CHAPTER 2 – The Twin Nobody Was Allowed to Remember
Emily held her breath.
The old man slowly removed his hat.
He wasn't frightened.
He looked... relieved.
"I wondered how long it would take," he said softly.
Emily stepped out, clutching the letter.
"Who are you?"
The stranger smiled sadly.
"My name is Thomas Reed."
"I was your grandmother's best friend."
"And I've spent thirty years waiting for this day."
Emily demanded answers.
Thomas stared at the faded photograph.
"There were never three generations living in this house."
"There were always four."
Emily's heart pounded.
Thomas explained that thirty years earlier Eleanor had given birth to identical twin daughters.
One was Emily's future mother, Sarah.
The other...
Grace.
But tragedy struck only days after the birth.
A massive fire destroyed the local hospital.
When the smoke cleared, everyone believed Grace had died.
That's what the town was told.
That's what Sarah believed.
That's what Emily believed.
But Thomas leaned closer.
"It was all a lie."
Emily felt the blood drain from her face.
Grace had survived.
A powerful local businessman named Victor Hale secretly took the baby.
He bribed doctors.
Destroyed records.
Paid officials to remain silent.
Why?
Because Grace was his biological daughter.
An affair.
A scandal that would have ruined one of the wealthiest families in the state.
Victor erased Grace from history.
Eleanor fought for years to get her daughter back.
She lost every battle.
Eventually she stopped talking about Grace altogether.
Not because she forgot.
Because remembering hurt too much.
Emily burst into tears.
Her entire family history had been rewritten.
Then Thomas handed her another envelope.
"This arrived yesterday."
The return address stunned her.
It came from Seattle.
Inside was a recent photograph.
A smiling woman around fifty years old stood beside two teenage sons.
Written on the back were only eight words.
"I've always known someone was looking for me."
Emily whispered,
"Grace..."
Before Thomas could answer—
A black SUV screeched into the driveway.
Three men in expensive suits stepped out.
One of them carried legal papers.
The tallest smiled coldly.
"You've opened something that should have stayed buried."
May you like
"Hand over the letters."
"Or the entire Carter family disappears forever."
