Chapter 7 - The Daughter Who Came Back
The photograph changed everything.
For two days, Margaret and I searched every available record connected to Katherine Bell.
We found a marriage certificate, an old address, and a hospital record from twenty-seven years earlier.
The baby's name was listed as Anna.
No surname.
No father's name.
The hospital record ended with a transfer to a private clinic.
After that, there was nothing.
Then Margaret found a woman named Anna Bell who had filed a claim against an estate in another state.
The claim had been withdrawn after the death of Edward Voss.
“Could this be her?” I asked.
“Possibly.”
We arranged a meeting.
Anna arrived at Margaret's office on Friday afternoon.
She was twenty-six, with dark brown hair and green eyes. She wore a simple gray coat and carried a worn leather handbag.
When she saw the photograph on the desk, her expression changed.
“Where did you get that?”
“From Edward Voss's personal papers,” I said.
She sat down slowly.
“That's my mother.”
“Your mother was Katherine Bell?”
Anna nodded.
“She died four years ago.”
I felt a strange sadness.
“Did she ever tell you about Edward?”
“Not much. She said he was a coward who loved money more than people.”
Anna studied my face.
“Why are you asking about him?”
I explained the codicil, the company shares, and the possibility that she was Edward's daughter.
She listened without interrupting.
When I finished, she laughed.
“I'm supposed to believe a billionaire's family suddenly wants me?”
“No,” I said. “You're supposed to believe that you have a right to know the truth.”
She looked at me for a long moment.
Then she pulled a small envelope from her handbag.
“My mother gave me this before she died.”
Inside was a letter.
It was written by Edward.
He apologized for abandoning Katherine and promised to protect their daughter.
But the final paragraph was different.
If my sons ever attempt to use the company as a weapon against the people they have harmed, remember that the original shares were never intended to belong to them.
Margaret read it twice.
“This could support the codicil.”
Anna looked at me.
“Why are you helping me?”
I thought about Clara's children.
About the medical file.
About the years I had spent being treated as a woman with no value because I hadn't produced an heir.
“Because I know what it's like to have someone decide your worth for you.”
Anna's eyes softened.
Then my phone rang.
It was Richard.
“Evelyn, Martin knows about Anna.”
“How?”
“His security team found out about the meeting.”
“Where are you?”
“Outside the company headquarters.”
“Don't go inside.”
“It's too late.”
I heard shouting.
Then the call disconnected.
Margaret immediately contacted the police.
But before we could leave, an email arrived from Martin's office.
It was an emergency board notice.
Martin had called a special meeting for Monday morning.
The agenda included the removal of Richard Voss, the approval of Clara's family trust, and the appointment of Martin as sole executive controller.
He was moving faster than we expected.
That evening, Clara called me.
“Evelyn, I need your help.”
“What happened?”
“Martin took the children.”
I stood up.
“What do you mean?”
“He said he was taking them to his mother's house. But they're not there. His driver says he went somewhere else.”
“Have you called the police?”
“Yes. Martin says I'm an unfit mother because of the affair.”
I closed my eyes.
“Where is Richard?”
“I don't know.”
Then Clara whispered something that made my heart stop.
“Martin said he knows who Anna is. He said she's the reason his father never gave him complete control.”
A door slammed on Clara's end.
Then I heard Martin's voice.
“Give me the phone.”
The call ended.
I looked at Margaret.
“We need to move now.”
But before we reached the elevator, Anna spoke.
“Wait.”
She was holding the photograph.
“There is something you haven't asked me.”
“What?”
She turned the picture over.
May you like
A second line of writing had been hidden beneath the frame.
Katherine's daughter has a brother. Find him before Martin does.
