Chapter 8 - THE BROTHER HIDING IN PLAIN SIGHT
My brother was inside Dominic Vale's mansion.
That was what Elise had said.
I stared at the phone, unable to understand.
“Who?”
Elise swallowed.
“His name was changed after adoption. He doesn't know who he really is.”
My heart pounded.
“What name?”
She hesitated.
“Marcus Cole.”
I slowly turned toward the doorway.
Marcus stood there.
Tall.
Broad-shouldered.
Always professional.
Always standing one step behind Dominic.
The security chief.
The man who had almost laughed when I sang into my feather duster.
My knees weakened.
Dominic noticed.
“Rachel?”
I pointed toward Marcus.
Elise's voice trembled through the phone.
“Marcus is Andrew.”
The room fell silent.
Marcus stared at me.
“What?”
I could barely speak.
“You might be my brother.”
His expression changed.
For a moment, he looked completely lost.
Then he shook his head.
“No.”
Dominic stepped forward.
“Marcus…”
“No. My parents were James and Laura Cole.”
I swallowed.
“Were you adopted?”
He looked away.
“Yes.”
My heart tightened.
Elise continued.
“My adoptive mother kept records. Andrew's original birth name was Andrew Vale.”
Marcus went pale.
I looked at him.
“Do you have a birthmark behind your left shoulder?”
He stared.
“How would you know that?”
I held up the photograph.
The hospital record attached to it described a small crescent-shaped birthmark.
Marcus touched his shoulder.
For the first time since I'd met him, the confident security chief looked frightened.
Dominic spoke quietly.
“We need to verify this.”
Marcus nodded.
Independent genetic testing was arranged.
Elise agreed to participate.
I did too.
Over the next several days, the mansion felt different.
Marcus kept his distance.
I understood.
Discovering a possible sister after thirty years wasn't something anyone could process easily.
Dominic gave us space.
But on the fourth morning, Marcus knocked on my bedroom door.
He held two cups of coffee.
“I didn't know how you liked it.”
I smiled nervously.
“Two sugars.”
He handed me one.
“Same.”
We stood awkwardly in the hallway.
Then Marcus laughed.
“I've been guarding this house for six years, and apparently my sister's been singing in the parlor.”
I laughed too.
For a moment, everything felt almost normal.
Then his expression softened.
“If this is true, Rachel…”
I swallowed.
“Yes?”
“I hope we can get to know each other.”
My eyes filled with tears.
“I'd like that.”
Two days later, the test results arrived.
Elise.
Marcus.
Me.
Three siblings.
Confirmed.
I cried when I saw the report.
Marcus hugged me.
And for the first time in my life, I understood what it felt like to have a brother.
But the celebration was interrupted when Dominic's attorney called.
He had finally obtained part of the sealed Hawthorne records.
And those records contained something nobody expected.
Our father, Adrian Vale, had signed documents separating us at birth.
I stared at the pages.
“Why would he do that?”
Dominic's expression darkened.
Then he read the final paragraph.
May you like
His face went pale.
“Because someone threatened to kill all three children unless he signed.”
