Chapter 10: The Daughter of the Enemy
The words repeated inside my head.
Claire is my daughter.
Not mine.
Richard Vale’s.
For several seconds, nobody spoke.
The abandoned facility around us felt like it had disappeared.
The broken computers.
The old files.
The cold walls.
None of it mattered.
Because the foundation of my entire life had just been ripped apart.
The little girl I held when she took her first steps.
The child who called me “Dad” for more than thirty years.
The woman I watched grow into a mother.
My Claire.
Was she really connected to the man who destroyed our family?
I looked at Evelyn.
Her face told me everything.
She knew.
She had known.
And somehow, she had carried this secret alone.
“Evelyn…”
My voice was barely recognizable.
“How long?”
Her eyes filled with tears.
“Since before Claire was born.”
I stepped back.
The pain was worse than anger.
Because anger was simple.
Betrayal was not.
“You knew my daughter was Richard Vale’s child?”
She nodded slowly.
“Yes.”
“And you let me believe she was mine?”
Evelyn closed her eyes.
“I didn’t know how to tell you.”
I looked away.
“Fifteen years ago, you disappeared.”
Her expression broke.
“I disappeared because Richard found out Claire was alive.”
I froze.
“What?”
She looked at me.
“He thought Claire died when she was born.”
The room became silent.
“Then how?”
Evelyn sat down.
“I was young. I worked for Richard’s family company. I discovered what he was doing. The stolen land. The fake identities. The people he destroyed.”
She looked at the floor.
“When I tried to leave, he threatened me.”
My hands tightened.
“So Claire…”
“She was my daughter,” Evelyn whispered.
Then she looked at me.
“But Richard was her biological father.”
The truth came out slowly.
Like a wound reopening.
Thirty years ago, Evelyn had worked as an assistant for Richard Vale.
At the time, he was not yet the famous businessman everyone feared.
He was ambitious.
Brilliant.
And already dangerous.
“He used people,” Evelyn said.
“He made everyone around him feel important until they became useful.”
She looked at Grant.
“Your father was the same way with you.”
Grant said nothing.
Because he knew.
“Richard never loved anyone,” Evelyn continued.
“Not his employees. Not his partners.”
Her voice became softer.
“Not even his own daughter.”
I looked at the photograph of Claire.
The truth suddenly became more painful.
Because Claire had spent her entire life unknowingly carrying the blood of the man she hated.
My phone rang.
Marcus.
I answered immediately.
“Where are you?”
A pause.
“Dad…”
His voice sounded exhausted.
“I need you to listen.”
“I know about Claire.”
Silence.
Then:
“You found out.”
“You knew too.”
Another silence.
“Yes.”
My chest tightened.
“How long?”
“Years.”
The pain returned.
“Everyone knew except me.”
Marcus’s voice broke.
“I wanted to tell you.”
“But?”
“But Claire stopped me.”
I frowned.
“Why?”
“She said you would try to confront Richard.”
“And?”
“And Richard would destroy you.”
I looked at Grant.
The billionaire remained silent.
Marcus continued.
“Dad, you don’t understand Richard.”
“I understand enough.”
“No.”
His voice became urgent.
“You don’t.”
A pause.
“Richard doesn’t just remove enemies.”
“He removes history.”
The call ended.
Before I could respond, another message appeared.
A location.
This time from Claire.
No words.
Just an address.
Grant looked at it.
His expression changed.
“That’s impossible.”
“What?”
“That’s Richard’s private residence.”
I stared.
“Then Claire is there.”
Grant nodded.
“But there is something you need to know.”
“What?”
He looked at me seriously.
“Richard never invites people inside.”
“Why?”
“Because everyone who enters his home becomes part of his game.”
I picked up my jacket.
“I’m going.”
Grant stepped forward.
“You don’t know what you’re walking into.”
I looked at him.
“My daughter is there.”
A pause.
“And my granddaughter is missing.”
I walked toward the door.
“There is nowhere else I would rather be.”
Richard Vale’s mansion was unlike anything I expected.
It was not modern.
Not flashy.
No giant gates.
No guards standing outside.
It looked like an old family home.
Almost peaceful.
That made it worse.
People like Richard did not need to display power.
Power was already afraid of them.
The front door opened before we knocked.
A man stood there.
Older.
Calm.
The scar across his face was visible.
Richard Vale.
The man who supposedly died twenty years ago.
He smiled.
“Robert.”
I felt anger rising.
“You know who I am.”
“I have known who you are for decades.”
My fists tightened.
“You destroyed my family.”
Richard tilted his head.
“Did I?”
His calmness was unbearable.
“You believe everything Claire told you?”
I stepped closer.
“Where is she?”
Richard smiled.
“Always the father.”
A pause.
“Never the investigator.”
The door behind him opened.
And there she was.
Claire.
Alive.
My daughter.
The moment she saw me, her eyes filled with tears.
“Dad…”
I ran toward her.
I didn’t care about Richard.
I didn’t care about the secrets.
I didn’t care about anything except that my daughter was alive.
I held her tightly.
She cried against my shoulder.
“I’m sorry.”
I pulled away.
“Why?”
Her eyes moved toward Richard.
“Because I knew.”
The words hurt.
“What?”
“I knew the truth about my birth.”
I froze.
“Claire…”
“I found out when I was twenty-five.”
I stared.
“Why didn’t you tell me?”
“Because you were my father.”
The answer surprised me.
She touched my arm.
“You raised me.”
A tear rolled down her face.
“You taught me everything.”
She looked at Richard.
“He gave me DNA.”
A pause.
“You gave me a life.”
Richard watched silently.
Then he spoke.
“This emotional reunion is touching.”
My anger returned.
“What do you want?”
Richard smiled.
“The same thing I always wanted.”
“Power?”
“No.”
He looked at Claire.
“Control.”
I stepped between them.
“You won’t touch her.”
Richard laughed softly.
“You still don’t understand.”
He pointed toward Claire.
“She is the key.”
“To what?”
“The Vale empire.”
I frowned.
“She is my heir.”
Claire’s expression changed.
“No.”
Richard looked at her.
“You are my blood.”
“I am not you.”
His smile disappeared.
For the first time, I saw the monster beneath the calm.
“You have no idea what you are.”
Claire stepped forward.
“I know exactly what I am.”
She looked at me.
“I’m Robert’s daughter.”
Silence.
Richard stared at her.
Then he laughed.
A cold, empty laugh.
“Then you have inherited his weakness.”
Suddenly, a voice came from upstairs.
A small voice.
“Mommy?”
Everyone froze.
I looked up.
Lily.
Standing on the staircase.
Alive.
Safe.
But she was not alone.
A hand rested on her shoulder.
Emily.
My blood ran cold.
Richard smiled.
“Perfect timing.”
Claire’s face turned pale.
“No…”
Richard looked at Lily.
“The final witness has arrived.”
I stepped forward.
“Let her go.”
Emily smiled.
“I’m afraid we can’t do that.”
Claire looked at Emily with disbelief.
“Why?”
Emily’s expression softened.
Almost sadly.
“Because Claire…”
She whispered.
“You never understood.”
A pause.
“I wasn’t trying to destroy your family.”
She looked at Richard.
“I was protecting it.”
Nobody moved.
“What?”
Emily smiled.
“Everything that happened…”
She looked at Richard.
“Was because of him.”
Richard’s expression changed.
For the first time, he looked surprised.
Emily continued:
“But he made one mistake.”
She tightened her grip on Lily.
“He forgot one thing.”
“What?”
Emily looked directly at Richard.
“People he controls eventually learn how to break free.”
The room exploded into chaos.
Richard turned toward Emily.
“You betrayed me.”
Emily laughed.
“No.”
She shook her head.
“I betrayed you years ago.”
She looked at Claire.
“I was never your enemy.”
Claire stared.
“Then what were you?”
Emily answered:
“The person who kept you alive.”
Nobody understood.
Not yet.
But one thing was clear.
The enemy we had spent months searching for…
Was not the only enemy.
And the person we trusted least…
Might have been the person protecting us all along.
But there was one question left.
Why had Emily taken Lily?
And what did she know about the final secret hidden inside Vault 417?
Because Richard Vale was not afraid of losing money.
He was afraid of losing something much more valuable.
The truth.
May you like
And Lily was the only person who had heard it.
End of Chapter 10
