chapter 17. My Mother's Last Words
1486 Words
"If you are reading this, my precious Rose... then it means I couldn't protect you."
My hands trembled.
A single tear landed on the faded paper.
Around me, Sterling Manor had fallen silent.
Gabriel's lifeless body still lay on the marble floor, covered with a white sheet.
James stood beside me, his hand resting gently on my shoulder.
"You don't have to read it now."
I slowly shook my head.
"I've waited twenty-five years to hear my mother's voice."
"I won't wait another minute."
Taking a deep breath, I continued reading.
---
My dearest Rose,
If fate is kind, you'll never need this letter. But if you're holding it today, then the people who destroyed our family are still searching for you.
Fresh tears blurred my vision.
Never believe that you were abandoned.
Your father and I loved you more than our own lives.
The day you disappeared, I searched every street, every hospital, every orphanage. I never stopped looking for you.
My chest tightened.
I could almost hear her voice.
James quietly took my free hand.
His warmth gave me the strength to continue.
---
There is something you must know.
You were never kidn*pped because of money.
You were taken because of what belongs to you.
I frowned.
"What belongs to me?"
Richard's face grew pale.
"No..."
He whispered.
"She told her."
James looked at him.
"What is she talking about?"
Richard didn't answer.
I continued reading.
---
Hidden beneath Sterling Manor is proof that can destroy some of the most powerful people in the country.
Many innocent families died protecting that secret.
One day... You will have to decide whether to reveal the truth or bury it forever.
The room fell silent.
James slowly looked toward Richard.
"You knew."
Richard lowered his head.
"Yes."
"You knew this entire time."
"I wanted to protect both of you."
James clenched his fists.
"By lying again?"
Before Richard could answer, I reached the final paragraph.
My heartbeat quickened.
---
Rose...
If you ever fall in love...
Choose the man who protects your heart, not your fortune.
I looked up at James.
He smiled softly.
Our eyes met.
At that moment...
Nothing else mattered.
Not the secrets.
Not the danger.
Only us.
James gently wiped away my tears.
"Your mother was right."
"I'll spend the rest of my life protecting your heart."
I smiled through my tears.
"And I'll spend mine loving you."
He leaned closer.
Our lips were only inches apart.
Then—
RING! RING!
James's phone shattered the silence.
He frowned and answered.
"This is James."
The color drained from his face.
"What?"
He turned toward me slowly.
His voice was barely above a whisper.
"The hospital just called."
I felt my stomach knot.
"What's wrong?"
James swallowed hard.
"They've found another patient..."
"...using your mother's name."
The words hit me like a bolt of lightning.
I stared at James, unable to speak.
"What do you mean?" I whispered.
James slowly lowered his phone.
"The hospital records show a woman was admitted two weeks ago."
"She registered under the name..."
"Elizabeth Sterling."
Richard's face turned deathly pale.
"That's impossible."
"I buried Elizabeth twenty-five years ago."
James looked at him.
"Apparently..."
"You buried the wrong woman."
Silence filled the room.
My heart pounded so hard it hurt.
"Are you saying..."
"My mother might still be alive?"
James stepped closer and gently held my trembling hands.
"We don't know yet."
"But we're going to find out."
Without another word, everyone rushed toward the waiting cars.
---
Forty minutes later...
Sterling Memorial Hospital.
James led me through the emergency entrance while Evelyn spoke with the head administrator.
"The patient arrived unconscious," the administrator explained.
"She had no identification except an old necklace engraved with the Sterling family crest."
My breath caught.
"The necklace..."
Richard whispered.
"I gave Elizabeth that necklace on our wedding day."
The administrator nodded.
"We've kept it in our secure locker."
He handed the necklace to Richard.
His hands trembled as he held it.
"It's hers."
A strange mixture of hope and fear settled over me.
If my mother were alive...
Why had she never come looking for me?
The administrator stopped outside Room 309.
"She's inside."
My legs suddenly felt weak.
James wrapped an arm around my shoulders.
"You don't have to do this alone."
I looked up at him and nodded.
Together...
We pushed open the door.
An elderly woman lay quietly on the hospital bed.
Her face was pale, her eyes closed.
Machines beeped softly around her.
I stepped closer.
Something about her felt familiar.
Her long dark hair had faded with age.
But her features...
They looked so much like mine.
A tear rolled down my cheek.
"Mom?"
The woman didn't move.
The doctor checked her chart.
"She's been in a coma since she arrived."
"We're still trying to determine her identity."
I reached for her hand.
It was warm.
For a brief moment...
Her fingers twitched.
The heart monitor quickened.
The doctor looked up.
"She's responding."
Slowly...
The woman's eyelids fluttered open.
She looked directly at me.
Tears filled her eyes.
With great effort, she whispered one word.
"Rose..."
My heart stopped.
Before I could answer—
The hospital lights suddenly went out.
Darkness swallowed the room.
A loud explosion shook the entire building.
The emergency alarms began to scream.
James instantly pulled me behind him.
"What was that?"
Evelyn's voice crackled through his earpiece.
"Mr. Sterling!"
"The hospital is under attack!"
James's eyes hardened.
"By whom?"
Evelyn's reply sent a chill through everyone in the room.
"The Black Council has come for Rose."
James's eyes turned ice-cold.
"Lock every entrance," he ordered into his earpiece.
"No one gets near this room."
Outside, panicked screams echoed through the hospital corridors.
Doctors and nurses rushed patients toward the emergency exits.
The backup generators kicked in, bathing the hallway in dim red lights.
James turned to Evelyn.
"Get Rose, Richard, and Michael to the safe stairwell."
"What about you?" I asked.
He cupped my face gently.
"I'm going to buy you enough time to escape."
I grabbed his wrist.
"No."
"I'm not leaving you again."
Before James could answer, the woman lying in the hospital bed slowly opened her eyes.
She looked directly at me.
Her lips trembled.
"Rose..."
Fresh tears filled my eyes.
"Mom..."
She reached for my hand with surprising strength.
"You must listen carefully."
"There isn't much time."
James glanced toward the door, listening to the gunfire drawing closer.
"Make it quick."
She nodded weakly.
"The Black Council doesn't want your inheritance."
I frowned.
"Then what do they want?"
"They want..."
"...the Sterling Ledger."
Richard's face turned white.
"They found out."
My mother looked at him.
"I warned you years ago."
Richard lowered his head in shame.
"I thought I had hidden it well enough."
She shook her head.
"They've been watching us all along."
I looked between them in confusion.
"What is the Sterling Ledger?"
"It contains every secret transaction made by the Black Council over the last thirty years."
"Names."
"Bank accounts."
"Murders."
"Bribes."
"If it becomes public..."
"The organization will collapse."
James's expression darkened.
"So that's why they've been hunting Rose."
My mother nodded.
"Only the rightful Sterling heir can unlock the vault."
I felt my heart pound.
"Me."
She squeezed my hand.
"Yes."
Suddenly—
BANG!
The hospital room door exploded inward.
Smoke filled the room.
Masked gunmen stormed inside with rifles raised.
"Nobody moves!"
James stepped in front of me without hesitation.
"You'll have to go through me."
The leader of the attackers laughed.
"That won't be difficult."
He aimed his weapon directly at James.
Before he could fire—
A single shot echoed through the room.
The masked leader collapsed.
Standing in the doorway was Adrian Sterling, flanked by armed security officers.
"You're late," James said with a faint smile.
Adrian reloaded his pistol.
"I brought friends."
A fierce gunfight erupted throughout the room.
Bullets shattered windows and tore through furniture.
James grabbed my hand.
"We're leaving!"
As we rushed toward the emergency exit, my mother called out.
"Rose!"
I turned back.
She reached beneath her pillow and pulled out a small golden key attached to a silver chain.
"Take this."
"It's the only key to the Sterling Vault."
I caught it with trembling hands.
At that moment, a sniper's bullet shattered the window.
The glass exploded across the room.
My mother's eyes widened.
She pushed me away with the last of her strength.
BANG!
The bullet struck her.
"No!" I screamed.
James wrapped his arms around me, holding me back as doctors rushed to her bedside.
Through tears, I watched her look at me one final time.
With her last breath, she whispered,
"Trust... no one..."
Her hand fell still.
Before I could process what had happened, the hospital's emergency broadcast crackled to life.
"Attention... the Sterling Vault has been breached."
James and Adrian exchanged horrified looks.
James whispered,
"We're too late."
- Writer
