The Wife he came to claim

Chapter 5: Safe....not safe

The mansion was silent after the call ended.Aurora stood frozen, staring at the blank screen.Her mind refused to accept what she had just seen.

Her mother.

Alive.

After all these years.

"That wasn't possible," she whispered.

Emmanuel watched her carefully.

"Aurora..."

She looked at him.

"No."

Her voice shook.

"Don't tell me to calm down. Don't tell me everything will be fine."

He stayed quiet.

"My whole life, I believed my mother was gone."She looked away, trying to hold herself together.

"And now someone shows me a video of her and expects me to just accept it?"

Emmanuel stepped closer.

"I understand."

"No, you don't."

Her eyes met his.

"You still have memories of your family. You still know where you come from."

She placed a hand over her chest."I don't even know what parts of my life are real anymore."

For a moment, Emmanuel had no answer.

Then he said quietly,"You're right."

Aurora looked surprised.

He continued,"I don't know what it feels like to discover your entire past was hidden from you."

The honesty in his voice caught her off guard.The man who always seemed untouchable suddenly looked human.

Before Aurora could respond, Emmanuel's phone rang.The security team.

He answered.

"Yes?"

A few seconds later, his expression changed.

"What do you mean she can't stay there?"

Aurora watched him.

"What happened?"

He ended the call."Your house is no longer safe."

She frowned."My house?"

"The security system was compromised."

"So what now?"Aurora shook her head.

Emmanuel looked at her."You stay with me."

Her eyes widened."Absolutely not."

"Aurora"

"No."She crossed her arms.

"You have a habit of making decisions for me."This is different."

"Is it?"She looked at him.

"Because from where I stand, a billionaire stranger is telling me to move into his mansion."

Emmanuel almost smiled.

"If I wanted to control you, I wouldn't be asking."

Aurora raised an eyebrow.

"You weren't asking."

For the first time, a small silence passed between them that wasn't filled with anger or suspicion.

Then Emmanuel said,"Stay until we know who is behind this."

Aurora looked away.She hated that his reason made sense.She hated even more that she felt safer when he was around.After a long moment, she finally spoke.

"Temporarily."

Emmanuel nodded.

"Temporarily."

But neither of them knew, someone was already watching their every move.And they had just made the one decision their enemy wanted them to make.

The next morning, the news spread faster than anyone expected.Every major media outlet carried the same story.Billionaire CEO Emmanuel Laurent Brings Unknown Woman Home.

Aurora stared at the headlines on her phone.She looked at Emmanuel.

"Unknown woman?"

He glanced at the screen.

"You are not unknown to me."

She looked at him.

"That is not the point."

"There are pictures of me everywhere."She turned the phone toward him.

"The media will lose interest."Emmanuel remained calm.

"Have you met the media?"Aurora gave him a look.

Before he could answer, the car stopped in front of Laurent Mansion.Aurora looked out of the window.The building was nothing like any place she had ever seen.

It was beautiful.But overwhelming.

"I can't believe I'm actually doing this."

"You can still change your mind."Emmanuel opened the door.

"Where do I go to from here?"She looked at him.

He had no answer.Aurora stepped out.

Inside the mansion, the employees immediately noticed her.Whispers followed as they walked through the hall.

"Who is she?"

"Is she the woman from the news?"Mr. Laurent never brings anyone here.

"Aurora heard every word.She lowered her gaze.

Emmanuel noticed."Ignore them."

"Easy for you to say. This is your world."She looked at him.

He paused."Maybe."

"Maybe?"Aurora frowned.

"I wasn't always part of this world."

That answer surprised her.Before she could ask more, an employee approached.

"Mr. Laurent."

Emmanuel turned."Yes?"

"The reporters are still outside."

Aurora sighed.

"Great."

She looked toward the glass doors where cameras flashed outside."Day one, and I'm already a headline."

"You'll get used to it."Emmanuel looked at her.

"That sounds terrifying."Aurora shook her head.

For the first time, a small smile appeared on his face.A brief one.

But Aurora noticed.And she realized something.Behind the cold billionaire everyone feared.There was a person she had not discovered yet.

Aurora walked through the mansion slowly, taking everything in.Everything around her looked perfect.She stopped near the large windows overlooking the garden.

"This place doesn't feel like a home."

Emmanuel, who was standing a few steps away, looked at her.

"What does it feel like?"

She thought for a moment.

"Like a place where nobody is allowed to make mistakes."

"Maybe you're right."His expression changed slightly.

"You admit it?"Aurora turned toward him.

"I built a life where everything had to be controlled."

"Why?"

"Because losing control once cost me a lot."Emmanuel looked away.

Before Aurora could ask what he meant, a staff member walked in.

"Mr. Laurent, your assistant is waiting."

Emmanuel nodded.

"I'll be back."

Aurora watched him leave.For some reason, she was beginning to see the man behind the billionaire image.But she quickly reminded herself.He was still a stranger.

Later that evening, Aurora sat in the dining room alone.

She looked at the untouched meal in front of her.

"This is ridiculous," she whispered.

A servant approached.

"Miss Sinclair, is something wrong?"

Aurora shook her head.

"No. I'm just not used to this."

"You may be surprised, but Mr. Laurent isn't used to having anyone here either."The servant smiled.

"What do you mean?"Aurora looked up.

Before the servant could answer, Emmanuel entered.The servant immediately left.

"Your employees seem to know you better."Aurora glanced at him.

Emmanuel sat across from her.

"They have worked for me for years."

"And yet they know things about you that you won't tell me."

He looked at her.

"You ask difficult questions."

"Because nobody gives me easy answers."

A small silence passed.

Then Emmanuel said,"When I was younger, I lost my family."

Aurora's expression softened.

"I'm sorry."

He nodded slightly.

"After that, I learned not to depend on anyone."

She looked at him."That sounds lonely."

His eyes met hers.

"It was."

For a moment, neither of them spoke.Then Aurora noticed something.A framed photograph on the table.

She picked it up.

"Who is this?"

Emmanuel's expression changed instantly.Aurora looked closer.It was a picture of a young Emmanuel standing beside a young girl who looked familiar.

"Why do I feel like I've seen her before?"

Emmanuel took the picture from her hand.

"Aurora."

His voice was different and serious.

"What?"

He stared at the photograph."Because you have."

"What do you mean?"Aurora stared at Emmanuel.

He placed the photograph back on the table."Not everything from the past disappeared."

"That is not an answer."She frowned.

"I know."Emmanuel looked at her.

"Then explain."

Before he could respond, his assistant walked into the room.

"Mr. Laurent, sorry to interrupt."

"What happened?"Emmanuel turned.

"The company received an anonymous package."

Aurora noticed the change in his expression.

"Another message?"

The assistant nodded.

Emmanuel opened the package carefully.Inside was an old newspaper clipping.

"What is that?"Aurora leaned closer.

He looked at the headline.His face became serious.

"What?"

Emmanuel didn't answer immediately.

Aurora took the paper from him.Her eyes moved across the page.

LAURENT-SINCLAIR FAMILY TRAGEDY LEAVES QUESTIONS.

Her heart tightened."This is about our families."

Emmanuel nodded.

The article mentioned the accident that changed everything twenty-five years ago.

Aurora looked at him.

"Why does everyone keep saying accident?"

Emmanuel looked at her.

"Because that's what we were told."

Her eyes narrowed.

"You don't believe it?"

"No."

The answer was immediate.

"Why?"

"Because too many people benefited from believing it."A cold silence filled the room.

Aurora looked back at the newspaper.Then she noticed something written on the back.

A single sentence.

Her fingers froze.

"What is it?"

Emmanuel took the paper.His expression changed as he read it.

Aurora looked at him.

"Tell me."

He turned the paper around.Written in bold letters were the words:

"The person who destroyed your families is closer than you think."

Aurora's heartbeat increased.

"Who sent this?"

Emmanuel stared at the message.

"I don't know."

Then his phone rang.

He answered.

A voice came from the other end."Stop searching for the truth."

Emmanuel's eyes darkened.

"Who are you?"

A quiet laugh followed."You already know me."

The call ended.Aurora looked at him.

"Who was it?"

Emmanuel slowly lowered the phone.And for the first time, his voice carried uncertainty.

"It was my father."

Aurora stared at Emmanuel.

"Your father?"

He nodded slowly.

"But that's impossible."

"Why?"

"Because your father died."

The words hung between them.Emmanuel looked at the phone in his hand.

"That's what everyone believes."

Aurora felt a chill."Are you saying your father is alive?"

"I don't know."

For the first time, she saw uncertainty in his eyes.Not the confidence of a billionaire.Nor the calm man who always seemed to have control.Just a son searching for answers.

Aurora lowered her voice.

"Emmanuel..."

He looked at her.

"What happened to your family?"He was silent for a moment.

"The same thing that happened to yours."He answered.

Her heart tightened.

"Someone took everything from us."

Before she could respond, the lights in the mansion suddenly went out.

Aurora froze.

"Again?"

Emmanuel immediately stood.

"Stay behind me."

This time, she didn't argue.

A sound came from the hallway.A slow movement.Someone was inside.

Emmanuel reached for his phone and called security.No answer.

Aurora whispered,

"Emmanuel..."

He looked toward the darkness.

"Don't move."

A few seconds passed.Then the lights returned.The hallway was empty.But something had changed.A small envelope was lying on the floor.

Emmanuel walked toward it.Aurora followed.

"Don't touch it."

He carefully picked it up.Inside was a single photograph.He looked at it.Then his expression changed.

Aurora noticed.

"What is it?"

Emmanuel handed the picture to her.Her breath stopped.It was a picture of her mother.

But this time.Her mother wasn't alone.Standing beside her was a man Aurora recognized.

She looked at Emmanuel.And written on the back of the photograph were three words:

"They both survived."

Aurora's hands trembled as she read the words again.They both survived.Two people who were supposed to be gone.

Emmanuel looked at the photograph, his expression unreadable.

"Someone has been hiding the truth for twenty-five years."

Aurora looked at him.

"Then we need to find them."

Before Emmanuel could answer, his phone received one final message.He opened it.His face changed.Aurora stepped closer.

"What does it say?"

He slowly turned the screen toward her.

A single sentence appeared.

"If you want to see them again, come alone."

Aurora and Emmanuel stared at the message.

Because they both knew...

The person who sent it had been waiting for them.