CHAPTER TEN: THE SECRET WILL

The hospital room was silent.

Isabella stood beside the window, staring at the city lights.

Her mother's final secret.

Those words had been haunting her since Daniel spoke them.

"What secret?" she finally asked.

Daniel closed his eyes.

"Margaret Williams left behind a will."

Alexander's expression changed.

"A will?"

Daniel nodded weakly.

"Not an ordinary will. It contains the truth about the Blackwood fortune."

Alexander stepped closer.

"What does my uncle have to do with it?"

Daniel swallowed.

"Victor Blackwood has been trying to find that document for years."

Isabella turned.

"Why?"

Daniel looked at her.

"Because your mother was the only person who knew who truly owned the Blackwood empire."

Alexander's jaw tightened.

"My father built that empire."

Daniel shook his head.

"Your father was only the public face of it."

The room fell silent.

Alexander's eyes darkened.

"Explain."

Daniel took a deep breath.

"Twenty-five years ago, Victor and your father were involved in a business arrangement with Margaret's family. The original ownership documents were hidden after a betrayal."

Alexander stared at him.

"And Margaret kept them?"

"Yes."

Isabella's heart began racing.

"Where are they?"

Daniel looked toward her.

"Somewhere only you can find."

---

That night, Isabella returned to Blackwood Mansion.

She couldn't stop thinking about her mother.

Margaret had always been loving and gentle.

She never spoke about the Blackwood family.

She never mentioned a fortune.

And she never explained why she had kept certain things hidden.

Isabella entered her bedroom and opened the velvet box again.

The silver necklace lay inside.

She turned the pendant over.

Something felt strange.

The back of the pendant had a tiny engraved symbol.

A rose surrounded by a circle.

She pressed the centre.

A small compartment opened.

Inside was a tiny key.

Isabella gasped.

"What is this?"

She examined it carefully.

There was a number engraved on the key.

17.

Her phone vibrated.

An unknown number.

The truth is hidden where your mother kept her memories.

Isabella's eyes widened.

Her mother's old house.

---

The following morning, Isabella confronted Alexander in his study.

"I need to go to my mother's house."

Alexander looked up.

"Why?"

"I believe she left something there."

He studied her face.

"What?"

"I don't know yet."

Alexander stood.

"You're not going alone."

She folded her arms.

"I didn't ask you to come."

"And I didn't ask permission."

She glared at him.

"You're impossible."

He stepped closer.

"You're my wife."

"That doesn't mean you own me."

His expression softened slightly.

"No. It doesn't."

Isabella looked surprised.

Alexander continued.

"But someone is trying to hurt you. I won't let that happen."

For a moment, neither spoke.

Then Isabella nodded.

"Fine. But don't expect me to forgive you for everything."

Alexander's eyes darkened.

"I wouldn't dare."

---

Margaret Williams's old house stood on a quiet street.

It had been abandoned for several months.

Dust covered the furniture.

The curtains were faded.

And the garden had become overgrown.

Isabella walked through the front door slowly.

Memories flooded her mind.

Her mother's laughter.

The smell of fresh bread.

The warmth of family dinners.

She swallowed the lump in her throat.

Alexander followed her.

"Where should we look?"

Isabella held up the tiny key.

"Number seventeen."

They searched the house.

The bedroom.

The kitchen.

The basement.

Nothing.

Finally, Isabella entered her mother's old study.

A bookshelf stood against the wall.

She noticed a small drawer beneath it.

The drawer had a tiny lock.

Seventeen.

Her hands trembled as she inserted the key.

It turned.

Inside lay a thick envelope.

She pulled it out.

The words on the front made her heart stop.

THE BLACKWOOD FAMILY TRUST

Alexander stepped closer.

"Open it."

Isabella carefully unfolded the document.

The first page contained a legal statement.

She read it aloud.

"To my daughter, Isabella Williams, I leave the controlling interest in the Blackwood family estate and all assets held under the original trust."

Alexander froze.

"What?"

Isabella continued reading.

"Should anything happen to me, the inheritance shall remain protected until Isabella reaches the age of twenty-three."

She looked up.

Her birthday had been three weeks ago.

Alexander stared at the document.

"That means..."

Isabella's voice trembled.

"I'm the rightful heir to the Blackwood fortune."

---

A sudden crash sounded downstairs.

Alexander immediately turned.

"Stay here."

He drew his weapon and moved toward the hallway.

Isabella clutched the document.

Footsteps echoed through the house.

Then a familiar voice spoke.

"Congratulations, Isabella."

Victor Blackwood appeared in the doorway.

He wore a dark suit and a cold smile.

"You're finally discovering who you really are."

Alexander raised his weapon.

"Victor."

His uncle laughed.

"Put that down, Alexander. You wouldn't shoot your own family."

Alexander's expression hardened.

"You stopped being family the moment you tried to kill Isabella."

Victor looked at her.

"Give me the document."

Isabella stepped backward.

"No."

His smile disappeared.

"Don't be foolish."

Alexander moved in front of her.

"You're not touching her."

Victor's eyes narrowed.

"You have no idea what that girl is capable of."

Isabella looked at the document.

Then she looked at Alexander.

For the first time, she understood.

Her marriage had never been just about revenge.

It had been about the fortune.

The inheritance.

And the secret her mother had died protecting.

Victor slowly raised his gun.

"Give me the will, Isabella."

Alexander tightened his grip on his weapon.

"Don't."

A deafening gunshot filled the house.

Isabella screamed.

And the document slipped from her hands.

END OF CHAPTER TEN