Chapter 10 — The Doctor's Secret
782 Words
Marina paced her small apartment above the bookstore, clutching the printed photo in her hands. The face of Dr. Cormack Lee haunted her—because now she remembered it. The man with the calm voice and tight smile, who told her she’d been in a car accident. That her name was Marina Doyle. That she had no family listed, no ID, no past.
She remembered how cold the hospital room was. How distant he was, even when he smiled. And now, staring at the photo of him shaking hands with Dominic’s father—Victor Voss—everything started to tilt sideways.
Why would the man who treated her eight years ago have any connection to the Voss family?
Unless they knew where she was all along.
Unless they put her there.
Her stomach turned.
A knock at the door made her jump.
She crossed the room, heart pounding, and looked through the peephole.
Dominic.
Again.
She hesitated, then opened the door.
“Can we talk?” he asked, more gently this time.
She nodded and let him in.
Dominic walked into the apartment, noting the cluttered bookshelves, the teacup on the counter, the open laptop on the desk.
Her world felt too real, too soft, to belong to someone like Juliette—the woman who once wore diamonds to breakfast and had personal shoppers on speed dial.
“You’ve built a life here,” he said softly.
“I didn’t have much of a choice,” she replied.
Dominic turned to face her. “I need to know the truth. Did you fake the crash to escape me?”
“No,” she said without flinching. “I don’t remember much from back then, but I know I was scared. I didn’t trust anyone—not even myself.”
He studied her, unsure whether to believe her.
“I found something,” she added, walking over to the laptop. “The doctor who treated me—Dr. Cormack Lee. He’s connected to your father.”
Dominic stiffened. “What?”
She turned the screen toward him.
The photo stared back at him. His father, in a handshake with the doctor.
Dominic swallowed. “My father was… protective of the family image. Ruthless, sometimes. But he wouldn’t hurt you.”
“He didn’t have to hurt me,” she said. “Just hide me.”
Dominic turned away, jaw clenched. “That’s impossible. If my father had done something like this, I’d know.”
“You were grieving. And you were angry. You didn’t ask questions—you just signed papers and moved on.”
He didn’t answer.
Because she was right.
Later that night, Dominic returned home, but his mind wasn’t on the lavish penthouse or the messages piling up on his phone.
It was on the woman in the bookstore.
The fear in her eyes.
The certainty in her voice.
He sat down and called Levi.
“I need everything we have on Dr. Cormack Lee. His records, licenses, photos, family, the works. Especially around the date Juliette—Marina—was admitted.”
“You think your father was involved?” Levi asked.
“I think I’ve been looking in the wrong place.”
Levi paused, then said, “I’ll dig. But Dom… if this is true, if Victor covered this up—you may not like what we find.”
Dominic hung up without replying.
Meanwhile, Marina stood by her window, watching the lights of Houston flicker in the distance. She felt exposed. Vulnerable.
But beneath the fear… something else was growing.
Strength.
She had lived eight years as Marina Doyle, surviving with no help, no family, and no past.
Now, she had questions—and she was going to get answers.
She opened her laptop again and scrolled through the encrypted files. One stood out—a scanned letter.
Her breath caught as she read the words.
“Juliette,
If you’re reading this, it means you’ve remembered something. Or maybe someone’s found you.
Either way, I pray you’re safe. I did what I had to do—to protect you.
Your husband may never understand. But I hope one day… you’ll forgive me.
—V”
“V…” she whispered. “Victor?”
Victor Voss?
Her father-in-law?
Had he been the one who saved her… or the one who silenced her?
She looked at the letter again and noticed something handwritten in the corner:
"Check the lake house."
She grabbed a notebook and jotted it down.
Tomorrow, she’d go there.
Alone if she had to.
Because somewhere in that lake house was the truth.
And she was ready to remember all of it.
End of Chapter 10.
- Writer
