CHAPTER 11 — THE PERSON BEHIND THE LIE
The hallway became unbearably quiet.
Not because nobody had anything to say.
Because everyone was afraid of what the truth might reveal next.
For months, I thought my enemy was Chloe.
The other woman.
The secret messages.
The person who had taken my husband’s attention away from me.
But now I understood something much more dangerous.
Chloe might not have been the beginning.
She might have only been a piece of someone else’s plan.
Rachel looked at the documents again.
“The fake DNA report was carefully created.”
Daniel stared at her.
“What does that mean?”
“It means someone wanted you to believe it.”
He swallowed.
“But why?”
I looked at him.
That was the question.
Why would anyone go through that much effort?
Why create fake medical documents?
Why manipulate hospital records?
Why convince Daniel that his own daughter might not be his?
Rachel turned toward him.
“Who knew about the pregnancy?”
Daniel frowned.
“What?”
“Before Lily was born.”
She continued.
“Who knew about the timeline?”
Daniel thought for a moment.
“Family.”
“Who exactly?”
“My parents.”
“Anyone else?”
He hesitated.
Then his face changed.
I noticed.
“You remembered someone.”
Daniel looked uncomfortable.
“There was someone.”
“Who?”
He looked at me.
“My business partner.”
I narrowed my eyes.
“Why would your business partner know?”
Daniel looked away.
“Because I told him.”
“Why?”
“Because the company was having problems.”
I stared at him.
“How does your company have anything to do with our daughter?”
Daniel didn’t answer immediately.
That worried me.
“Daniel.”
He finally spoke.
“Before Lily was born, I was going through financial pressure.”
Rachel immediately became interested.
“What kind of pressure?”
Daniel sighed.
“My company was preparing for a major investment deal.”
“And?”
“And one of the investors wanted personal guarantees.”
I frowned.
“Personal guarantees?”
“Yes.”
My stomach tightened.
“Meaning?”
Daniel looked down.
“If something happened to me, my shares and assets would become complicated.”
Rachel understood immediately.
“So someone had a financial motive.”
Daniel shook his head.
“No.”
But his answer came too quickly.
Rachel noticed.
“You are not sure.”
Daniel stayed silent.
I looked at him.
“You keep protecting people.”
He looked hurt.
“I’m trying to understand.”
“No.”
I shook my head.
“You’re trying to believe there was a good reason.”
Daniel looked away.
Because maybe there wasn’t.
Rachel asked:
“What is your business partner’s name?”
Daniel hesitated.
Then answered:
“Mark Ellis.”
The name meant nothing to me.
But Daniel’s reaction told me something.
He was uncomfortable.
“Where is he now?”
Daniel looked at his phone.
“I don’t know.”
Rachel raised an eyebrow.
“You don’t know where your business partner is?”
“He resigned two months ago.”
“After the baby was born?”
“Yes.”
I looked at Rachel.
She understood immediately.
A pattern.
A timeline.
Someone disappeared after the damage was done.
“Find him.”
Rachel nodded.
“I will.”
Then my phone rang.
I looked at the screen.
Unknown number.
Everyone became alert.
I answered.
“Hello?”
For a few seconds, nobody spoke.
Then a woman’s voice came through.
“Jennifer.”
My entire body froze.
Because I recognized it.
Chloe.
Daniel immediately stepped forward.
“Let me talk to her.”
I turned away from him.
“No.”
I put the phone closer.
“Why are you calling me?”
A shaky breath came through the line.
“Because I know you hate me.”
I said nothing.
“Because you have every reason to.”
Her voice sounded different.
Not confident.
Not arrogant.
Scared.
“But you need to understand something.”
I looked at Daniel.
Then at Rachel.
“What?”
A pause.
Then Chloe said:
“Daniel was never supposed to find out about the DNA report.”
My heart tightened.
“What does that mean?”
“It means someone gave it to him.”
“Who?”
Silence.
Then:
“I don’t know.”
I almost laughed.
“Convenient.”
“No.”
Her voice became desperate.
“Jennifer, listen to me.”
“I made mistakes.”
“I lied.”
“I hurt you.”
“But I did not create that report.”
Daniel stared at the phone.
I could see anger in his eyes.
But also confusion.
Chloe continued:
“The person who gave Daniel that report wanted him to leave you.”
The words landed heavily.
“Why?”
Another pause.
Then Chloe whispered:
“Because they needed him away from you.”
A cold feeling moved through me.
“Who?”
“I can’t tell you.”
“Why?”
“Because they threatened me.”
Everyone became still.
Rachel immediately motioned for me to keep her talking.
“Chloe.”
My voice remained calm.
“What are you afraid of?”
Her breathing became uneven.
“I thought I was helping myself.”
She paused.
“I thought Daniel was going to choose me.”
Daniel looked down.
The confession hurt him.
Even now.
But I continued listening.
“Then I realized something.”
“What?”
“Daniel wasn’t the target.”
My heart started beating faster.
“Then who was?”
Chloe whispered:
“You.”
The hallway went silent.
I felt cold.
“Me?”
“Yes.”
“Why?”
A long pause.
Then Chloe said:
“Because someone believed if you stayed with Daniel, they would lose everything.”
Rachel stepped closer.
“Chloe, who is this person?”
But Chloe suddenly became silent.
“Chloe?”
No answer.
Then the line went dead.
I lowered the phone slowly.
Daniel looked at me.
“She knows who it is.”
“Yes.”
“Who?”
I looked at him.
“I don’t know.”
Rachel picked up her phone.
“I’m going to trace the call.”
She stepped away.
Daniel remained standing there.
For the first time, we were not enemies.
Not allies.
Something in between.
Two people who had both been manipulated.
But I still couldn’t forgive him.
Not yet.
Maybe not ever.
Then Rachel returned.
Her expression was serious.
“We have a problem.”
I looked at her.
“What?”
“The call location.”
She hesitated.
“Chloe wasn’t calling from her apartment.”
“Where was she?”
Rachel looked directly at Daniel.
“She was calling from outside your old family house.”
Daniel froze.
“What?”
I felt my heart drop.
Because that house belonged to one person.
The person who had always claimed to love me.
The person who had comforted me through everything.
My mother.
Rachel continued:
“And Jennifer…”
She lowered her voice.
“Someone else was there with her.”
My stomach tightened.
“Who?”
Rachel looked at the screen.
Then said:
“The person who arranged the meeting.”
A pause.
“Your mother.”
Everything stopped.
I stared at Daniel.
Then at Rachel.
Then at the phone.
Because the impossible was becoming possible.
My mother.
The woman who raised me.
The woman who promised to protect me.
Had been meeting Chloe in secret.
Again.
May you like
And this time…
I needed answers.
