Chapter 8 - The Missing Brother
Anna had spent most of her life believing she was an only child.
Her mother never mentioned a brother.
But after examining the old hospital records, Margaret found a second birth registration connected to Katherine Bell.
A boy.
Born eleven minutes after Anna.
His name was Daniel.
The hospital had recorded him as transferred to a different facility.
The receiving institution no longer existed.
We had a mystery, a deadline, and a company board meeting less than forty-eight hours away.
Margaret contacted an investigator who specialized in historical records.
I contacted Clara.
She answered on the third attempt.
“Where are the children?”
“I don't know.”
Her voice sounded exhausted.
“Martin says they're safe. He won't tell me where.”
“Has he threatened you?”
“He says he'll make sure I never see them again.”
“Clara, listen carefully. I need you to stop arguing with him. Save every message. Don't sign anything.”
She started crying.
“I don't know how to fix this.”
“You can't fix the past. You can protect your children now.”
There was a long silence.
Then she said, “I have something else.”
“What?”
“A document Martin keeps in his private safe. It's an original agreement with Richard.”
“What does it say?”
“That if Richard ever reveals the donor arrangement, Martin can declare him mentally unfit to manage his inheritance.”
My stomach tightened.
“That's impossible.”
“I saw the signatures. Martin has been preparing this for years.”
“Can you get a copy?”
“I can try.”
That evening, Richard finally appeared at Margaret's office.
He looked terrible.
His shirt was wrinkled, his face unshaven, and one eye was bruised.
“What happened?” I asked.
“Martin's security team followed me.”
“Did they hurt you?”
“Nothing serious.”
He sat down.
“Evelyn, I need to tell you something.”
I waited.
“When Clara and I first discussed the children, Martin told me he couldn't have them. He said he wanted a family but didn't want the world to know about his condition.”
“And you agreed?”
Richard lowered his head.
“Yes.”
“Why?”
“Because he promised to give me a place in the company. He said I would finally have something of my own.”
I studied him.
“You knew he was cheating on me.”
“Yes.”
“You watched him humiliate me.”
Richard looked away.
“I know.”
“Did you ever think about telling me?”
“Every day.”
“Yet you didn't.”
He nodded.
I wanted to hate him.
Part of me did.
But the bruises on his face reminded me that he was also trapped in a mess he had helped create.
“Where are the children?” I asked.
“I don't know. But I think Martin is taking them to the family estate.”
“Why?”
“Because the trust requires a formal signing ceremony. He wants the children present when the board approves it.”
Margaret looked up.
“He can't transfer shares through a trust without establishing the children's legal status.”
“Exactly,” Richard said. “And he has a plan to do that.”
“What plan?”
Richard opened his briefcase.
Inside was a copy of a private adoption agreement.
It named Martin as the sole legal father and Clara as the children's mother.
But there was a problem.
The document contained a forged signature.
Mine.
I stared at it.
My name appeared beneath a statement claiming I had consented to the family arrangement and waived all objections to the children's inheritance.
I had never seen the document.
“He forged my signature.”
Richard nodded.
“Martin thought you'd never challenge it.”
I looked at Margaret.
“Can we prove it's fake?”
“Yes.”
“Then we go to the board.”
Margaret shook her head.
“Not yet. We need the original.”
Richard leaned forward.
“Clara can get it.”
As if summoned, my phone rang.
It was Clara.
“I found the safe,” she whispered. “But Martin is coming back.”
“Get out of there.”
“I can't. The children are upstairs.”
Then I heard a child's cry.
Clara whispered:
May you like
“Evelyn, I found another document. It's about the missing brother.”
The line went dead.
