Chapter 5

The couple blinked at her question. They hadn't expected it.

Then they realized, with a flush of embarrassment, that in all their excitement they had forgotten to say who they were.

"Hannah," the man said, "I'm your father. My name is Edmund Harrington. This is your mother, Eleanor."

The name struck a chord in Hannah's mind. *Edmund Harrington.* She had heard it before. She searched her memory, and it came to her.

The richest man in Eldermere.

Her voice trembled. "Are you... the Edmund Harrington? The wealthiest man in Eldermere?"

He smiled modestly. "That's only what people whisper. I have some wealth, but I'm far from the richest."

Hannah knew he was being humble. She had read about his rise online, a legend of an empire built from nothing. The title fit him perfectly.

"Do you believe us now?" Eleanor asked softly, her eyes full of hope.

A sliver of doubt still lingered. "How did you get my blood? I never noticed anything."

Secretary Lane, standing nearby, answered. "Miss, we noticed you often sat in a tea shop writing articles. It wasn't difficult to take what we needed from the cups you left behind."

Hannah understood at once. Whenever she had a free hour at the Hale house, she took her laptop to a little tea shop called Violet, just outside the neighborhood. She drank sweet tea there and wrote small pieces to ease the ache in her heart.

"Hannah, we truly aren't lying," Eleanor said. "You are our daughter."

Hannah nodded slowly. "I understand. I believe you."

Eleanor's face lit up. "Then... could you call me Mom?"

Hannah bit her lip. Her voice shook as it left her.

"Mom..."

Eleanor gasped with joy and pulled her into a tight embrace.

Edmund watched, relief softening his face. "And what about me, Hannah?"

She looked at him through her tears. "Dad..."

He nodded again and again, his eyes shining.

In that moment, the three of them were finally a family.

Hannah wept in her mother's arms until her eyes were red and swollen. Eleanor held her close, stroking her hair, murmuring comfort.

For the first time in her life, Hannah felt warmth she had only ever dreamed of. She closed her eyes and let herself rest in it, her heart full.

Then Edmund glanced at his watch. "Hannah, would you like to come home with us now?"

"Yes, darling," Eleanor said. "Come home. Your brother is waiting for you."

Hannah froze. Brother?

She had never imagined she had an older brother.

Then she remembered what she had read about the Harringtons. They did have a son and a daughter. Yet there had never been a word in the papers about a missing child.

After a moment, she decided to be honest.

"Mom, Dad, I need time to take this in. And I'm still married. My husband..." The word tasted bitter, but she let it stand. "I want to tell him first. Then I'll come to the Harrington family."

Edmund and Eleanor had already looked into her life and knew she was married.

"Would you like us to come with you to the Hale house?" Edmund asked.

"No, Dad. That's not necessary."

She didn't want them to see how she had been treated there.

Eleanor sighed, regret in her eyes. "We understand, Hannah. Take all the time you need. Whenever you're ready, Mom will be waiting."

"Yes," Edmund said. "We'll wait patiently. Come home whenever you wish."

"Don't worry, Mom and Dad," Hannah said firmly. "I'll come back to you soon. I won't make you wait long."

Edmund drew a sleek black card from his pocket and laid it on the table. "Hannah, there are one hundred million crowns on this card. The code is the last six digits of your identity number. Consider it a gift from your father for our first meeting."

Eleanor quickly took two elegant cards from her bag and placed them beside it. "These have your father's and my private contacts. Very few people have them. Call us before you come home, and I'll have everything ready for you."

Hannah took only the contact cards.

"Dad, this is far too much. I can't accept it..." Her voice was small, almost lost.

Edmund's smile faded. "What I give, I do not take back. If you don't want it, throw it away."

Hannah stood stunned, not knowing what to say.

Eleanor slipped the black card into her daughter's hand. "Hannah, just take it. Your father prepared it especially for you. You aren't coming home with us yet, so you should at least have something to rely on. And from what I know, the Hale family isn't very wealthy. This will help."

Hannah heard only one part of that: The Hale family isn't wealthy.

Lucas's father had started in the restaurant trade as a young man. Now the Hales ran three fine restaurants in Silverpine District, in Eldermere.

To ordinary people, that was an excellent family. But next to the truly rich, the Hales' fortune did look modest.

Hannah looked into her mother's hopeful eyes, and a storm of feelings rose in her chest. Quietly, she tucked the card away.

"Thank you..."

Eleanor nodded, pleased. Edmund glanced at his watch once more.

"Hannah, I have an urgent meeting, so I can't stay. When you've decided to come home, call your mother."

Eleanor pouted a little. "Darling, I've only just found her, and you're leaving already?"

"If you want to stay and talk longer, stay. I'm going to the office. Have Old Thomas, the driver, fetch you later."

At his permission, Eleanor's complaint vanished. "Go, then. Work is important."

Before leaving, Edmund assigned two guards to remain at Hannah's side. She felt a little uneasy about it, but she accepted.

Eleanor stayed and talked with Hannah for a long while. She asked about everything: how Hannah had lived, whether she'd been happy. Every word carried the weight of more than twenty years of longing.