Chapter 3 - THE MOTHER WHO WAS SUPPOSED TO BE DEAD
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I couldn't breathe.
My mother.
Dead for twenty-seven years.
At least that's what the official records said.
I remembered almost nothing about her.
A perfume.
A soft voice.
A lullaby.
And a red scarf she used to wear when winter came.
Everything else had been erased.
Silas ordered the inner doors sealed.
“No one comes in.”
The woman outside smiled at the camera.
“You can't keep me out, Silas.”
Silas froze.
“You know her?”
“No.”
The woman's voice came through the intercom.
“But she knows me.”
The door opened.
My knees nearly gave out.
She entered alone.
No guards.
No weapon visible.
Her gray hair was pulled into a neat bun.
Her green eyes were exactly like mine.
She looked at me.
Not my face.
My hands.
Then the bassinets.
“Oh, Elena.”
Her voice broke.
I couldn't move.
“You're alive.”
I whispered:
“You're my mother.”
She nodded.
“I am.”
I slapped her.
Silas didn't stop me.
My mother touched her cheek.
“I deserve that.”
“You let me believe you were dead.”
“Yes.”
“You let me believe Dad abandoned us.”
“Yes.”
“Why?”
She looked at Silas.
“Because Julian's family was watching.”
I stepped backward.
“How long?”
“All your life.”
She explained that the Crofts had been hunting the Ross bloodline for decades.
My father had discovered the truth and tried to protect me.
When he refused to hand over the Harbor Covenant, Julian's grandfather ordered him killed.
My mother escaped with me.
But she knew the Crofts would never stop.
So she staged her death and disappeared.
She left me behind with a trusted family member.
She watched me from a distance.
Even during my marriage.
I shook my head.
“You knew Julian was dangerous.”
“Yes.”
“Then why didn't you stop me?”
Her eyes filled with tears.
“Because I thought you had to discover it yourself.”
“That almost killed my daughters.”
“I know.”
Silas stepped between us.
“How did you know Elena would trigger the Covenant?”
My mother looked at him.
“Because she already did.”
Silas's eyes narrowed.
“What?”
My mother opened her handbag.
Inside was a thin envelope.
She handed it to me.
My name was written on the front.
My father's handwriting.
I opened it.
A letter.
Only one paragraph.
Elena, if your first children are girls, trust the Mercer heir. Never trust the Croft heir. The Covenant was created for this exact moment.
I looked up.
“Mercer heir?”
My mother nodded.
“Silas.”
Silas stared at the letter.
“My father knew.”
“Yes.”
“Then why didn't he tell me?”
“Because your father betrayed the Ross family.”
Silas's face hardened.
“What did he do?”
My mother said:
“He sold your father's location to the Crofts.”
Silas went still.
“My father died in an accident.”
“No.”
His jaw tightened.
“He was killed.”
Silence filled the room.
Kaelen slowly lowered his weapon.
My mother continued.
“The Crofts were going to kill your family too.”
Silas's eyes became terrifyingly cold.
“And my mother?”
“Your mother survived.”
He stared at her.
“She is alive?”
My mother nodded.
“She lives in Maine.”
I watched Silas struggle to control his expression.
Then Julian's voice came through the security system.
“Beautiful reunion.”
We all froze.
The camera showed him standing outside the penthouse.
He was alone.
No guards.
No weapons.
At least none visible.
He looked directly into the camera.
“Hello, Mrs. Ross.”
My mother turned pale.
Julian smiled.
“I've been searching for you for twenty-six years.”
Silas moved toward the door.
Julian continued:
“And Elena, I think you should ask your mother why she never told you who your real father was.”
I looked at my mother.
Her face crumbled.
Julian laughed.
“Because your father wasn't a Ross.”
The line went dead.
Silas turned toward my mother.
“Then whose daughter is she?”
My mother whispered:
May you like
“Silas's father.”
The world seemed to stop.
