TEN
703 Words
Chapter 10 – The Hidden Document
The next morning seemed perfectly ordinary. The house was quiet during breakfast—the only sound was the faint clinking of silverware against porcelain.
Yet beneath that calm morning air, Althea could feel the heaviness between her and Xavier.
He looked as if he wanted to say something, but held himself back. His eyes were cold, but behind them flickered uncertainty—as though he carried the weight of a secret he dared not reveal.
“Miss Althea,” Lea spoke softly, handing her a folder. “These are the new contracts for Mr. Madrigal’s expansion project.”
Althea smiled and accepted it politely. But behind that gentle smile, an uneasy feeling stirred in her chest—a strange anxiety she couldn’t explain.
Once Lea left, Althea slowly opened the folder. Everything seemed in order—contracts, plans, signatures of board members—all neatly arranged.
But one document immediately caught her attention.
A marriage contract, tucked between the pages.
And there it was—Xavier Madrigal’s signature… followed by another.
Not hers.
It felt as though a bucket of ice water had been poured over her.
“What does this mean?” she whispered, her hands trembling as the chill spread through her fingers.
The ink was clear, the name of the other woman written in precise strokes—someone she’d never heard of before, but the name stung all the same.
Clarisse N. Montemayor.
She quickly folded the document and rushed out, heading straight for Xavier’s office.
But when she arrived, only his secretary was there.
“Sir Xavier left early for a meeting,” the woman said politely.
Althea froze, forcing a smile despite the tightness in her chest.
“I see… Thank you.”
She returned to her room, slipping the document between the pages of her notebook. Her fingers were still shaking as she stared at the paper again and again, searching for some logical explanation to the impossible truth.
Then—a knock on the door.
“Althea?”
It was Lea.
She opened the door slowly. “Do you need something, Miss Sandoval?”
Lea smiled faintly, holding a cup of coffee. “Nothing much. I just thought you might need this. You look… a bit troubled.”
“I’m fine,” Althea answered quickly, her voice unsteady but trying to stay firm.
But Lea didn’t leave.
Instead, she walked in uninvited, her gaze sweeping across the room—until it landed on Althea’s notebook, slightly open on the table.
“Is something wrong, Althea?” she asked, her tone cool and probing.
“Nothing. Why do you ask?”
“Oh, nothing.” Lea smiled, though there was a sharp glint of deceit behind it.
“Just be careful with what you’re holding. Some things are better left unread.”
Then she turned away, walking out with a faint echo of heels against the floor—each step leaving a trail of unease in Althea’s chest.
When Lea finally disappeared down the hallway, Althea sat down on the edge of her bed, her heart racing.
Those words—“better left unread”—echoed in her mind again and again.
If that document was real…
It meant a marriage had taken place long before she came into Xavier’s life.
And if that was true—what was she in all of this?
A replacement?
A temporary illusion of love in a man’s already taken heart?
As tears streamed down her cheeks, pain and determination fought within her.
She would not turn away. She would not remain blind.
Grabbing her phone, she typed a message quickly:
> “Xavier, we need to talk. Now.”
Minutes passed—no reply.
The message was marked seen, but no response came.
And that was when Althea knew it was all true.
Xavier was hiding something.
And Lea…
Lea knew everything.
Outside, the rain began to fall—soft and cold, carrying the weight of secrets the night refused to tell.
Althea stared at the document in her hand, and for the first time, she whispered to herself:
> “If there’s truth behind all of this… I’ll find it myself.”
- Writer
