Chapter 3 — The Truth Hidden Behind the Walls
That evening, Richard ordered every servant to leave the mansion.
Only four people remained.
Richard.
Emily.
Little Ethan.
And Victoria.
"I'll ask once," Richard said quietly.
"What happened to Lily?"
Victoria poured herself tea with remarkably steady hands.
"I buried that story years ago."
"You buried something," Richard replied.
"But it wasn't the truth."
Ethan suddenly tugged on his father's sleeve.
"Dad..."
"I found something else."
From his sweater pocket, he carefully unfolded a tiny yellowed drawing.
A child's drawing.
It showed a little girl standing beside an enormous oak tree.
Behind the tree was a small red door.
In shaky handwriting were five words.
"Please don't let Grandma find me."
Emily gasped.
Richard recognized the drawing immediately.
It was Lily's handwriting.
Victoria dropped her teacup.
The porcelain shattered across the marble floor.
Richard didn't even look down.
"The oak tree."
He whispered the words like a prayer.
"It's still standing."
Minutes later they crossed the estate with flashlights.
The ancient oak stood exactly where Richard remembered.
Hidden behind thick ivy...
was a rusted red metal door built into the hillside.
Workers forced it open.
Inside lay an abandoned underground storage room.
Old blankets.
Children's books.
Tiny dresses.
Photographs.
And a weathered journal.
The first page read:
"Grandma says Father must never know I'm alive."
Emily covered her mouth.
May you like
Richard closed his eyes.
His own mother had stolen twenty-five years from his sister.
