Chapter 10 - THE MAN WHO HAD BEEN WATCHING HER
Delaney's mind raced.
Yesterday.
She had spoken to the bank manager.
Frank.
Damon.
Several security guards.
And one quiet man who had introduced himself as a legal consultant at the bank.
A gray-haired man who had asked whether Margaret Whitfield had been happy.
Delaney had assumed he was simply curious.
Now she remembered his expression.
The sadness in his eyes.
The way his voice trembled when she mentioned her mother's death.
"Mr. Ellis," she whispered.
Rose nodded.
"His real name is Adrian Moretti."
Damon immediately called Frank.
"Find Nathan Ellis."
A long silence followed.
Then Frank said, "Sir, there's something you need to know."
Damon's face hardened.
"What?"
"Nathan Ellis has been working with us for years."
Delaney stared.
"What do you mean?"
Frank continued.
"He helped manage several confidential investments. Your father originally arranged his protection."
Damon looked stunned.
"My father knew Adrian was alive?"
"Yes."
"Why didn't anyone tell me?"
"Because Adrian believed Charles Hale would kill his daughter if his identity became public."
Delaney sat very still.
His daughter.
Her.
For twenty-six years, her biological father had lived somewhere nearby.
Had he watched her grow up?
Had he known when she graduated high school?
When she struggled through college?
When her mother died?
When she sold the wedding ring to pay medical bills?
The questions hurt more than the answers she imagined.
Damon noticed her trembling hands.
"Delaney."
She stood.
"I need to talk to him."
"Of course."
"No more secrets."
Damon nodded.
"No more secrets."
That evening, Nathan Ellis arrived at the mansion under heavy security.
He entered the library wearing a plain gray coat.
The moment he saw Delaney, he stopped.
His eyes filled with tears.
"Hello, sweetheart."
Delaney's chest tightened.
"Don't call me that."
He lowered his head.
"You're right."
She searched his face.
There was something familiar about him.
The shape of his eyes.
The curve of his smile.
She hated that she noticed.
"Did you know I existed?"
"Yes."
"Did you know where I lived?"
"Yes."
"Then why didn't you come?"
His face crumpled.
"Because the one time I tried, someone broke into your mother's home and threatened to kill you."
Delaney shook her head.
"You could have helped us."
"I did what I could without revealing myself."
She laughed bitterly.
"Then why did my mother die worrying about bills?"
Adrian looked devastated.
"I didn't know how bad things had become."
Delaney turned away.
He reached into his coat.
"I have something for you."
He placed a photograph on the table.
Margaret stood in a hospital garden holding a newborn baby.
Adrian stood beside her.
Both were smiling.
Delaney picked it up.
A folded note was taped to the back.
In Margaret's handwriting, it read:
If anything happens, Adrian knows where Evelyn's missing medical records are hidden.
Damon stepped closer.
"Where are they?"
Adrian's expression changed.
He looked toward the door.
Then whispered:
"Inside the mansion."
May you like
A pause.
"Behind the portrait of Damon's father."
