CHAPTER 10 — THE MAN WHO WAS SUPPOSED TO BE DEAD
For several seconds, Nathan couldn't speak.
The birth certificate lay on the table between him and Charles Whitmore.
The paper was old.
Yellowed.
The edges were burned.
But the name beneath FATHER was unmistakable.
Nathan Miller.
The name beneath it was something else.
Thomas Miller.
Nathan stared.
His biological father.
The man everyone had told him was dead.
The man Grace had spent twenty years believing she had lost.
The man whose disappearance had triggered the entire war between the Miller and Cole families.
Nathan slowly lifted his eyes.
“You said my father is alive.”
Charles smiled.
“I said your real father is alive.”
Grace stepped forward.
“Thomas?”
Charles looked at her.
“You remember him.”
Grace's face went pale.
“Where is he?”
Charles ignored her.
Nathan's voice hardened.
“Where is my father?”
“That's the wrong question.”
Nathan stepped closer.
“What is the right one?”
Charles looked toward Noah and Lily.
“Ask yourself why he stayed hidden.”
Grace shook her head.
“You're lying.”
Charles smiled.
“Am I?”
He placed another document on the table.
A photograph slid out.
Grace stared at it.
Her knees nearly buckled.
It showed Thomas Miller.
Alive.
Older.
His hair gray.
His face scarred.
But unmistakably him.
And he was standing beside someone else.
Nathan's blood turned cold.
Richard Cole.
His father.
Both men were alive in the same photograph.
Taken only three months earlier.
Grace covered her mouth.
“No…”
Nathan grabbed the photograph.
“When was this taken?”
“Three months ago.”
“Where?”
Charles smiled.
“Zurich.”
Nathan's eyes narrowed.
“My father is in Zurich?”
“He was.”
“Where is he now?”
Charles leaned closer.
“Closer than you think.”
A noise came from behind Nathan.
Noah.
The little boy had gone completely still.
He was staring at the photograph.
Nathan noticed.
“You know him?”
Noah didn't answer.
He pointed at Thomas.
“He came to see me.”
Everyone froze.
Grace turned toward her son.
“When?”
“Before Mommy found me.”
Grace's face drained of color.
“What did he say?”
Noah looked frightened.
“He said…”
The boy hesitated.
Nathan crouched in front of him.
“What did he say?”
Noah whispered:
“Daddy isn't Daddy.”
Nathan's heart stopped.
“What?”
“He said you were my brother.”
Silence.
Nathan slowly stood.
Charles smiled.
“That is the problem with secrets.”
Nathan stared at him.
“You're saying Thomas told Noah I'm not his father?”
“I am saying Thomas knew the truth.”
“What truth?”
Charles looked at Grace.
“Ask her.”
Nathan turned.
Grace shook her head.
“I don't know.”
Charles laughed softly.
“You still don't remember?”
Grace's eyes narrowed.
“Remember what?”
“The night Thomas disappeared.”
Grace's expression changed.
She stepped backward.
A fragment of memory surfaced.
Rain.
A red door.
A man's hand.
A child crying.
A woman screaming.
Grace pressed her fingers against her temple.
“No…”
Nathan caught her.
“What is it?”
“I don't know.”
Charles watched her.
“You were there.”
Grace looked at him.
“You're lying.”
“You saw Thomas the night he disappeared.”
“No.”
“You were twelve.”
Grace's breathing became rapid.
“You're lying.”
Charles leaned closer.
“You saw who betrayed him.”
Grace's eyes filled with tears.
“Stop.”
“You saw your mother hand him over.”
Grace screamed.
“STOP!”
Nathan turned toward Charles.
“Enough.”
Charles smiled.
“Then let's talk about your mother.”
Grace froze.
“What about her?”
Charles reached into his coat.
He pulled out an old cassette.
“This belongs to you.”
Grace stared.
“I've never seen that.”
“You will.”
He placed it on the table.
Then stepped backward.
Nathan immediately raised his weapon.
“Don't move.”
Charles smiled.
“You won't shoot me.”
“Try me.”
Charles looked at Noah.
Then Lily.
“You have more important things to protect.”
Nathan's finger tightened.
Charles turned toward the door.
“Midnight.”
Nathan frowned.
“What happens at midnight?”
Charles stopped.
“The trust expires.”
Nathan's face changed.
“What?”
“Unless the biological father signs the succession agreement.”
Nathan stared.
“You said my father was alive.”
“Yes.”
“Then bring him.”
Charles smiled.
“He'll come.”
The door opened.
Before leaving, Charles looked back.
“And Nathan?”
“What?”
“Don't trust the man who claims to be your father.”
Then he disappeared.
The room remained silent.
Grace was the first to speak.
“Play the tape.”
Nathan looked at her.
“Are you sure?”
“No.”
She swallowed.
“But I need to know.”
Daniel found an old player.
Nathan inserted the cassette.
Static filled the room.
Then a woman's voice.
Eleanor.
Nathan's mother.
His heart tightened.
“If you're hearing this, Nathan, then the truth has already found you.”
Grace closed her eyes.
Eleanor continued.
“I failed to protect Thomas.”
Static.
“I failed to protect you.”
A pause.
“And I failed to protect the children.”
Nathan looked at Grace.
Children.
Plural.
Eleanor continued.
“Richard believes Nathan is his son.”
Nathan's breathing stopped.
“He is not.”
Grace covered her mouth.
Nathan stared at the player.
Eleanor's voice trembled.
“Nathan was born a Miller. I took him from the hospital because Thomas discovered Richard's plan.”
“What plan?” Nathan whispered.
The tape continued.
“Richard wanted control of the Miller trust.”
“He needed Nathan.”
“He needed a biological heir he could legally present as his own.”
Nathan's face went pale.
“But Thomas refused.”
“He threatened to expose Richard.”
“That's when Richard arranged the accident.”
Grace whispered,
“Thomas survived.”
“Yes.”
Eleanor continued.
“But Richard didn't know.”
Nathan looked at Grace.
“He survived.”
Grace began crying.
The recording continued.
“Thomas escaped.”
“He disappeared because he believed Richard would kill Nathan if he stayed.”
Nathan's fists tightened.
His entire childhood had been built on a lie.
But the tape wasn't finished.
Eleanor's voice became quieter.
“There is something else.”
Static.
“The children.”
Nathan froze.
“Lily and Noah were never supposed to be separated.”
Grace began shaking.
Eleanor continued.
“Someone changed the hospital records.”
“The twins were born healthy.”
“But before Grace woke…”
A pause.
“One child was taken.”
Nathan stared.
“Noah.”
Grace nodded.
Eleanor continued.
“I believe the person responsible is…”
The tape crackled.
The voice distorted.
Nathan leaned closer.
“…Richard.”
The recording stopped.
Silence.
Nathan looked at Daniel.
“That's it?”
Daniel checked the tape.
“There's more.”
He rewound it.
The last few seconds played again.
Static.
Then a faint voice.
Not Eleanor.
A man.
Nathan froze.
The voice whispered:
“Eleanor… don't trust Thomas.”
Nathan stared.
The tape clicked.
Then silence.
Grace looked at him.
“Who was that?”
Nathan didn't answer.
Because he recognized the voice.
Richard.
His father.
The next morning, Nathan received a message.
No number.
No name.
Only coordinates.
And one sentence.
COME ALONE IF YOU WANT THE TRUTH ABOUT YOUR FATHER.
Nathan showed Daniel.
Daniel immediately shook his head.
“It's a trap.”
“I know.”
“You're still going.”
“Yes.”
Grace stepped forward.
“I'll come.”
“No.”
“You don't get to decide that anymore.”
Nathan looked at her.
“Grace—”
“They've taken enough from me.”
Her voice trembled.
“They took my daughter.”
“They took my son.”
“They took twenty years of my life.”
She stepped closer.
“I'm not hiding again.”
Nathan stared at her.
Then nodded.
“Okay.”
Daniel sighed.
“I'll follow from a distance.”
Nathan nodded.
The coordinates led them to an abandoned railway station outside the city.
Snow covered the tracks.
No trains had passed in years.
Nathan entered first.
Grace followed.
A figure stood at the far end of the platform.
An older man.
Gray hair.
Long coat.
He turned.
Grace stopped breathing.
“Thomas?”
The man looked at her.
“Grace.”
She ran.
Thomas caught her.
She sobbed against his chest.
“You're alive.”
Thomas closed his eyes.
“I tried to come back.”
“You left me.”
“I know.”
“You let me believe you were dead.”
“I had to.”
“For twenty years?”
“Yes.”
Grace pulled away.
“Why?”
Thomas looked at Nathan.
“Because of him.”
Nathan stared.
“My father?”
Thomas shook his head.
“Your father was afraid.”
Nathan frowned.
“Of what?”
“Of the man who actually controlled Richard.”
Nathan's expression hardened.
“The Trustee.”
Thomas nodded.
“He's older than the Cole family.”
“How?”
“He existed before the trust.”
Nathan stared.
“Who is he?”
Thomas looked toward the tracks.
“His name is Adrian Vale.”
Grace's face changed.
“Vale?”
Thomas nodded.
“The Vale family created the original Miller trust.”
Nathan stepped forward.
“Why?”
“To protect the Miller fortune from a corporate takeover.”
“And Adrian?”
“He was appointed trustee.”
Nathan's eyes narrowed.
“So why is he trying to destroy us?”
Thomas looked at him.
“Because the trust contains more than money.”
“What?”
“Land.”
“Company ownership?”
“No.”
Thomas lowered his voice.
“Political power.”
Nathan froze.
Thomas continued.
“Twenty-four years ago, the Miller family discovered that several powerful people had secretly purchased influence over government contracts.”
Nathan stared.
“And the trust held the evidence.”
“Yes.”
“Evidence of corruption.”
“Enough to destroy half the people who built this city.”
Nathan understood.
The empire wasn't just an empire.
It was a vault.
A vault containing secrets.
And whoever controlled the heirs controlled the vault.
Thomas looked at Grace.
“Your mother discovered it.”
Grace's eyes widened.
“She knew?”
“Yes.”
“She tried to protect me.”
“She tried to expose them.”
“What happened?”
Thomas's expression darkened.
“She was killed.”
Grace began crying.
“By whom?”
Thomas hesitated.
Then whispered:
“Richard.”
Nathan froze.
“My father killed her?”
“No.”
Thomas looked at him.
“Richard didn't kill her.”
“Then who?”
Thomas said:
“Evelyn.”
Grace's face went white.
“But you said Richard was involved.”
“He was.”
Nathan stared.
“How?”
“He helped cover it up.”
Nathan clenched his fists.
Thomas continued.
“Your mother was carrying something.”
“What?”
“A ledger.”
Nathan frowned.
“Where is it?”
Thomas looked toward him.
“You already have it.”
Nathan's eyes widened.
“The red archive.”
Thomas nodded.
“No.”
Nathan looked confused.
“Then where?”
Thomas smiled sadly.
“Inside your mother's piano.”
Grace froze.
“The piano?”
“Yes.”
“The old piano in the mansion?”
Thomas nodded.
“There's a hidden compartment.”
Nathan's phone suddenly rang.
Daniel.
Nathan answered.
“Daniel?”
His voice was urgent.
“Nathan, come back immediately.”
“What happened?”
“Victoria is gone.”
Nathan's expression hardened.
“Where?”
“Her room was empty.”
“Did she escape?”
“No.”
Daniel hesitated.
“Someone took her.”
Nathan's heart tightened.
“Who?”
“We found blood.”
Grace stepped closer.
“Whose?”
Daniel's voice dropped.
“Victoria's.”
Nathan looked at Thomas.
Thomas's face changed.
“Adrian.”
Nathan froze.
Thomas whispered:
“He's started eliminating the witnesses.”
They returned to the mansion.
The security system had been disabled.
Victoria's room was destroyed.
Blood covered the carpet.
But there was no body.
Daniel found something under the bed.
A silver necklace.
Nathan recognized it.
Victoria always wore it.
Grace picked it up.
“There is something inside.”
Nathan opened the pendant.
A tiny memory card.
Daniel inserted it into the computer.
A video appeared.
Victoria was sitting somewhere dark.
Her face was bruised.
Her voice barely audible.
“If you're watching this, I'm probably dead.”
Nathan froze.
Victoria looked directly into the camera.
“I know I don't deserve your forgiveness.”
She swallowed.
“But there is one thing you need to know.”
A pause.
“Your father didn't steal you.”
Nathan stared.
“He didn't replace you.”
Grace leaned closer.
Victoria continued.
“He protected you.”
Nathan's face changed.
“From whom?”
Victoria looked terrified.
“From the real Nathan Miller.”
Silence.
Nathan's heart stopped.
“What?”
Victoria continued.
“There was another child.”
“Another Nathan.”
“The boy your father claimed was dead.”
Grace whispered,
“No.”
Victoria's eyes filled with tears.
“He survived.”
Nathan stared at the screen.
“Where is he?”
Victoria looked behind her.
Someone was approaching.
She whispered:
“He is the man you call Samuel.”
The video cut to black.
Nathan stood motionless.
Samuel.
The mysterious man.
The man who had protected Lily.
The man everyone called Grace's brother.
The man who claimed to be an heir.
But now Nathan knew.
Samuel had another identity.
Another name.
Another life.
And if Victoria was telling the truth—
then Nathan wasn't the only stolen child.
There had been two boys.
Two Nathans.
One raised as a Cole.
One hidden as Samuel.
And somewhere between them was a secret powerful enough to destroy the entire empire.
Then the mansion lights suddenly went out.
A child's scream echoed from upstairs.
“Daddy!”
Nathan ran.
Grace followed.
The scream came from Lily's room.
The door burst open.
Lily was standing alone.
Noah was gone.
Nathan rushed toward her.
“Where's your brother?”
Lily pointed toward the window.
“He went with the man.”
“What man?”
Lily began crying.
“The man who looks like Daddy.”
Nathan froze.
Grace stared at him.
A man who looked like Nathan.
The second Nathan.
Samuel.
But then Lily whispered:
“He said his name was…”
She stopped.
Nathan crouched.
“What was his name?”
Lily looked into his eyes.
“Richard.”
Nathan's blood ran cold.
His father's name.
A dead man's name.
A stolen identity.
A missing boy.
And a child who had just vanished.
Nathan looked toward the window.
Fresh footprints disappeared into the snow.
Beside them lay a single black glove.
Nathan picked it up.
Inside was a photograph.
It showed Richard Cole.
But the photograph had been taken yesterday.
On the back were four words:
HE NEVER DIED.
Nathan stared at the image.
And for the first time, he understood.
The man controlling everything had never been hiding behind the family.
He had been pretending to be dead.
May you like
And now he had taken Noah.
The one child who could expose him.
