My sister..."
Margaret nodded.
"She has no idea who she really is."
Before Ethan could ask another question...
The television in the cabin switched on by itself.
Breaking News flashed across every channel.
TECH BILLIONAIRE ETHAN CALLOWAY WANTED FOR THE MURDER OF TWO PRIVATE SECURITY OFFICERS.
A photo of Ethan filled the screen.
Police vehicles.
Helicopters.
News anchors calling him dangerous.
His assets had been frozen.
His passport canceled.
His company board had voted to remove him as CEO.
Everything...
Gone in less than twelve hours.
Margaret looked at him with tears in her eyes.
"This is exactly what Richard wanted."
Ethan clenched his fists.
"He didn't just steal my family..."
"He stole my life."
Suddenly, his phone vibrated.
An unknown number.
One sentence.
"If you want Noah alive, come to Calloway Manor. Come alone."
Attached was a live photograph.
Noah.
Bruised.
Chained to a chair.
Still alive.
Ethan grabbed the car keys.
Margaret caught his arm.
"It's a trap."
Ethan looked toward the family mansion where he had grown up.
"For twenty-seven years..."
"I walked through those doors as Richard Calloway's son."
He slipped the pistol into his jacket.
"Tonight..."
"I'm going back as his worst nightmare."
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End of Chapter 5
Cliffhanger: As Ethan drives toward Calloway Manor, he receives one final anonymous voice message:
"Don't trust Emily. She doesn't know it yet... but she's been working for Richard all along."
