CHAPTER 5-ISABELLA’S REAL PLAN
The moment Richard Thorne disappeared behind the hospital doors, the entire room felt different.
Not safer.
Not calmer.
Different.
Like the air itself had changed.
Because everyone understood one thing.
Richard had not returned because he missed his son.
He had not returned because he regretted his actions.
He had returned because something bigger was happening.
Something that involved Marcus.
Something that involved Khloe.
Something that involved the child she was carrying.
Khloe stood beside the hospital bed, staring at the empty doorway.
For years, people had told her that wealth created comfort.
Security.
Protection.
A perfect life.
But standing there…
After being attacked inside a private hospital suite…
After discovering her husband had hidden a six-year-old secret…
After meeting a man who had faked his own death…
She finally understood.
Money did not remove danger.
Sometimes…
It attracted it.
“Khloe.”
Marcus’s voice was quiet.
She didn’t turn around.
Because she was afraid of what she would see.
The husband she loved.
Or the stranger who had kept secrets from her.
“Don’t.”
Marcus stopped.
“I know you’re angry.”
She slowly turned.
“Angry?”
Her eyes were filled with disbelief.
“Marcus, I was pushed to the ground while carrying your child.”
“You watched another woman lie about attacking me.”
“Then I found out you have been hiding an entire part of your life.”
She took a breath.
“And you think I’m just angry?”
Marcus looked down.
“You’re right.”
That answer surprised her.
Because she expected an explanation.
An excuse.
A defense.
But he didn’t give one.
He accepted it.
“I should have told you.”
“Yes.”
Khloe’s voice softened slightly.
“You should have.”
A painful silence followed.
Then Marcus looked at Isabella.
The woman who had started everything.
“Now it’s your turn.”
Isabella looked at him.
“Mine?”
“Yes.”
He stepped closer.
“Why did you attack my wife?”
For the first time since entering the room…
Isabella looked tired.
Not weak.
Not defeated.
Just tired.
“I didn’t attack her because I wanted your life.”
Khloe watched her carefully.
“Then why?”
Isabella looked at the floor.
“Because I knew Richard was coming back.”
Everyone froze.
Marcus stared.
“You knew?”
“Yes.”
“How?”
Isabella laughed softly.
A bitter laugh.
“Because I’m the reason he came back.”
The room became silent.
Khloe frowned.
“What does that mean?”
Isabella looked at her.
“Six years ago, Sofia disappeared.”
“I spent years searching for answers.”
“I found pieces.”
“Small pieces.”
“Enough to understand that Richard Thorne was not dead.”
Marcus’s expression changed.
“You knew my father was alive?”
“I suspected.”
“You suspected?”
Isabella looked at him.
“You have no idea how powerful your father was.”
“He didn’t disappear.”
“He relocated.”
“He built another life.”
Marcus shook his head.
“That’s impossible.”
“No.”
Isabella replied.
“That is exactly what men like Richard do.”
Khloe noticed something.
Isabella was no longer speaking like an enemy.
She was speaking like someone who had been fighting alone for years.
“Then why pretend to be my friend?”
Khloe asked.
Isabella looked at her.
The question clearly hurt.
“Because I needed to get close.”
“To Marcus?”
Isabella nodded.
“But not for the reason you think.”
Marcus’s eyes narrowed.
“Explain.”
Isabella took a deep breath.
“When Sofia disappeared, she left one message.”
Marcus immediately reacted.
“The same message?”
Isabella nodded.
“Yes.”
“Protect my child.”
Khloe looked between them.
“But Richard said the child was connected to me.”
Isabella shook her head.
“Richard lies.”
“About everything.”
She looked at Marcus.
“He wants you to believe the child is the key because he wants control.”
Marcus became silent.
Khloe asked:
“Then what is the truth?”
Isabella looked at her.
“The truth is…”
She paused.
“Sofia never had a child.”
Nobody moved.
Marcus frowned.
“But Richard said—”
“He lied.”
Isabella interrupted.
“Sofia used the word ‘child’ differently.”
Khloe looked confused.
“What does that mean?”
Isabella walked toward the table.
She picked up the old paper Richard had left behind.
“She was not talking about a baby.”
“She was talking about her discovery.”
Marcus stared.
“The evidence.”
“Yes.”
Isabella nodded.
“Sofia called her research her child.”
“She said it was the only thing she created that could survive after she was gone.”
A silence.
Khloe felt her heartbeat slow.
Because the story was changing again.
The baby.
The secret.
The attack.
Everything.
Maybe none of them had understood.
Marcus looked at Isabella.
“Why didn’t you tell me?”
Her expression changed.
“Because I didn’t know if I could trust you.”
Those words hurt him.
“You thought I was like my father?”
“No.”
Isabella looked away.
“I thought you were worse.”
Marcus froze.
“Worse?”
“Yes.”
“Because Richard destroyed people because he wanted power.”
“But you…”
She looked at him.
“You destroyed Sofia because you wanted to believe the person you loved.”
Marcus said nothing.
Because he knew.
That was the truth.
He had not acted out of greed.
He had acted out of fear.
Fear of losing his family.
Fear of betraying his father.
Fear of believing the wrong person.
And Sofia paid the price.
Khloe looked at Marcus.
She saw the pain.
Real pain.
But pain did not erase betrayal.
“Where is Sofia now?”
She asked.
The question changed Isabella’s expression.
“She is alive.”
Marcus stopped breathing.
“What?”
Isabella nodded.
“I found her.”
“When?”
“Three months ago.”
“And you said nothing?”
Isabella looked at him.
“Because she made me promise.”
Marcus stepped forward.
“Where is she?”
Isabella hesitated.
Then said:
“She is hiding.”
“From who?”
Isabella looked at the hospital window.
“Everyone.”
A cold feeling moved through the room.
“Richard.”
Isabella nodded.
“The Thorne family.”
“The Rossi family.”
“Everyone who wants what Sofia knows.”
Khloe touched her stomach.
“And why did you attack me?”
That was the question everyone had been waiting for.
Isabella closed her eyes.
“I made a mistake.”
Marcus looked shocked.
“You attacked my wife and now you say it was a mistake?”
“No.”
Isabella looked at him.
“I mean I made a mistake believing fear would protect us.”
She turned to Khloe.
“When I learned Richard was returning…”
“I knew he would come after the evidence.”
“And I believed the only way to stop him was to make everyone focus on me.”
Khloe stared.
“That doesn’t make sense.”
“I needed Marcus to look at the past.”
“Not because of jealousy.”
“Because I needed him to remember what his father did.”
Marcus frowned.
“But you could have told me.”
“I tried.”
Isabella’s voice cracked.
“Several times.”
“You never listened.”
That sentence hit harder than expected.
Because Marcus knew.
There had been moments.
Emails he ignored.
Messages he dismissed.
Warnings he considered threats.
He had spent years running from the past.
And now the past had come back.
With a vengeance.
Then suddenly…
The hospital alarm sounded.
Everyone turned.
A nurse ran into the room.
“Mr. Thorne.”
Marcus looked at her.
“What happened?”
Her face was pale.
“The maternity wing security system just went offline.”
Khloe immediately touched her stomach.
“What?”
The nurse continued.
“And someone accessed the emergency patient files.”
Marcus’s expression changed.
“Who?”
The nurse looked at the tablet in her hand.
“The access code belongs to…”
She hesitated.
Marcus stepped closer.
“Say it.”
The nurse swallowed.
“It belongs to Mrs. Khloe Thorne.”
Nobody spoke.
Because that was impossible.
Khloe had never touched the system.
She had been inside this room the entire time.
Marcus looked at Isabella.
Then at Alexander.
Then at Khloe.
Someone had used her identity.
Someone had entered the hospital.
Someone was searching for something.
And then Marcus’s phone received a message.
Unknown number.
One sentence.
“If you want your wife and your child alive, stop looking for Sofia Bellini.”
Marcus’s face turned cold.
Khloe saw it.
“What does it say?”
Marcus locked the phone.
But it was too late.
She had already seen his expression.
And she knew.
The war had just begun.
Because whoever was behind everything…
May you like
Was no longer hiding.
They were coming directly for her.
