“Fang an zu reden.”
Sie seufzte.
“Nicht hier.”
“Hier.”
“Arthur—”
“Hier.”
Seine Mutter sah ihn einen langen Moment an.
Dann trat sie ein.
Sie schloss die Tür hinter sich.
Und sie abgeschlossen.
Ich spürte einen Schauer.
“Was machst du da?”
“Um sicherzugehen, dass uns niemand hört.”
Ich habe Arthur angesehen.
Er nickte.
“Sprich.”
Seine Mutter setzte sich.
“Ich war in der Nacht, als Elena entbunden hat, im Krankenhaus.”
Ich erstarrte.
“Du warst dort?”
“Ja.”
“Warum?”
“Weil Victoria mich angerufen hat.”
Victoria sah weg.
Arthur wandte sich ihr zu.
“Du hast meine Mutter angerufen?”
“Ich hatte große Angst.”
“Wovon?”
Victoria antwortete nicht.
fuhr seine Mutter fort.
“Victoria hatte Komplikationen bei der Geburt.”
Ich starrte sie an.
“Du hast gesagt, ihre Tochter ist gestorben.”
“Das wurde uns gesagt.”
Rebecca sprach vom Boden.
“Nein.”
Alle drehten sich um.
Sie richtete sich auf.
“Das ist nicht passiert.”
Arthur sah sie an.
“Dann sag es mir.”
Rebecca schluckte.
“Victorias Tochter lebte.”
Victoria schloss die Augen.
Rebecca fuhr fort.
“Sie war schwach, aber am Leben.”
Victoria flüsterte,
“Ich habe sie gesehen.”
Ich sah sie an.
“Du hast deine Tochter gesehen?”
“Ja.”
“Warum hast du dann geglaubt, dass sie gestorben ist?”
Victorias Mutter schüttelte den Kopf.
“Man sagte ihr, das Baby habe keine Chance.”
“Aber sie war am Leben.”
“Ja.”
“Und du wusstest es.”
“Ja.”
Ich starrte sie an.
“Warum?”
She looked directly at me.
“Because your son was in the same neonatal unit.”
My stomach tightened.
“What does that have to do with him?”
“Everything.”
Arthur moved closer.
“Tell us the whole story.”
His mother took a breath.
“Your father had enemies.”
Arthur frowned.
“My father?”
“Yes.”
“He had business enemies.”
“This wasn’t about business.”
She looked at our son.
“It was about inheritance.”
The word made the room feel colder.
“What inheritance?”
“Your family’s trust.”
Arthur went still.
“My grandfather’s trust?”
She nodded.
“When your father was alive, he controlled a very large family estate.”
“I know.”
“You don’t know everything.”
She looked at me.
“The trust had a condition.”
“What condition?”
“The heir had to be a biological male descendant.”
I stared at her.
“So?”
“So Victoria’s daughter couldn’t inherit it.”
I looked at Victoria.
She was crying silently.
“But my son could.”
“Yes.”
I felt my chest tighten.
“That doesn’t explain the babies.”
“It does.”
She folded her hands.
“Your father wanted the family estate to pass to Arthur’s first biological son.”
Arthur’s expression darkened.
“My father knew about my pregnancy?”
“Yes.”
“Then why was Victoria’s baby involved?”
His mother looked down.
“Because Victoria’s daughter was born first.”
Silence.
I looked at Victoria.
“What?”
She nodded slowly.
“My daughter was born eleven minutes before your son.”
I looked at the photograph.
Two babies.
Two bracelets.
My hands began trembling.
Arthur whispered,
“What did you do?”
His mother looked at him.
“Your father believed Victoria’s child was not biologically his.”
Victoria’s face hardened.
“He was wrong.”
Arthur looked at her.
“Who was the father?”
She didn’t answer.
His mother did.
“Someone your father hated.”
Arthur’s eyes narrowed.
“Who?”
She looked at me.
Then at Victoria.
“I won’t say his name.”
“Why?”
“Because he is the reason Victoria’s daughter became dangerous.”
I shook my head.
“A baby can’t be dangerous.”
“The baby wasn’t.”
She paused.
“The truth was.”
Arthur carried our son upstairs.
I stayed.
I couldn’t stop looking at the photograph.
Rebecca slowly stood.
She leaned against the wall.
“You want to know why I was kept here?”
“Yes.”
“I worked at the hospital.”
“What was your job?”
“Records.”
My heart sank.
“You changed the birth records.”
She nodded.
“I was ordered to.”
“By whom?”
She looked at Arthur’s mother.
“Her.”
Arthur’s mother didn’t deny it.
I felt anger rising in my throat.
“You separated two newborn babies.”
“I protected one.”
“Which one?”
She looked at my son.
“Yours.”
“From what?”
“From his father.”
I stared at her.
“Arthur is his father.”
“Yes.”
“Then what are you saying?”
She looked at me.
“I’m saying someone wanted to make sure Arthur could never prove that.”
I felt dizzy.
“What?”
Rebecca stepped closer.
“Your son’s original hospital record didn’t list Arthur as the father.”
I stared at her.
“That’s impossible.”
“It was later changed.”
“By whom?”
“Me.”
My hands went cold.
“Why?”
“Because I was threatened.”
“By Arthur’s mother?”
Rebecca shook her head.
“By Victoria.”
Victoria looked up sharply.
“That isn’t true.”
Rebecca laughed bitterly.
“You told me you’d destroy my family.”
“Because you were going to take my daughter.”
“I wasn’t taking anything.”
“You changed her records!”
“I changed both.”
The room fell silent.
I looked at Rebecca.
“Both?”
She nodded.
“The original records showed two babies.”
She pointed to the photograph.
“Baby A was Victoria’s daughter.”
She pointed to the second baby.
“Baby B was Elena’s son.”
I looked at the bracelets.
Blue.
Pink.
My eyes filled with confusion.
“Then why did Victoria think my son was her daughter?”
Rebecca looked at her.
“Because someone switched the bracelets.”
Victoria’s face went white.
“I didn’t.”
“No.”
Rebecca shook her head.
“You didn’t.”
She looked at Arthur’s mother.
“She did.”
Arthur’s mother closed her eyes.
I stepped toward her.
“You switched the babies.”
“No.”
“You just said you changed the records.”
“Yes.”
“Why?”
“To protect Arthur.”
“From what?”
She looked at me.
“From his father.”
Arthur came back downstairs.
He had heard the last sentence.
“My father?”
His mother nodded.
“Your father knew Victoria’s daughter existed.”
“Why would he care?”
“Because he knew who her biological father was.”
Arthur’s face hardened.
“Who?”
She hesitated.
Then finally said,
“Daniel Cross.”
Victoria gasped.
Rebecca stepped backward.
Arthur stared.
“That’s impossible.”
His mother shook her head.
“No.”
Arthur looked at Victoria.
“Was Daniel Cross the father?”
Victoria didn’t answer.
Arthur grabbed the back of a chair.
“Victoria.”
She began crying.
“Yes.”
The room went silent.
I looked at Arthur.
“Who is Daniel Cross?”
His face had gone pale.
“My father’s greatest enemy.”
Victoria whispered,
“He was the only man your father ever truly feared.”
