Chapter 11 - Sarah held the photograph with both hands.My hands went cold.
“What is that?”
She didn't answer.
Evan stepped away from her.
“Mom, don't.”
I looked at him.
“Why?”
He shook his head.
“Because I don't know if she's telling the truth.”
Sarah stared at me.
“She has to know eventually.”
“Know what?”
She handed me the photograph.
It showed two babies.
One was Logan.
The other was a girl.
Same eyes.
Same birthmark.
Same tiny scar near the left eyebrow.
I looked at Sarah.
“Who is she?”
Sarah whispered:
“Lena.”
“Where is she?”
Sarah looked away.
“Gone.”
Evan said:
“Not gone.”
Everyone turned.
He pulled another flash drive from his pocket.
“I found her file.”
I stared.
“Where?”
“Buried inside your Army medical records.”
My pulse raced.
I took it.
The folder opened.
SUBJECT 17A: MALE
SUBJECT 17B: FEMALE
Both listed under one genetic contributor.
Me.
I couldn't breathe.
Two children.
One stolen.
One hidden.
Logan's face was pale.
“You had a daughter.”
I stared at the screen.
“I didn't know.”
Sarah said:
“You weren't supposed to.”
I turned toward her.
“You knew.”
“Yes.”
“For twenty years?”
“Yes.”
“Why?”
“Because they threatened both children.”
“Who?”
Sarah looked at Victor's camera.
“Everyone.”
I felt rage replacing shock.
“You used Logan.”
“I protected him.”
“You let him believe he was a Whitmore.”
“Because being a Whitmore kept him alive.”
Logan stepped forward.
“You let me hate myself.”
Sarah broke down.
“I let you survive.”
The warehouse lights turned on.
Victor appeared on a screen.
“You see why I needed you here.”
I looked at him.
“Where is Lena?”
He smiled.
“Closer than you think.”
A door opened behind me.
A young woman entered.
Mid-twenties.
Dark hair.
Gray eyes.
The same scar.
I couldn't move.
She stared at me.
I stared back.
My body recognized her before my mind did.
“Mom?”
The word shattered me.
I stepped forward.
She did too.
We stopped inches apart.
I raised a hand.
Touched her cheek.
She closed her eyes.
“I've been looking for you.”
My voice broke.
She whispered:
“I've been looking for you too.”
Logan stood behind me.
He looked at Lena.
“Who are you?”
She smiled through tears.
“Your sister.”
Logan's knees nearly buckled.
Evan stared.
“This is insane.”
Lena looked at him.
“You're Evan.”
“How do you know me?”
“Because I've watched your life for three years.”
“What?”
“Your research. Your school. Your mother's house.”
Evan stepped backward.
“You were the one watching us.”
“Yes.”
“Why?”
“To protect you.”
I looked at her.
“From Victor?”
“No.”
She looked at me.
“From myself.”
The room fell silent.
“What does that mean?”
She pulled a small drive from her coat.
“This contains everything.”
Daniel suddenly appeared from a side door.
“You found her.”
I turned.
“You knew?”
He nodded.
“Lena contacted me six months ago.”
I stared at him.
“You knew my daughter was alive.”
“Yes.”
“And you said nothing.”
“I was trying to keep you both alive.”
I wanted to hit him.
Instead, I asked:
“What is on the drive?”
Lena answered.
“Names.”
“Whose?”
“Everyone who funded the program.”
She looked at Victor's screen.
“Every politician.”
“Every contractor.”
“Every officer.”
“Every bank.”
Then she looked at me.
“And one name you never expected.”
I felt a chill.
“Who?”
Lena's eyes filled with tears.
“Your real mother.”
I remembered the old photograph.
The woman who had looked like me.
Elena Vale.
Lena opened the file.
A scanned document appeared.
At the bottom was a signature.
I knew it instantly.
My own handwriting.
Except I had never written it.
Beneath the signature was a sentence.
SUBJECT 17 PROGRAM APPROVED BY ELENA VALE.
I stared.
Daniel whispered:
“Your mother signed it.”
I shook my head.
“My mother died when I was a child.”
Lena looked at me.
“She didn't.”
Victor's voice interrupted.
“Exactly.”
I turned toward the camera.
“What do you want?”
Victor answered:
“To finish what your mother started.”
“What?”
He smiled.
“The program was never about Logan.”
He paused.
“It was about you.”
The lights exploded.
Gunfire erupted.
Lena grabbed my arm.
Daniel pushed Evan down.
Logan dragged Sarah behind cover.
May you like
When the shooting stopped, the screen was gone.
And so was Lena.
