INICIAR SESIĂNALEXANDER A few days later, the final results came in.I stood in a quiet room with files spread across the table, listening as everything was explained to me in clear, calm words. The DNA tests were complete. The dental records matched. There was no room left for doubt.The body was Lia Dale.The real Lia.According to the autopsy, she had been hit on the head. The injury alone would not have killed her, but it would have left her disoriented and weak. The cause of death was drowning. The investigators believed she had been pushed off a bridge into the water below. Her body stayed trapped somewhere downstream until time and rain finally carried it into the small stream near our construction site.Three years.Lia had been dead for three years.I sat back in the chair, my chest tight, my thoughts spinning. Nothing made sense and yet everything suddenly did. Every strange moment. Every uneasy feeling Andrea had. Every time something about Lia felt wrong but could never be explained.
ALEXANDERI walked into my office and loosened my tie, my mind already back at home with Andrea. The meeting had dragged longer than it should have, and all I wanted was to get out of here and get back to her. I was reaching for my jacket when the door opened.Cole stepped in, his expression serious.âBefore you leave,â he said, closing the door behind him, âwe found something on the new site.âThat made me stop. I turned to face him. âFound what?âCole did not answer right away. He tapped his iPad and turned the screen toward me.âJust watch,â he said quietly.The video started playing. It was shaky, clearly taken by someone on site. I leaned forward without realizing it. The camera showed a narrow stream at the edge of the land we had just acquired for the new project. The water was shallow, barely moving.Then I saw it.A body lay half in the water, half on the muddy bank.I frowned immediately. The body was in bad shape. Too much time had passed. The face was swollen and unrecogni
ANDREA The memory hit me all at once and my chest tightened. I looked up at my stepmother, my heart beating hard. âThe necklace,â I said quickly. âMy momâs necklace. How did you get it?â The room went very quiet. âThat necklace was never found on my motherâs body,â I continued, my voice shaking despite my effort to stay calm. âSo it didnât just appear out of nowhere. You had it. And I want to know why.â My father turned to her slowly, confusion clear on his face. âWhat necklace is she talking about?â My stepmotherâs lips parted, then closed again. She looked at Andrew, then at me, and for the first time since I walked into the room, she looked nervous. Andrew stepped forward. âAnswer her,â he said firmly. âNo lies this time.â She swallowed hard. âI⌠I did not steal it,â she said quickly. âI never meant to hide it.â âThat is not what she asked,â Andrew replied. âShe asked how you got it.â "The night of the accident," she started and we all stared at her like she was going to
ANDREAMy stepmother straightened in her seat, clearly confused. âWhat is going on?â she asked, her voice tight. âAndrew, you are scaring everyone.âAndrew exhaled slowly, like he had been holding it in for too long. âAfter Andrea was kidnapped, Alex and I agreed on one thing,â he said. âWe did not trust Lia. Not then. Not now.âMy stomach sank a little at her name.âSo we started looking into her,â Andrew continued. âAt first it was just her. Her movements. Her contacts. Her past. But then we realized something did not sit right, so we widened the search.âMy father frowned. âWidened it how?ââTo the Grey family,â Andrew said. âBefore the divorce. Before you married Mom.â His eyes flicked briefly to my stepmother, then back to my father. âWe decided to investigate the entire family history.âThe room went quiet.Andrew clasped his hands together. âWhat we found took time. A lot of time. Records buried. Names altered. Places changed. But eventually, it all lined up.âI felt my chest t
ANDREA I woke up to the quiet hum of the room and the soft light slipping in through the curtains. My hand moved to the other side of the bed out of habit, but the space beside me was empty and already cold. For a moment I just lay there, blinking, trying to fully wake up. Just then my phone rang. I reached for it on the bedside table and smiled when I saw Alexâs name on the screen. I answered right away. âHey,â I said, my voice still rough with sleep. âGood morning, sunshine,â he said. I could hear the rush in his voice, like he was already deep into his day. âI had to leave early. Thereâs an important meeting I couldnât miss.â I sat up slowly, pulling the sheets closer around me. âI figured,â I said. âYou werenât there when I woke up.â âI didnât want to wake you,â he replied. âPlease donât do anything unnecessary today. No stress, no running around.â I smiled to myself. âIâll behave.â âYour breakfast is already on the table downstairs,â he added. âEat properly, okay? Iâll b
ANDREA "Sunshine...?" He whispered breathlessly. "Hmm?" I hummed, taking slow steps towards him. "What are you wearing?" He asked, his eyes almost looking clouded. I smiled at him, slow and playful, and kept walking toward him like I had all the time in the world. âMy night wear,â I said softly, tilting my head to the side. âWhat else would it be?â His throat moved when he swallowed. He didnât answer right away. His eyes were still glued to me, like if he blinked I might disappear. âThat is not a night wear" he muttered, his voice rough. I stopped right in front of him, close enough to feel his warmth. I reached out and lightly touched his chest with one finger, feeling how tense he was under my touch. âIt is to me,â I said, trying not to laugh when his breath hitched. âYouâre the one who hasnât been paying attention.â He finally lifted his hands, but instead of touching me, he rested them on the door frame on either side of me, trapping me there without actually making con







