Chapter 13 - The House That Burned Its SecretsExplosions thundered beneath the mansion.
Windows shattered.
Fire erupted from the west wing.
The chandelier crashed onto the ballroom floor.
“Everyone out!” Nathan shouted.
Helena grabbed Isabella.
“Move!”
They raced through the corridor.
Smoke filled the estate.
Security alarms screamed.
The old mansion that had hosted presidents, billionaires, and judges was collapsing under its own secrets.
Celeste found Celine.
“Can you walk?”
“Yes.”
“And Clara?”
Celine shook her head.
“She disappeared.”
Isabella stopped.
“She would never leave.”
Nathan looked around.
“She wants the files.”
They reached the main hall.
The staircase was burning.
The same staircase where Isabella had nearly died.
Helena stared at it.
“This is where he kept everything.”
Isabella looked toward the fire.
“What?”
“The evidence.”
Nathan understood.
“The blackmail room.”
They descended into the underground archive.
Fire had already reached the chamber.
Files burned in piles.
The truth was disappearing.
Isabella grabbed whatever documents she could.
Then she saw Clara.
Standing in the middle of the room.
Holding a metal case.
“Give it to me.”
Clara smiled.
“This contains enough evidence to destroy every surviving member of the Vale dynasty.”
Celeste stepped forward.
“Then give it to the police.”
Clara laughed.
“Police?”
She tossed a file into the fire.
“Half of them are on the payroll.”
Nathan shouted:
“Then the media.”
Clara's expression changed.
“You think they'll care?”
Isabella stepped forward.
“I will.”
Clara looked at her.
“You?”
“Yes.”
“You've spent your whole life protected by this family.”
“I didn't ask for it.”
“Neither did I.”
The room shook.
Fire spread across the ceiling.
Clara looked toward the exit.
Then back at Isabella.
“You really want the truth?”
“Yes.”
“Then open the last box.”
She threw the metal case at Isabella.
Inside was a videotape.
Isabella's hands trembled.
Clara whispered:
“Your mother didn't kill Gabriel.”
Helena looked at her.
“What?”
Clara smiled.
“You were there.”
Helena shook her head.
“No.”
“You heard the gunshot.”
“That wasn't me.”
“Exactly.”
Everyone froze.
Clara revealed the final deception.
The person who killed Gabriel had disguised the crime to make Helena believe she was responsible.
Richard had manipulated her memory.
The supposed confession had been forged.
Helena collapsed.
“I didn't…”
Isabella hugged her.
Then Clara pointed toward Nathan.
“And the person who knows who really killed Gabriel is him.”
Nathan froze.
Isabella turned.
“What?”
Nathan swallowed.
“My father left me a message.”
“What did it say?”
Nathan's eyes filled with fear.
“He said the killer was someone inside your mother's bloodline.”
Isabella's heart stopped.
“Which means?”
Nathan whispered:
“One of your three sisters.”
The room went silent.
Then a scream echoed from upstairs.
Celine.
“HELP!”
They raced toward the sound.
But when they reached the ballroom, Celine was gone.
Only her red scarf remained.
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And on the marble floor was written in blood:
ONE SISTER MUST DIE.
