Chapter 13: Where the Twins Were
“Exactly where I need them to be.”
Daniel felt the blood leave his face.
“My children?”
Evelyn smiled.
“They were never supposed to survive long enough for you to find them.”
Victoria gasped.
Arthur stepped forward.
“Evelyn, stop.”
She turned toward him.
“You had twenty years to stop me.”
Arthur's expression collapsed.
Daniel stared between them.
“What have you done?”
Evelyn's eyes returned to him.
“Nothing I wasn't forced to do.”
“You forged Claire's medical records.”
“Yes.”
“You threatened her.”
“Yes.”
“You made me believe she could never have children.”
Evelyn tilted her head.
“And you believed me.”
That sentence hurt more than anything else.
Daniel's fists tightened.
“Where are the twins?”
Evelyn didn't answer.
Instead, Michael Reed stepped forward.
“I can tell you.”
Daniel looked at him.
“Then talk.”
Michael glanced at Evelyn.
“She moved them.”
“When?”
“Tonight.”
Daniel's heart stopped.
“Where?”
Michael hesitated.
“Your old lake house.”
Daniel immediately turned toward the door.
Evelyn laughed.
“You're too late.”
Daniel stopped.
“What did you do?”
“I didn't touch them.”
Her smile disappeared.
“But someone else did.”
Victoria suddenly looked at her phone.
Her eyes widened.
“Daniel…”
She showed him the screen.
A photograph had arrived.
Emma and Ethan were sitting together on a couch.
They were frightened but unharmed.
A man stood behind them.
Daniel's blood froze.
“That's the lake house.”
Michael nodded.
“Yes.”
Daniel stared at the photograph.
“Who took it?”
Michael didn't answer.
Then Daniel noticed something.
The twins were wearing the same clothes they'd had at the hospital.
Which meant they hadn't been there long.
He zoomed in.
Behind Emma was a small wooden table.
On it sat a silver picture frame.
Daniel recognized it.
It had belonged to Claire's father.
He looked at Michael.
“Why is that there?”
Michael's face changed.
“Because Claire put it there.”
Daniel frowned.
“Claire?”
“She was never taken from the hospital.”
“What?”
Michael stepped closer.
“Claire arranged this.”
Daniel stared at him.
“You're saying Claire is behind this?”
“No.”
Michael shook his head.
“She wanted you to believe she was kidnapped.”
“Why?”
“Because she knew Evelyn was watching her.”
Daniel's mind raced.
Then everything clicked.
The bruises.
The warning.
The camera.
The mysterious phone calls.
Claire had been trying to lead him somewhere.
“Where is she?”
Michael pointed toward the hallway.
“Downstairs.”
Daniel ran.
He reached the basement door and pulled it open.
The room was empty.
Except for a chair.
And a small recording device.
Daniel pressed the button.
Claire's voice filled the darkness.
“If you're hearing this, Daniel, it means you finally discovered what they did.”
His eyes closed.
“I'm sorry.”
Her voice trembled.
“I didn't tell you the truth five years ago because I thought I was protecting you.”
Daniel's breathing became uneven.
“But I was wrong.”
The recording continued.
“Your mother didn't want the twins because they were heirs.”
Daniel opened his eyes.
“They were witnesses.”
He froze.
“Witnesses to what?”
Claire continued.
“The night before our divorce, I discovered that your family had been using the Carter Foundation to move money through companies overseas.”
Daniel stared at the recorder.
“What?”
“The money belonged to people who trusted your family.”
Michael appeared behind him.
“They weren't just stealing.”
Daniel turned.
“What were they doing?”
Michael answered quietly.
“They were laundering money for powerful criminals.”
Daniel's face hardened.
“And my father?”
Michael looked away.
“He knew.”
Daniel's stomach dropped.
“Did my mother know?”
Michael nodded.
“She ran it.”
Daniel suddenly understood why everyone had been terrified of Claire.
She hadn't simply discovered a family secret.
She had discovered an empire built on lies.
And the twins were dangerous because their existence connected Claire to Daniel—and therefore to the Carter fortune.
The recording continued.
“Daniel, there is one more thing.”
Claire paused.
“When I left you, I wasn't alone.”
Daniel's heart stopped.
“I had someone helping me.”
He waited.
Then her voice whispered:
“Our children weren't born by accident.”
Daniel stared at the recorder.
“What does that mean?”
Claire continued.
“I knew your mother would try to destroy the pregnancy.”
“So I secretly preserved evidence before the divorce.”
“Medical records. Financial records. Messages. Everything.”
Daniel looked at Michael.
“You helped her.”
“Yes.”
“Where is the evidence?”
Michael pointed toward the wall.
Daniel followed his gaze.
There was a small metal panel.
Michael opened it.
Inside was a hard drive.
Daniel reached for it.
Then—
BANG!
A gunshot exploded upstairs.
Victoria screamed.
Michael immediately pushed Daniel against the wall.
“Stay down!”
Another gunshot.
Then silence.
Daniel's phone suddenly rang.
Unknown number.
He answered.
A distorted voice whispered:
“You have ten minutes.”
Daniel's heart pounded.
“For what?”
“To choose.”
“What choice?”
“You can save Claire…”
A pause.
“…or you can save your children.”
The line went dead.
Daniel stared at Michael.
“Where are they?”
Michael's face was grim.
“The lake house.”
Daniel grabbed his coat.
“We're going.”
Victoria stepped forward.
“I’m coming.”
Daniel looked at her.
For a moment, he remembered Claire's warning.
Don't trust Victoria.
Then he noticed something in Victoria's hand.
A tiny silver key.
The same symbol engraved on the key appeared on the hard drive.
Daniel's eyes narrowed.
“Where did you get that?”
Victoria went pale.
May you like
She slowly closed her fingers around it.
“I was hoping you would never ask.”
