CHAPTER FIVE: THE SECRET OF HER MOTHER

"Isabella, open the door."

Alexander's voice came from the other side.

She quickly slipped the photograph beneath her pillow before opening the door.

Alexander stood there with his hands inside his trousers' pockets.

"We need to talk."

"About what?"

"About the phone call you received this afternoon."

Isabella's heart skipped.

"How did you know about that?"

"Did you honestly think I wouldn't find out?"

She folded her arms.

"You're monitoring me now?"

"I'm protecting you."

"There's a difference between protecting someone and controlling their life."

Alexander ignored her.

"Did the woman tell you anything?"

Isabella studied his face.

"Why are you so interested in Victoria?"

His jaw tightened.

"Because she's supposed to be dead."

"But she's not."

He stepped closer.

"Isabella, I need you to tell me exactly what she said."

"She told me to leave this house."

Alexander's expression darkened.

"And you believed her?"

"I don't know what to believe anymore."

He stared at her for a moment.

Then his voice softened slightly.

"Whatever happens, don't trust anyone who contacts you about Victoria."

Isabella almost laughed.

"How convenient. I'm not supposed to trust anyone except the man who forced me into marriage."

Alexander looked away.

For once, he had no answer.

---

The following morning, Isabella woke up determined to speak with her father.

She needed answers.

She needed to know why her mother's death was connected to Victoria.

And she needed to know why Alexander seemed terrified of the truth.

She picked up her phone and called the hospital.

"Good morning. Please, I'd like to speak with Mr. Williams."

"Your father was discharged yesterday evening, madam."

Isabella sat upright.

"What?"

"He was discharged by a representative who paid all outstanding bills."

"Where was he taken?"

"I'm sorry, madam. We weren't given that information."

The call ended.

Isabella stared at her phone.

Her father had been discharged without telling her?

And who was the representative?

She immediately rushed downstairs.

Alexander was sitting at the breakfast table reading a document.

"Where is my father?"

He slowly raised his eyes.

"Good morning to you too."

"Don't play games with me. The hospital said my father has been discharged."

Alexander folded the document.

"I arranged it."

"You what?"

"He's recovering at a private medical facility."

"Why didn't you tell me?"

"Because you were asleep."

"That's not an excuse!"

Alexander placed his coffee down.

"He's receiving the best medical attention. You should be grateful."

Isabella shook her head.

"Take me to him."

"Finish your breakfast."

"I'm not hungry!"

She turned to leave.

"Isabella."

She stopped.

"Your father asked me not to tell you something."

Her heart began racing.

"What?"

Alexander watched her carefully.

"He said your mother didn't die in an accident."

The room seemed to disappear around her.

"What did you just say?"

"Ask him yourself."

---

Later that afternoon, Alexander drove Isabella to the private medical facility.

She sat silently beside him, staring through the window.

Her mind was filled with memories of her mother.

She remembered her warm smile, the way she sang while cooking, and the way she always hugged her before bedtime.

She had been told that her mother died in a terrible car accident.

She had never questioned it.

Not until now.

When they arrived, a nurse led them to a private room.

Her father was lying on the bed.

"Daddy!"

He turned.

"Isabella?"

She rushed toward him and hugged him carefully.

"Daddy, why didn't you tell me you were here?"

"I'm sorry, my child."

She pulled away.

"Did you know my mother's death wasn't an accident?"

Her father's face changed.

He looked toward Alexander, who was standing near the doorway.

"Leave us alone," Isabella said.

Alexander didn't move.

"Isabella—"

"Please. I want to speak with my father privately."

After a moment, Alexander walked out.

Her father took a deep breath.

"Your mother discovered something five years ago."

"Something about what?"

"Victoria."

Isabella's eyes widened.

"What did Mama have to do with Victoria?"

Her father closed his eyes.

"Victoria was not just Alexander's fiancée. She was carrying his child."

Isabella stared at him.

"I saw the photograph."

Her father nodded slowly.

"Your mother discovered that Victoria was in danger. She tried to help her."

"Who wanted to hurt her?"

Her father remained silent.

"Daddy, please!"

He looked at his daughter with tears in his eyes.

"The night your mother died, she was going to meet Victoria."

Isabella covered her mouth.

"No..."

"I begged her not to go. But she said she couldn't allow an innocent woman to suffer."

"What happened?"

Her father's breathing became uneven.

"Her car was found at the bottom of a bridge. The police called it an accident."

He began crying.

"But I knew it wasn't."

Isabella felt her knees weaken.

"Who killed my mother?"

Her father reached for her hand.

"I don't know who ordered it."

He paused.

"But I know who was there that night."

"Who?"

Before he could answer, the heart monitor began beeping faster.

"Daddy!"

A nurse rushed into the room.

"Please step outside!"

Isabella refused to release his hand.

"Daddy, you have to tell me!"

Her father looked at her one last time.

Then he whispered:

"Alexander..."

---

Outside the room, Isabella stood frozen.

Alexander approached her.

"What happened?"

She looked at him with tears streaming down her cheeks.

"My father says you were there the night my mother died."

Alexander's expression changed.

For several seconds, he said nothing.

Then he looked away.

"Isabella, there's something you need to understand."

She stepped backward.

"Tell me the truth."

He rubbed his forehead.

"I went to that bridge five years ago."

"Why?"

"Victoria had called me. She said she needed help."

Isabella's voice trembled.

"And my mother?"

Alexander closed his eyes.

"When I arrived, there was a car at the bottom of the bridge."

"Was it my mother's car?"

He nodded.

Isabella began shaking.

"What did you do?"

"I called the police."

"Did you see her?"

"No."

"Then how do you know she was dead?"

Alexander looked directly into her eyes.

"Because I saw the body."

Isabella stumbled backward.

She couldn't breathe.

The man she had been forced to marry had been present at the scene of her mother's death.

And he had kept it from her.

"Get away from me."

"Isabella—"

"Don't touch me!"

She slapped him.

Alexander didn't react.

He simply stood there, allowing her tears to fall.

"You knew!" she cried. "You knew all along!"

"I didn't know who you were when I first approached your father."

"You're lying!"

He reached for her, but she stepped away.

"Isabella, listen to me."

"No! I don't want to hear another word!"

She ran down the hallway.

---

That evening, Alexander returned to his mansion alone.

James was waiting in his office.

"Sir, we've found something."

Alexander loosened his tie.

"What?"

James placed a brown envelope on the desk.

"Records concerning Victoria's disappearance."

Alexander opened it.

Inside was a medical report, several photographs, and a handwritten note.

He picked up the medical report.

His eyes moved quickly across the page.

Then he stopped.

The report confirmed that Victoria had given birth to a baby girl.

But the next line made his blood run cold.

The child was transferred to the custody of another family shortly after birth.

Alexander stared at the document.

"Where is the child now?"

James hesitated.

"That's the strange part, sir."

"What?"

"The child's legal guardian was listed as Margaret Williams."

Alexander slowly raised his head.

Margaret Williams.

Isabella's mother.

He looked at the photograph attached to the report.

It showed a newborn baby wrapped in a pink blanket.

Behind the photograph was another note.

The child was never told who her real parents were.

Alexander's hands tightened around the paper.

"James..."

"Yes, sir?"

"Find Isabella."

"She's upstairs, sir."

Alexander looked toward the bedroom hallway.

For the first time, he understood why someone had chosen Isabella for this marriage.

It wasn't just revenge.

It was something far more complicated.

And the woman he had married might be connected to the child he had lost five years ago.

END OF CHAPTER FIVE