Chapter 3 - The Woman in the Hallway
The discovery that Diana wasn't Daniel's biological mother shattered the version of his childhood he had carried for thirty years.
But there was something else.
Evelyn knew where Diana had been twenty-five years earlier.
She had been working for Victor Hale.
Daniel confronted his mother the next morning.
Diana sat silently at the kitchen table.
“You knew.”
She looked up.
“Yes.”
“You knew Evelyn was my mother.”
“Yes.”
“You knew about the trust.”
“Yes.”
“You knew about my father's warning.”
Her eyes filled with tears.
“Yes.”
Daniel stared at her.
“Why didn't you tell me?”
“Because your father asked me not to.”
“You lied to me my entire life.”
“I protected you.”
“You protected me with lies.”
Diana lowered her head.
“I was afraid.”
Daniel stepped back.
“Everyone in this family was afraid.”
He showed her the photograph.
“Who is the child?”
Diana looked at it.
Then whispered:
“You.”
“Who took the picture?”
“Victor.”
“Why?”
“Because he wanted proof.”
“Proof of what?”
Diana didn't answer.
Evelyn did.
“He wanted proof that Daniel was alive.”
Daniel looked at both women.
“Why would my being alive matter?”
Evelyn said:
“Because Victor believed the trust belonged to his family.”
The Bellmont Trust wasn't simply a bank account.
It controlled several properties, investments, and shares in Daniel's father's company.
Its total value was now estimated at nearly forty million dollars.
But there was a condition.
Daniel had to remain the sole beneficiary.
If he died without heirs, control would pass to a designated family foundation.
Victor had spent years trying to manipulate the trust.
But there was one problem.
Daniel's father had anticipated him.
The trust had been protected by an independent legal team.
Until Marcus found a weakness.
Daniel's current company had been used to create fraudulent transactions.
Marcus wasn't merely stealing money.
He was creating debt.
If Daniel's company collapsed, creditors could attack the trust.
The mansion was only one part of the plan.
The entire family fortune was at risk.
Then Detective Harris brought another surprise.
“We found a hidden account.”
“Whose?”
“Vanessa's.”
Daniel looked at his wife.
She had been released pending further investigation.
Her account contained almost $900,000.
Daniel felt betrayed all over again.
“Where did that come from?”
Vanessa started crying.
“Marcus.”
“Why?”
“He told me the money was mine.”
“You knew?”
“I knew some of it.”
“How much?”
“I didn't know about the six million.”
Daniel stared at her.
“You knew he was moving money.”
“I knew he was hiding something.”
“And you stayed silent.”
“I was afraid.”
Daniel almost laughed.
“That's the excuse everyone has.”
Vanessa looked at him.
“I loved you.”
“You locked my wife in a room.”
“I didn't know what else to do.”
“You could have told me.”
She began crying.
“I thought if I helped Marcus, he would leave us alone.”
“Who was threatening you?”
Vanessa hesitated.
Then she whispered:
“Your father's former attorney.”
Daniel froze.
“Martin Bell?”
She nodded.
“He came to me six months ago.”
“But Martin Bell died years ago.”
Vanessa looked terrified.
“No.”
Daniel's blood ran cold.
“He's alive.”
That night, the mansion's security system detected movement.
Daniel and Claire were upstairs.
Detective Harris had officers outside.
Then the alarm sounded.
Someone had entered the study.
Daniel ran downstairs.
A figure disappeared through the back door.
Security guards chased him.
They found nothing.
But the intruder had left something behind.
A photograph.
Daniel picked it up.
It showed his father.
Evelyn.
Diana.
And a fourth person.
A young boy.
Daniel stared.
“Who is that?”
Evelyn looked at the picture.
Her face changed.
“That is Victor Hale's son.”
Daniel looked closer.
May you like
Then his stomach dropped.
The boy was Marcus.
