Chapter 12: The Brother Who Stole My Life
I didn't sleep that night.
The photograph of Thomas Cole sat on the table in front of me.
Every time I looked at it, I saw my own face.
The same dark eyes.
The same jawline.
Even the small scar above the left eyebrow.
I had received that scar when I fell off my bicycle at nine.
Thomas had it too.
Daniel paced near the window.
“Richard has been hiding him for years.””
I stared at the photograph.
“Why would he?””
“Because Thomas was raised to believe he was the rightful heir to Hayes International.””
“But he's Richard's son.””
“Biologically, yes. But if the original records were altered, he may have been given your identity.””
I rubbed my forehead.
“This is insane.””
Daniel stopped pacing.
“Marcus, listen. Richard didn't just want the company. He wanted the family inheritance.””
I looked up.
“And Thomas?””
“He was supposed to take your place.””
A knock sounded at the front door.
Daniel reached for the security monitor.
His face changed.
“It's him.””
I stood.
“Who?””
“Thomas.””
I walked toward the entrance.
Daniel grabbed my arm.
“Don't open it.””
“I'm not hiding from a man who looks like me.””
I opened the door.
Thomas stood outside wearing a dark overcoat.
For a moment, it felt like looking into a mirror.
Then he smiled.
“Hello, brother.””
I stepped aside.
“Come in.””
He walked into the house as if he owned it.
His eyes moved across the hallway.
“Still smells the same.””
“Have you been here before?””
“Many times.””
I frowned.
“When?””
“When Richard brought me here as a child.””
I stared.
“You knew my father?””
Thomas laughed.
“I knew Robert Hayes better than you did.””
Daniel moved between us.
“Don't provoke him.””
Thomas glanced at Daniel.
“There's the forgotten son.””
Daniel's jaw tightened.
“Watch your mouth.””
Thomas removed his gloves.
“Still pretending you're part of this family?””
I stepped forward.
“Enough. Why are you here?””
Thomas looked directly at me.
“Because Richard wants his company back.””
“It's not his company.””
“It should have been mine.””
“You were never part of the Hayes family.””
Thomas smiled.
“That's where you're wrong.””
He removed a document from his coat.
It was an old hospital record.
“Your father knew about the identity switch. He approved it.””
I took the paper.
The signature looked genuine.
Robert Hayes.
My father's signature.
Thomas continued.
“He agreed to let me grow up under the Hayes name. He promised I would inherit the company.””
I shook my head.
“My father would never do that.””
“He did.””
“Why?””
Thomas leaned closer.
“Because he believed you were too weak to run it.””
I stared at him.
Daniel grabbed the document.
“That's a lie.””
Thomas shrugged.
“Believe whatever you want.””
He walked toward the fireplace.
“Richard told me everything. Robert discovered the original hospital records years ago. He knew the wrong child had been raised as Marcus. But by then, changing everything would have destroyed the family.””
I felt something cold settle in my chest.
“Why didn't he tell me?””
“Because he was protecting you.””
Thomas turned.
“And because he was afraid of what would happen when you learned who your real mother was.””
I froze.
“My real mother?””
Thomas smiled.
“Elizabeth Hayes wasn't your biological mother.””
The room went silent.
I stared at him.
“That's impossible.””
He pulled another document from his coat.
A genetic report.
“This is the truth.””
I looked at the page.
The report showed a comparison between my DNA and an unknown female sample.
The result was clear.
Elizabeth Hayes was not my biological mother.
I stepped backward.
“Then who is?””
Thomas looked toward Daniel.
“Ask your father.””
“Richard?””
Thomas nodded.
“Richard knows.””
Daniel grabbed him by the collar.
“Stop playing games!””
Thomas calmly removed Daniel's hand.
“Your father is waiting for you both.””
I looked at him.
“Where?””
“An old property outside the city.””
“Why should we go?””
“Because he's willing to explain everything.””
“And if we refuse?””
Thomas smiled.
“Then the police will receive evidence that Daniel murdered James Bennett.””
Daniel went pale.
“What?””
Thomas placed a small memory card on the table.
“Security footage. Your fingerprints. Your photograph entering the clinic.””
Daniel shook his head.
“I never touched James.””
“Perhaps. But the footage will say otherwise.””
I stepped forward.
“You're framing him.””
Thomas shrugged.
“That's how these things work.””
I looked at Daniel.
He was furious, but something else was visible in his eyes.
Fear.
I picked up the memory card.
“Tell Richard we'll come.””
Daniel turned sharply.
“Marcus, no.””
“We need answers.””
“We can get them another way.””
“And let them destroy you?””
Thomas smiled.
“Excellent. Tomorrow morning.””
He headed toward the door.
Before leaving, he stopped beside me.
“One more thing.””
I looked at him.
“Your wedding was supposed to be the beginning of your new life.””
He smiled.
“Instead, it became the end of your old one.””
Then he walked out.
The moment the door closed, Daniel turned toward me.
“You can't trust him.””
“I know.””
“Then why agree?””
“Because he thinks I'm desperate.””
Daniel frowned.
“Aren't you?””
I looked at the photograph of my father.
“No. I'm angry.””
We spent the next hour examining the documents.
Margaret arrived with additional files.
She studied the genetic report and shook her head.
“This is fabricated.””
I looked up.
“How can you tell?””
“The laboratory listed here closed six years ago. The reference number belongs to a completely different patient.””
I felt my anger rise.
“So Thomas lied.””
“About this, certainly.””
Daniel leaned against the desk.
“Then why is he so confident?””
Margaret opened her folder.
“Because he has something real.””
She removed a photograph.
It showed Richard standing outside a hospital nursery twenty-nine years earlier.
Beside him was a young woman holding a newborn.
I recognized the woman.
It was my mother.
But she wasn't looking at Richard.
She was looking at the baby.
And standing beside her was another man.
A man I had never seen before.
Margaret pointed toward him.
“His name was David Carter.””
I stared.
“Who was he?””
“Your mother's brother.””
I frowned.
“My mother never had a brother.””
Margaret looked at me.
“That's what Robert told you.””
Daniel studied the photograph.
“Why is he important?””
Margaret turned the picture over.
A handwritten message was visible.
One child belongs to Robert. One belongs to David. Keep them apart until the truth is safe.
My stomach tightened.
I read the words again.
“Two children?””
Margaret nodded.
“Your mother gave birth to twins, but the hospital records show that a third baby was registered that same night.””
I stared at her.
“Three?””
She placed another document on the desk.
It was a birth certificate.
The name at the top was:
*LILY ELIZABETH CARTER.*
I looked up.
“Lily?””
Daniel went completely still.
Margaret nodded.
“The child Evelyn adopted wasn't the only baby involved in the hospital transfer.””
My phone rang.
Evelyn.
I answered.
“Evelyn?””
Her voice was frantic.
“Marcus, where are you?””
“What's wrong?””
“Lily is gone.””
I stood so quickly that my chair fell backward.
“What?””
“Someone came to the house. They said they were taking her somewhere safe.””
“Who?””
Evelyn began sobbing.
“They showed me a photograph of you. They said you had sent them.””
My blood turned cold.
“Evelyn, listen to me. I didn't send anyone.””
“I know that now!””
“Who took her?””
There was a pause.
Then she whispered:
“Richard Cole.””
I looked at the birth certificate.
Lily Elizabeth Carter.
The little girl who had stopped my wedding.
The little girl who had risked everything to expose Vanessa.
I turned toward Daniel.
He had gone completely pale.
“Marcus,” he whispered.
“What?””
He pointed to the birth certificate.
“Lily isn't just connected to the family.””
He swallowed.
“She is Richard's biological daughter.””
My phone vibrated again.
A message appeared.
A photograph of Lily sitting in a dark room.
Her hands were tied.
Below it were eight words.
*BRING THE ORIGINAL TRUST, OR SHE NEVER COMES HOME.*
Then another message arrived.
*AND COME WITHOUT YOUR BROTHER.*
I stared at the screen.
For the first time since the wedding, I understood exactly what Richard wanted.
He didn't want my signature anymore.
He wanted the one thing my father had spent decades protecting.
May you like
The truth about who belonged to the Hayes family.
And he was willing to destroy every child connected to it to get what he wanted.
