Chapter 10 - The SignatureCallum remained motionless.
Sadie stared at him.
“The death certificate.”
“It was forged.”
“Did you sign it?”
“Yes.”
Her chest tightened.
“Why?”
“To protect your family.”
“You keep using that word.”
“What word?”
“Protect.”
She stepped closer.
“Every person you ‘protect’ ends up dead.”
Callum absorbed the accusation.
“I signed it because Hale ordered me to.”
“And you obeyed.”
“At the time, yes.”
“Why should I care that you regret it now?”
“You shouldn't.”
The honesty stopped her.
He continued.
“I was twenty-eight. I thought loyalty was survival.”
“And now?”
“Now I know loyalty can be another word for fear.”
Sadie looked away.
“Can we find my father?”
“Yes.”
“How?”
Callum picked up a file.
“The death certificate was issued by a private physician.”
“Name?”
“Dr. Adrian Cole.”
Sadie stared.
“Where is he?”
“Dead.”
“Of course.”
Callum almost smiled.
Sadie did not.
They searched for hours.
Finally, an address surfaced.
A private clinic in Indiana.
Abandoned.
They drove through the night.
At sunrise, they found the building.
The front door had been left open.
Inside was a single room.
One table.
One chair.
One tape recorder.
The recorder clicked on.
A man's voice played.
“Callum.”
Callum froze.
Sadie whispered:
“My father.”
Michael Miller's voice was older.
Tired.
But unmistakable.
“If you are hearing this, then I am either dead or very close to becoming dead.”
Sadie covered her mouth.
“I knew Hale would come for me.”
The recording continued.
“But he wasn't the one I feared.”
Callum's eyes narrowed.
“I feared Elena.”
He looked at Sadie.
“Your father knew my mother.”
Sadie listened.
“Callum, the woman you were taught to call your mother is not Aurelia.”
Callum stared at the recorder.
“Aurelia was never a person.”
Sadie whispered:
“What?”
Michael continued.
“It is a title.”
Silence.
“Passed from one woman to another.”
Sadie's breathing changed.
“The current Aurelia is…”
The tape crackled.
Then the sentence became clear.
“…your mother.”
Sadie closed her eyes.
Her mother.
Alive.
Aurelia.
She looked at Callum.
He was pale.
Michael continued.
“She created the ledger.”
“Why?” Sadie whispered.
“To control everyone.”
The tape clicked.
“One final warning.”
Michael's voice became faint.
“Do not trust the woman who calls herself Evelyn Miller.”
The recording ended.
Sadie stared at the machine.
“My mother is Aurelia.”
Callum did not respond.
Then they heard footsteps behind them.
Slow.
Measured.
A woman entered the room.
Silver hair.
Dark coat.
Elegant posture.
She looked at Sadie.
And smiled.
“Hello, darling.”
Sadie could not breathe.
“Mom?”
The woman extended her hand.
“Yes.”
Callum raised his weapon.
The woman glanced at him.
“You look exactly like your father when you're angry.”
Callum's hand tightened.
“My father is Hale.”
She laughed softly.
“Poor boy.”
Sadie stepped forward.
“Why did you disappear?”
Her mother smiled.
“Because I had to.”
“Why did you let us believe you were dead?”
“Because I was protecting you.”
Sadie almost laughed.
“Everyone says that.”
Her mother walked closer.
Then she whispered:
“Because your sister did not die for finding the ledger.”
Sadie froze.
“She died because she discovered who inherited it.”
Sadie felt the world tilt.
“Who?”
May you like
Her mother looked directly at her.
“You.”
