CHAPTER 13 – The Third Daughter
The mansion screens went black.
But nobody moved.
The image remained burned into everyone's minds.
A newborn baby.
A hospital room.
Alexander's voice.
And the final sentence:
"The first daughter was never the beginning."
"She was the third mistake."
Elena felt her knees weaken.
Three daughters.
Not two.
Three.
Her entire life had been built on missing pieces.
But this was different.
This wasn't another hidden secret.
This was proof that the Howard family had created a history of erasing people.
Removing anyone who threatened their control.
Clara stared at Alexander through the screen.
For the first time...
Her confidence disappeared.
"You knew."
The words were barely audible.
"You knew there was another child."
Alexander sat silently in his office.
Then he smiled.
"Of course."
Clara's hands tightened.
"Where is she?"
Alexander didn't answer.
"Where is she?"
Still nothing.
Then Alexander said:
"Closer than you think."
At Howard Manor...
Ruiz immediately ordered his team to trace the video source.
"Find where this came from."
A detective typed quickly.
"Sir..."
"What?"
"The signal isn't from inside the mansion."
"Then where?"
The detective looked confused.
"It's moving."
Ruiz frowned.
"Moving?"
"It's being broadcast through multiple locations."
A pause.
"Someone prepared this for years."
Vanessa looked at Richard.
"You knew about the third child."
Richard didn't deny it.
"Yes."
Her face changed.
"Everyone knew except me?"
Richard looked at her.
"You were never supposed to know."
The words hurt.
Because they confirmed something Vanessa had always suspected.
She had spent her entire life believing she was a player.
But to people like Alexander and Richard...
She was just another piece on the board.
"Who is she?"
Vanessa asked.
Richard looked toward the window.
"The one person Alexander could never control."
Twenty-eight years earlier...
A storm covered the city.
Inside the hospital...
Isabella held two babies.
Elena.
Clara.
She thought that was the end of the nightmare.
Then Alexander arrived.
But he wasn't alone.
A woman followed him.
A nurse.
The nurse carried another baby.
A baby with a small silver bracelet.
Alexander looked at Isabella.
"This child changes everything."
Isabella stared.
"What did you do?"
Alexander answered coldly:
"I fixed a mistake."
Present day.
Elena looked at Isabella.
"Mom."
Isabella didn't answer.
Elena's voice trembled.
"You knew."
Isabella looked devastated.
"I knew about the third child."
Everyone froze.
"But I didn't know where she was taken."
Clara stepped closer.
"Who took her?"
Isabella whispered:
"Alexander."
The room became silent.
Elena asked:
"Why?"
Isabella looked at her daughters.
"Because Alexander discovered something."
"What?"
"The third child was born with a birthmark."
Clara frowned.
"What does that matter?"
Isabella looked at them.
"Because that birthmark matched an old Howard family record."
Ruiz stepped forward.
"Meaning?"
Isabella answered:
"She was the true heir."
Everything stopped.
Elena understood.
Alexander didn't hide the third child because she was dangerous.
He hid her because she had the strongest claim.
The child who could destroy everything he built.
At the hospital...
Adrian sat alone.
His hands trembled.
He knew something nobody else knew.
Something he had hidden for years.
His phone rang.
Unknown number.
He answered.
A woman's voice.
"You failed."
Adrian closed his eyes.
"I tried."
"You always say that."
"I wanted to protect Elena."
The woman laughed.
"Then why did you marry her?"
Silence.
Adrian looked down.
Because the answer was painful.
"I didn't know at first."
"But later?"
Another silence.
"Later I loved her."
The woman became quiet.
Then:
"Love doesn't erase betrayal."
The call ended.
Adrian looked at the phone.
A name appeared on the screen.
A name he had saved years ago.
Lydia.
At the church...
Elena's phone received a message.
No number.
Just a video.
She pressed play.
A young woman appeared.
Around twenty-seven years old.
Standing in a room filled with old Howard documents.
She looked directly at the camera.
"Hello, Elena."
Elena froze.
The woman smiled.
"My name is Lydia."
Clara whispered:
"No..."
Elena looked at her.
"You know her?"
Clara's face turned pale.
"Yes."
"Who is she?"
Clara answered:
"Our sister."
The video continued.
Lydia looked calm.
Almost peaceful.
"I know everyone is searching for answers."
She picked up a document.
"But the truth is simple."
She smiled.
"Alexander Howard didn't destroy this family."
A pause.
"He inherited a family that was already rotten."
Elena frowned.
"What does that mean?"
Lydia continued:
"Your mother told you Alexander was the monster."
She looked into the camera.
"But nobody told you what happened before Alexander."
She placed another document down.
A family tree.
A name highlighted.
Howard.
Then another.
A name Elena had never heard.
Vane.
Lydia spoke:
"The Howard and Vane families were enemies long before Alexander was born."
"Two families."
"Two bloodlines."
"One fortune."
Then Lydia revealed something that made everyone freeze.
"Alexander didn't steal the Howard empire."
A pause.
"He stole it back."
Clara stepped backward.
"No."
Lydia continued:
"The original founder of the Howard fortune wasn't a Howard."
She looked directly at Elena.
"Your bloodline comes from the Vane family."
Silence.
Richard Cross.
Alexander's true identity.
The stolen name.
Everything suddenly shifted.
At Howard Manor...
Alexander watched the video.
For the first time...
He looked genuinely angry.
Not because of Elena.
Not because of Clara.
Because of Lydia.
He whispered:
"She was never supposed to find that."
Adrian entered.
"You knew."
Alexander turned.
"You knew she existed."
Alexander remained silent.
Adrian shook his head.
"All these years..."
"You used everyone."
Alexander looked at him.
"Everyone except you."
Adrian frowned.
"What?"
Alexander smiled.
"Because you were never my son."
Adrian froze.
"What?"
Alexander slowly revealed a document.
A DNA report.
"You were brought into this family for one purpose."
Adrian stared at the paper.
"No..."
Alexander's voice was cold.
"You were never Elena's husband by accident."
At the church...
Elena received one final message.
From Lydia.
A location.
And a warning.
"Come if you want the truth."
"But don't bring Clara."
"Because she will kill me."
Elena looked at her sister.
Clara saw the message.
Her expression changed.
"She knows."
"Knows what?"
Clara whispered:
"The reason I came back."
The church doors suddenly opened.
A woman stood outside.
Lydia.
Alive.
Real.
Looking exactly like the girl from the video.
She looked at Elena.
Then at Clara.
And said:
"The three daughters are finally together."
A pause.
May you like
"But only two of us will leave this alive."
End of Chapter 13
