Chapter 7
1086 Words
Her words echoed in my head long after she had uttered them.
It didn’t make any sense.
I stared at her, letter trembling in my hands. I felt sick; my thoughts raced beyond control.
“This doesn’t make any sense to me. Why am I only finding out about this now?” I blinked and tried to process the words properly.
She didn’t hurry to fill in my confusion.
“Look, it will make sense soon enough’ Maisie. She finally said, her tone was calm, and her expression full of patience. She seemed sincere; this was not a joke. I wanted to pinch myself and see that this was a dream. But it was not.
I let out a slow breath, anxiety tightening my chest, and dragged a hand through my hair. Biting my lip, I tried to understand as confusion and unease mixed inside me.
Was my mum alive?
All this time, I’ve felt alone and lost without my mother. I couldn’t believe it.
“She’s really alive?” I muttered.
“Yes. It is true. Your mum is very much alive. She faked her own death.”
“And she just… left me? She left me with that so-called father of mine and let his new wife take over, and her bratty daughter treat me like rubbish?” The words came out sharper now. “My own mother watched everything happen and did nothing to save me? Why the hell would she let me go through all that?” I clenched my fists at my side and dropped the letter to the floor.
“That’s not what happened.” Her reply was swift, her voice firm for the first time.
"Then what happened?" I pressed, frustration breaking through. "From my view, she disappeared and left me with them."
The room felt tighter again, the walls closing in as everything I had buried for years pushed to the surface.
“She didn’t leave you,” she said, stepping closer. “She protected you.”
"By abandoning me?" I laughed bitterly. "That’s not protection. I could never do that to my own child." I shook my head.
Her expression didn’t change, but something in her eyes hardened slightly.
"You think she had a choice?" she snapped.
I opened my mouth to answer, but nothing came out. I was surprised by her tone.
Because the truth was—
I didn’t know. Shame washed over me, then confusion, and finally a strange, unexpected relief tangled inside me.
She continued, "You were a child. You didn’t see what happened behind the scenes. You weren’t meant to."
My grip tightened on the letter as anger and disbelief built inside me.
"Then tell me," I said. "I’ve clearly been living a lie."
“Your mother wasn’t just some woman with a small company, Maisie,” she said. “What she built… it was bigger than anything your father ever let you believe. He had an affair and wanted your mother to sign everything over to him.”
My heartbeat quickened, fear and a strange hope quickening it.
“What? How much bigger?”
She held my gaze.
“Global.”
The word hit me harder than I expected.
"She owned more than one company. She had holdings in property, investments, partnerships—never made public."
I shook my head slightly, trying to process it.
“That doesn’t make sense. If that were true, I would know—”
Gently, she interrupted, “No. You wouldn’t. Because your father made sure you didn’t.”
My stomach dropped.
“What do you mean?”
"When your mother disappeared, control shifted," she said. "Not fully. Not legally. But enough for him to move things into his name."
Anger flared instantly, sharp and hot.
“He couldn’t do that. It was hers.”
“And yours,” she said. “Eventually.”
The word lingered.
Yours.
“He knew that,” she continued. “Which is why he needed you.”
The pieces fell into place, each realisation bringing a wave of dread.
“That’s why…” I trailed off, my voice tightening. “That’s why they want me to sign everything.”
“Yes. And, Daniel. He is not who you think he is.”
My chest tightened painfully. “He’s part of it, isn't he?” I held my breath.
My Daniel.
How could he do that to me?
"They’ve worked together longer than you realise. Long before the wedding."
That didn’t surprise me.
Not anymore.
“Why now?” I asked. “Why wait until tomorrow?”
"Tomorrow changes everything legally." Her tone was grave. She added, "Marriage gives Daniel access and authority he can’t claim without your consent."
Consent? That word felt bitter—first sharp with betrayal, then cold and raw with realisation.
How could I have been so stupid to think that I would ever get my happy ending?
"They almost had it," I muttered, bitterness sharp. "They almost took everything. I believed he loved me."
“It would not have happened. Your mother would not have allowed it.”
“What happens now?” I asked, unsure if I wanted to hear the answer.
“Now,” she said, “you disappear.”
Disappear? Had I not already done that?
"I already did that. I’m here now, and they don’t know I left."
“No,” she said calmly. “You left the house. That’s not the same thing.”
A chill ran through me.
“What do I do?” I asked.
Her expression softened slightly, but her reply was firm. “You follow the letter,” she directed.
The letter. I picked it up and glanced at it.
“I need to find her, I need to see my mother. Where is she?” I perched on the edge of the chair and looked up at the woman, my mother’s best friend.
"She’s not somewhere you can just go," she explained, watching me closely. “It is not that easy, Maisie.”
My stomach dropped, and my heart pounded.
“What does that mean?”
She replied slowly, “It means, if you want to find her… you’re going to have to disappear properly.”
My breath caught in my throat, and I felt sick at the pit of my stomach.
I had to see her, I had to face my mother, the woman who birthed me. I needed answers and the full story. If that meant I had to disappear too, then so be it.
- Writer
