Chapter 8: The Daughter Nobody Knew About
The name on the document didn’t make sense.
It couldn’t.
I read it again.
And again.
“Emily Claire Reed.””
I looked at Dad.
“Who is Emily?””
His face had gone completely blank.
“I don’t know.””
Robert looked uncomfortable.
“You do.””
Dad turned.
“What?””
Robert sighed.
“Claire told me.””
“Told you what?””
“That Jasmine wasn’t the only child she wanted to protect.””
The room went silent.
I felt like the floor disappeared.
Another child.
My mother had another child?
“No,” Dad whispered.
Robert looked at him.
“Marcus…”
“No.””
My father shook his head.
“My wife would have told me.””
Robert’s expression broke.
“She tried.””
I looked at the document.
“Who is Emily?””
Robert didn’t answer immediately.
Then he said:
“Your half-sister.””
The words hit harder than anything.
I couldn’t breathe.
My mother.
Had another daughter.
A daughter nobody knew about.
A daughter hidden from us.
Dad sat down.
“How?””
Robert looked at him.
“Before you met Claire.””
The room was silent.
“She had a child when she was young.””
I stared.
“Why didn’t she keep her?””
Robert looked at me.
“She did.””
My eyes filled.
“Then where is she?””
Robert looked at the document.
“That’s what Monica and Daniel were trying to find.””
Suddenly everything changed.
The house.
The trust.
The documents.
They weren’t trying to steal property.
They were trying to locate the hidden beneficiary.
My mother’s first daughter.
Dad looked confused.
“But why?””
Robert answered.
“Because Emily inherited something bigger than the house.””
“What?””
“A company share.””
I froze.
“What company?””
“Your father’s original business partner.””
Dad looked shocked.
“Claire’s old family trust?””
Robert nodded.
“Emily inherited shares worth millions.””
The room went quiet.
Millions.
Not because of greed.
Because of a secret my mother had carried alone.
I thought about the letter.
People will tell you family is about blood.
I finally understood.
My mother wasn’t protecting a house.
She was protecting her children.
All of them.
Dad stood.
“Where is Emily?””
Robert looked away.
“We don’t know.””
My heart sank.
“You mean Monica doesn’t know either?””
“She knows someone exists.””
“But not where?””
“No.””
That explained everything.
They needed me gone.
They needed control of Dad’s assets.
They needed access to my mother’s trust.
But they didn’t know the final piece.
Emily.
Dad looked at Robert.
“How do we find her?””
Robert handed him another envelope.
“Claire left this.””
I opened it.
Inside was an address.
A small town.
A name.
And a note.
I read it aloud.
“Find her before they do.””
A cold silence followed.
Because my mother knew.
She knew this day could come.
And she prepared for it.
Then Olivia spoke.
“Jasmine.””
I looked at her.
She was staring at something behind the envelope.
A photograph.
She picked it up.
Her face changed.
“What?””
She handed it to me.
It was my mother.
Holding a baby.
Standing beside a young woman.
I looked closer.
The woman beside my mother was someone familiar.
Someone I had seen before.
Monica.
My hands went numb.
“She knew Emily,” Olivia whispered.
Dad stared at the picture.
“No.””
Robert nodded.
“That’s why she was dangerous.””
The truth was worse than we imagined.
Monica hadn’t entered our family randomly.
She already knew my mother.
She already knew about Emily.
She had been searching for something.
And my father had unknowingly invited her inside.
Then my phone buzzed.
Unknown number.
I opened the message.
One sentence.
“Stop looking for Emily.””
Another message arrived.
Then a photo.
A recent photo.
Of Emily.
May you like
And underneath it:
“She is closer than you think.””
