Chapter 3 - The Secret Woman Beneath the Name
We spent the night in one of Roman’s private properties outside the city.
It was not a mansion.
It was a fortress disguised as one.
Stone walls.
Iron gates.
Security cameras hidden among trees.
A private medical room.
Even a reinforced basement.
Roman said nothing about the danger.
He did not have to.
I saw it everywhere.
Arthur gave me coffee at six in the morning.
“Get some rest,” he said.
“I don’t think I can.”
Arthur looked at me.
“You're stronger than you think.”
“I’m not.”
He smiled faintly.
“Neither was Roman when he was your age.”
“Was he difficult?”
Arthur laughed.
“Impossible.”
For the first time since the boutique, I smiled.
Then Arthur’s expression changed.
“Mrs. Vale.”
“Yes?”
“There’s something you should know.”
I waited.
“Your father kept records.”
“About what?”
“Everything.”
Arthur placed a small black notebook on the table.
My hands trembled as I opened it.
The pages were filled with names, dates, numbers, and symbols.
One phrase appeared again and again.
The Red Ledger.
“What is that?”
Arthur hesitated.
“An accounting system.”
“For what?”
“People.”
I stared at him.
“People?”
“Politicians. Judges. Executives. Police officers. Contractors. Anyone who could be bought.”
The room felt colder.
“My father was tracking corruption.”
“Yes.”
“Then why was he considered a criminal?”
Arthur looked away.
“Because the person controlling the network made sure everyone believed your father was the thief.”
I turned another page.
A name appeared in red ink.
Victor Dane.
Underneath it was another.
Trevor Hale.
My stomach dropped.
“Trevor.”
Arthur nodded.
“He was never a random ex-boyfriend.”
I closed the notebook.
“Why did he target me?”
“Because he thought you knew something.”
“I didn’t.”
“You may have known without realizing it.”
I stared at him.
“How?”
Arthur opened a drawer.
Inside was an old key.
A tiny brass key with a blue enamel mark.
I recognized it immediately.
“My mother had that.”
Arthur's face sharpened.
“Where?”
“In the kitchen drawer.”
“Do you still have it?”
I shook my head.
“After she died, I gave most of her belongings away.”
Arthur cursed under his breath.
Roman entered.
He had changed clothes but looked as though he hadn't slept.
He held a tablet.
“We found Evelyn.”
My heart raced.
“Where?”
“Brooklyn.”
“Let's go.”
Roman frowned.
“No.”
I crossed my arms.
“You just said we found her.”
“I said we found her. I didn't say it was safe to meet her.”
“I am done living in a house where everyone knows things about me except me.”
He stared at me.
“You're right.”
The admission surprised me.
“We go together.”
Arthur drove.
Brooklyn disappeared behind us as we entered an older neighborhood.
The address was a small brownstone.
A woman opened the door.
She was in her late forties.
Short dark hair.
Gray eyes.
The second she saw me, she began crying.
“Oh my God.”
I froze.
She whispered, “Emma.”
That name had not been spoken to me in years.
Only my mother had used it.
My legal name was Sadie Rose Mercer.
But when I was a child, my mother called me Emma.
“Who are you?”
The woman stepped closer.
“Your aunt.”
Roman's expression hardened.
“You're Evelyn?”
“Yes.”
She looked at him.
“You brought him.”
“He is my husband.”
Evelyn stared at Roman for a long moment.
Then she nodded.
“Your father would have trusted him.”
I entered.
The house smelled like old books and cinnamon.
Evelyn locked every door behind us.
“I have waited seventeen years to see you.”
“Why didn't you find me?”
“Because I was trying to keep you alive.”
I laughed bitterly.
“Everyone keeps saying that.”
Evelyn looked at Roman.
“You haven't told her everything.”
“No.”
“Then you should.”
Roman stayed silent.
Evelyn sat down.
“Your father wasn't killed.”
I stopped breathing.
“What?”
“He disappeared willingly.”
“Why?”
“To protect you.”
“From whom?”
“From Victor Dane.”
I stared.
“Who is he?”
Evelyn reached beneath the table.
She pulled out a photograph.
Victor Dane was older than I remembered.
Silver hair.
Cold eyes.
A politician's smile.
“He was your father's business partner.”
“What did he do?”
“He created the Red Ledger.”
I looked at Roman.
“What is the Red Ledger?”
Evelyn continued.
“An illegal network controlling major contracts throughout New York. Construction. Transportation. Private security. Real estate.”
Roman's face was expressionless.
Evelyn looked at him.
“Your family was one of the biggest targets.”
“What does that mean?”
“Victor wanted Vale International.”
I swallowed.
“How?”
“By destroying Roman's father and grandfather through a financial scandal.”
She looked at me.
“Your father discovered the scheme and copied the evidence.”
“And then disappeared.”
“Yes.”
“Where?”
Evelyn smiled sadly.
“He went underground.”
I stared.
“Is he alive?”
She looked at Roman.
“I believe so.”
Roman stepped forward.
“What do you know?”
Evelyn pulled out an envelope.
“He sent this two years ago.”
My name was written on the front.
SADI ROSE MERCER.
My hands shook.
I opened it.
Inside was a single page.
My daughter,
If you are reading this, then the people who wanted me gone have failed to keep the truth buried.
Do not trust anyone who tells you I abandoned you.
I left because someone in our family betrayed us.
And I left because I could not save both you and your mother by staying.
There is one person in New York who knows where I am.
He is closer to you than you think.
My eyes filled with tears.
“Closer than I think?”
Evelyn nodded.
“Your father believed the traitor was someone you would never suspect.”
My mind raced.
Then I looked at Roman.
“Was it you?”
He didn't flinch.
“No.”
“You expect me to trust that?”
“Yes.”
“Why?”
“Because if I wanted to hide the truth, I wouldn't have brought you here.”
Evelyn looked between us.
“He is telling the truth.”
“Then who is the traitor?”
No one answered.
A noise came from upstairs.
We all froze.
Arthur drew his weapon.
Roman pushed me behind him.
Another sound.
A floorboard creaked.
Then a voice called from the second floor.
“Evelyn.”
She went white.
“That’s impossible.”
Roman signaled Arthur.
They moved upstairs.
A minute later, Arthur shouted.
“Clear.”
Roman returned carrying a small box.
“This was under a loose floorboard.”
Evelyn stared at it.
“My father made that box,” she whispered.
Roman opened it.
Inside was an old photograph.
My mother.
My father.
Evelyn.
And a fourth person.
A woman.
I recognized her.
My breath caught.
“Chloe.”
Roman looked at me.
“No.”
I pointed.
“The woman in the photograph is Chloe.”
Evelyn stared.
“She changed her name.”
“Who is she?”
Evelyn whispered a name.
“Charlotte Dane.”
Trevor’s fiancée.
Victor Dane's daughter.
I felt sick.
“But why would she be there with my parents?”
Evelyn took the photograph.
“Because Victor Dane was married to your father's sister.”
My eyes widened.
“Chloe is my cousin?”
“Yes.”
I sat down.
Everything became impossible.
The woman who had watched Trevor humiliate me was related to me.
The ex-boyfriend who had abandoned me worked for my family's enemy.
And my father might still be alive.
Roman knelt beside me.
“Look at me.”
I did.
“I won't let them take you.”
“What if they already have?”
His expression changed.
“What do you mean?”
I pointed to the letter.
“My father said the traitor was someone I would never suspect.”
Roman looked at the words.
Then his eyes darkened.
He reached for the letter.
On the back was a handwritten symbol.
Roman stared at it for several seconds.
“What?”
He whispered, “I know this mark.”
“From where?”
“My mother's files.”
Evelyn leaned forward.
“What is it?”
Roman looked at me.
“The symbol was used by the person who ordered my father’s death.”
I stared.
“Who?”
May you like
Roman's voice became dangerously quiet.
“Someone inside the Vale family.”
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