Chapter 6: The Daughter No One Was Allowed to Name
Alejandro seized the photograph.
“Explain.””
The woman flinched but did not retreat.
“My name is Clara Bennett. Arthur Bennett was my father.””
Daniel stepped between them.
“Why should we believe you?””
Clara's eyes flashed.
“Because I helped your family hide a woman who was terrified of being murdered, and because my father is missing. If I wanted you dead, I wouldn't have walked into a chapel with a photograph.””
Alejandro looked down at the image again.
Sebastián stood beside Elena beneath a flowering tree. Elena's hand rested on the shoulder of a little girl with dark curls.
The child looked older than Valentina.
Much older.
“How old is she?”” Alejandro asked.
“Five.””
“That's impossible.””
“Not if you understand what happened.””
Alejandro's voice hardened.
“Then help me understand.””
Clara glanced at the sealed coffin.
“Not here.””
“Why?””
“Because someone is listening.””
A faint metallic click sounded above them.
Daniel raised his weapon.
“Move!””
A flash of light cut across the staircase.
Then the chapel's basement door slammed shut.
They heard footsteps overhead.
Someone was locking them in.
Daniel rushed to the stairs, but the door would not budge.
“It's been barred from the outside.””
Alejandro turned toward Clara.
“Is this what you meant?””
She nodded grimly.
“They know we've found the chamber.””
“Who?””
“The people who have been controlling your family since before you were born.””
A muffled thud echoed above them.
Then came the unmistakable sound of gasoline being poured across the chapel floor.
Clara's face went white.
“They're going to burn it.””
Daniel fired two shots into the lock, but the metal only dented.
Smoke began slipping beneath the door.
Alejandro scanned the chamber.
There had to be another exit.
He remembered the chapel's original design. His mother had once shown him a narrow passage used by priests to reach the gardens without disturbing the congregation.
He rushed toward the wall behind the altar.
“Help me move these stones!””
Daniel joined him.
Together, they shoved aside a heavy wooden panel concealed beneath a layer of dust.
Behind it lay a narrow tunnel.
Clara crawled inside first.
Daniel followed.
Alejandro was about to enter when he noticed a small metal box wedged beside the coffin.
He pulled it free.
The box was warm from the nearby lantern.
Inside lay a silver bracelet, a folded letter, and a tiny hospital identification band.
The band carried a name.
Baby Girl Villaseñor — Twin A.
Alejandro's breath caught.
Twin A.
He stuffed the items into his jacket and entered the tunnel just as flames began licking beneath the door.
They emerged behind a crumbling stone wall near the chapel garden.
The night air hit Alejandro's lungs.
He bent forward, coughing.
Daniel checked the road.
“Two vehicles. Both heading toward the highway.””
“Did you see their plates?””
“Partial numbers.””
Alejandro straightened.
“Get them identified.””
Clara caught his arm.
“You need to leave this place.””
“Not until you tell me about the twins.””
Her face tightened.
“Your daughter was born at Saint Catherine's. Elena delivered twins.””
Alejandro stared at her.
“No.””
“Your family only acknowledged one child.””
“Valentina is three.””
“The other girl was born minutes later. Her name was Camila.””
Alejandro felt as if the ground had opened beneath him.
“Where is she?””
Clara shook her head.
“I don't know. She was taken from Elena immediately after birth.””
“By whom?””
“Your father authorized it.””
Alejandro grabbed her shoulders.
“Why?””
“Because the second child wasn't supposed to exist.””
Daniel stepped forward.
“That's absurd. Why would anyone hide a child from her own father?””
Clara looked at him.
“Because the child's bloodline could destroy the Villaseñor empire.””
Alejandro released her.
“Explain that.””
Clara opened her bag and produced a thick envelope.
Inside were photocopies of birth records, medical reports, and a legal document bearing Alejandro's signature.
He recognized the signature instantly.
It was the same forged authorization he had seen on Elena's transfer record.
The document declared that Elena had delivered one stillborn child and one healthy daughter.
Only Valentina's name appeared.
Camila's birth had been erased.
Alejandro read the document again.
“This is forged.””
“Yes,” Clara said.
“But it was used to transfer the second baby to another family.””
“What family?””
Clara looked toward the ocean.
“The Varelas.””
Alejandro went still.
“Isabella's family?””
Clara nodded.
“Her father arranged the adoption. The child was raised under a different name.””
Alejandro remembered Isabella's confession.
I knew Elena was pregnant.
She had known about Valentina.
But had she known about Camila?
“Who is Camila now?”” he asked.
Clara hesitated.
“Before I answer, you need to understand why Sebastián became involved.””
Alejandro's jaw tightened.
“Tell me.””
“Your brother discovered the adoption records four years ago. He confronted your father, and they argued. That night, Sebastián's boat was found drifting offshore.””
“The accident.””
“There was no accident. He escaped through a service tunnel beneath the harbor and was taken to a safe house. Your father announced his death to keep him from exposing the family.””
Alejandro closed his eyes.
His brother had been alive while Alejandro attended a funeral.
Alive while Alejandro mourned him.
Alive while Elena disappeared.
“Why didn't he contact me?””
“Because he believed you were involved.””
Alejandro opened his eyes.
“What?””
“Your father showed him a document bearing your signature. It authorized Elena's confinement and the transfer of her daughter.””
“I never signed it.””
“I know that now. Sebastián didn't.””
Clara's voice softened.
“He tried to contact you once. Someone intercepted the message. After that, he believed you had chosen your father's side.””
Alejandro looked toward the blackened chapel.
His family had spent years turning the people he loved against him.
His father had hidden Elena.
His brother had vanished.
His daughter had been raised without him.
And now another child might be living under a false identity.
“Where is Sebastián?”” Alejandro asked.
Clara shook her head.
“He contacted me two days ago. He said he was going to retrieve Camila.””
“From the Varelas?””
“Yes.””
“Did he succeed?””
“I don't know.””
Alejandro turned toward Daniel.
“Find Isabella's father. I want every adoption record, every hospital payment, and every property owned by the Varela family.””
Daniel nodded.
Clara caught Alejandro's sleeve.
“There's one more thing.””
He looked at her.
“The silver bracelet you found in the chamber belonged to Camila. Elena made two identical bracelets for the twins.””
Alejandro reached into his jacket and pulled out the bracelet.
One small heart charm.
One scratched silver chain.
It was almost identical to Valentina's.
“Why was it in the coffin?””
Clara's eyes filled with tears.
“Because the person who took Camila wanted Elena to believe her daughter was dead.””
Alejandro's blood ran cold.
“Was she?””
“No.””
Clara's answer came immediately.
“Camila was alive when I last saw her.””
“When?””
“Three weeks ago.””
Alejandro's knees nearly gave way.
“Where?””
Clara looked down.
“At the Varela estate.””
For a moment, the world stopped.
Then Alejandro's phone rang.
The number was unknown.
He answered.
A little girl's voice came through the speaker.
“Hello?””
Alejandro froze.
“Who is this?””
“My name is Camila.””
His heart hammered against his ribs.
“Camila, sweetheart, where are you?””
“I don't know. They told me not to talk to strangers.””
“That's okay. You're doing very well. Can you tell me who is with you?””
The child sniffled.
“A lady named Isabella.””
Alejandro stopped breathing.
“Isabella is there with you?””
“Yes. She said I have to call her Mommy now.””
A sharp sound came through the phone.
Someone had taken it from the child.
Then Isabella's voice filled the line.
“Alejandro, I suggest you stop searching.””
His hand tightened around the phone.
“Where is my daughter?””
A cold laugh.
“Which one?””
Alejandro felt every muscle in his body lock.
Isabella continued.
“You should have married me when you had the chance. Now, if you want either child to survive, you'll do exactly as I say.””
“Tell me what you want.””
“Bring me the original birth records from the chapel. Come alone.””
“And if I refuse?””
There was a pause.
Then came the sound of a child crying.
“Daddy?”” Valentina's voice whispered.
Alejandro's blood turned to ice.
Isabella had taken his daughter.
And she had both girls now.
“Listen carefully,” Isabella said.
“You have one hour.””
The call ended.
Alejandro stared at the phone.
Daniel immediately reached for his weapon.
“Sir, we need to call the police.””
“No.””
“She's threatening your children!””
“And if we alert the police, she may disappear with them.””
Clara stepped closer.
“I know where the Varela estate is. There's an underground garage and a service entrance behind the greenhouse.””
Alejandro looked at her.
“Can you get us inside?””
“Yes.””
He slipped the birth records into his jacket.
Then he looked toward the road, where the headlights of a black vehicle had just appeared beyond the trees.
Someone was watching them.
Someone who knew exactly where they were going.
Alejandro's voice hardened.
“Then let's bring my daughters home.””
But as they approached the SUV, his phone vibrated again.
A message had arrived from an unknown number.
It contained a photograph of Elena, standing in a dimly lit room with a bruise across her cheek.
May you like
Beneath it were six words.
*Come alone, or Elena dies tonight.*
