Chapter 4: The Night Stephanie Was Born
My mother stared at the notebook as if the words had been written in blood.
Stephanie stood beside the coffee table, her arms wrapped tightly around herself.
“What does that mean?”” she demanded.
Mom didn't answer.
“Mom, I'm asking you a question.””
“I heard you.””
“Then tell me what happened the night I was born.””
Mom looked up.
“Not the night you were born, sweetheart. The night Stephanie was born.””
Stephanie's expression changed.
I moved closer to the table.
“Mom, whatever this is, we need to know.””
She closed her eyes.
For several seconds, the only sound in the room was the ticking of the old grandfather clock in the hallway.
Then she began.
“Your father and I had been married for six years when Stephanie was born. We had already built the business, bought this house, and started planning for the future. Richard was working almost every night. He was under enormous pressure.””
She looked at Stephanie.
“Your birth was difficult. You were early, and the doctors were worried about complications. Richard stayed at the hospital for three days.””
Stephanie frowned.
“What's unusual about that?””
Mom swallowed.
“Nothing. Not at first.””
I sat down.
“Mom, please get to the point.””
She nodded.
“About six weeks after you came home, a woman named Patricia Cole contacted your father.””
I felt my stomach tighten.
“Charles Cole's wife?””
Mom nodded.
Stephanie stared at her.
“Why would she contact Dad?””
“Because she was in trouble.””
“What kind of trouble?””
Mom's voice became barely audible.
“She claimed Charles had been hiding money from her. She had discovered financial records showing that he was using family investments to acquire businesses through shell companies.””
I looked at the notebook.
“Dad's company?””
“Among others.””
Mom continued.
“Richard helped her find an attorney. He believed she was being financially abused, and he wanted to help her protect herself.””
Stephanie shook her head.
“That's it? Dad helped someone's wife?””
Mom looked at her.
“No. It wasn't just that.””
She took a deep breath.
“Patricia had become pregnant before you were born. She told Charles the child wasn't his. Charles refused to believe her. Their marriage was falling apart.””
I stared at my mother.
“Where are you going with this?””
Mom looked directly at Stephanie.
“Patricia gave birth to a little girl around the same time you were born.””
Stephanie's face went pale.
“What?””
“Her daughter was born just eleven days after you.””
The room fell silent.
Mom continued.
“Patricia died in a car accident when the baby was only a few weeks old. Charles refused to take responsibility for the child because he believed she wasn't his. Richard helped arrange temporary guardianship while the legal situation was sorted out.””
I looked at Stephanie.
She seemed unable to understand.
“Are you saying Dad adopted another child?””
Mom nodded slowly.
“Yes.””
Stephanie stepped backward.
“Who?””
My mother looked at her.
“You.””
For a moment, nobody spoke.
Then Stephanie laughed.
It was a short, disbelieving sound.
“That's ridiculous.””
Mom shook her head.
“I'm sorry.””
“No. You're lying.””
“Stephanie—”
“Dad was my father!””
“He raised you. He loved you. He was your father in every way that mattered.””
Stephanie's face twisted.
“But biologically?””
Mom couldn't answer.
Stephanie looked at me.
“Did you know?””
“No.””
“You're lying.””
“I swear I didn't know.””
She turned back to Mom.
“Who is my biological father?””
Mom's lips trembled.
“Charles Cole.””
The name seemed to strike the room like a gunshot.
Nathan's father.
My former fiancé's father.
Stephanie sank onto the sofa.
“No.””
Mom reached toward her.
She pulled away.
“No, no, no.””
I felt sick.
The implications unfolded in my mind.
Nathan.
Stephanie.
Charles.
The trust.
The alternative beneficiary arrangement.
The marriage contract.
I looked at Margaret, who had remained silent throughout the conversation.
“Did you know?””
She nodded.
“Your father disclosed the information when he established the trust.””
Stephanie looked up sharply.
“And you didn't tell me?””
Margaret spoke carefully.
“Your father believed the information should remain private unless it became relevant to a legal dispute involving the trust.””
Stephanie laughed bitterly.
“So everyone knew except me?””
“Not everyone,” Margaret answered.
“Your mother and I knew. Your father knew. Charles Cole knew.””
Stephanie pressed both hands against her face.
“Does Nathan know?””
Mom looked down.
“I don't know.””
I stood.
“Mom, this explains the alternative beneficiary arrangement.””
Margaret nodded.
“It may.””
I looked at her.
“Explain.””
She opened the folder.
“Your father structured the trust so that your ownership interest would remain protected. However, he included a separate provision concerning a potential claim by a biological child of Charles Cole.””
Stephanie looked up.
“Me?””
“Yes.””
Margaret turned a page.
“The provision was designed to prevent Charles from using an undisclosed family relationship to claim influence over the Wilson assets. Your father anticipated that Charles might attempt to establish a financial connection through you.””
Stephanie's mouth opened.
“Why would he do that?””
“Because Charles wanted control of the land and company your father owned.””
I looked at the documents again.
“And Nathan's plan?””
Margaret nodded.
“Your marriage to Nathan would have created one route to the assets. Stephanie's marriage to him would have created another route, depending on how the trust's conditions were interpreted and challenged.””
I shook my head.
“So Nathan was trying to marry both of us for the same reason.””
“Possibly,” James said.
“But we need more evidence before drawing a final conclusion.””
Stephanie suddenly stood.
“I'm going home.””
I stared at her.
“Absolutely not.””
“It's my home.””
“It's Nathan's mansion.””
She glared at me.
“Don't start.””
“Stephanie, he knows you have copies of the documents. He knows you're here. You just heard him threaten you.””
“I have to talk to him.””
“You're not going back there alone.””
She grabbed her bag.
“You don't get to tell me what to do.””
I stepped in front of her.
“For once, could you stop thinking about what you want?””
Her eyes flashed.
“And for once, could you stop acting like you're the only person who has ever been hurt?””
I stared at her.
“You stole my fiancé.””
“And he stole my life!””
The words came out so loudly that Mom flinched.
Stephanie began crying.
“You think I won? You think I got some beautiful life? Nathan controls everything.
He controls the money, the house, the accounts, the people we see. I can't even buy a plane ticket without his office knowing.””
I said nothing.
She wiped her face.
“When we got married, I thought I was finally going to have something that belonged to me. I thought I had beaten you.””
Her voice broke.
“But I haven't been happy for years.””
I looked at her.
“That's not my responsibility.””
“I know.””
For once, she didn't argue.
She simply sat back down.
Margaret closed the folder.
“We need to establish Stephanie's legal position before anyone contacts Charles Cole.””
Mom looked toward the window.
“Charles is still alive.””
“Yes,” Margaret answered.
“Then he should know what happened.””
Stephanie shook her head violently.
“No.””
I turned toward her.
“Why not?””
She looked at me.
“Because if he's my father, then Nathan and I—”
She couldn't finish.
I understood.
Nathan and Stephanie had been married for years.
If Charles Cole was Stephanie's biological father, then Nathan was her half-brother.
The room fell silent.
Margaret spoke carefully.
“Biological records and the exact circumstances of the family relationships must be verified. We shouldn't jump ahead of the evidence.””
Stephanie began shaking.
“He knows,” she whispered.
I looked at her.
“What?””
“He knows.””
“Who?””
“Nathan.””
She reached into her bag and removed her phone.
Her fingers moved through several folders before she found a photograph.
It was a screenshot of an email.
The sender was Charles Cole.
The subject line read:
Regarding Stephanie.
I leaned closer.
The email was dated four years earlier.
Nathan had been copied.
The message was short.
The truth about Patricia must never become public. The girl is your responsibility now. Keep her away from the Wilson trust until the acquisition is complete.
My blood ran cold.
Stephanie read the sentence again.
Then she looked at me.
“He knew.””
I couldn't speak.
“He knew who I was,” she whispered.
“He knew before we got married.””
Mom began crying.
Stephanie dropped the phone.
Then she said something that changed everything.
“Nathan told me he had found a way to make me the beneficiary.””
Margaret leaned forward.
“What way?””
Stephanie looked at the screen.
“He said there was a document Dad signed before he died.””
“What document?””
“I don't know. Nathan said if anything happened to Olivia, the trust would pass to me.””
My entire body went cold.
“Why would anything happen to me?””
Stephanie covered her mouth.
“I didn't ask.””
I stared at her.
“You didn't ask?””
She began sobbing.
“I thought he was talking about you moving away. I thought he meant you wouldn't want the company.””
Margaret stood immediately.
“James, we need to secure the trust documents and notify the appropriate authorities about the threat.””
James nodded.
Stephanie looked at me.
“Olivia, I swear I didn't know what he meant.””
I wanted to believe her.
But I couldn't forget the years of cruelty.
The stolen fiancé.
The photographs.
The smug smile.
The way she had raised her ring at our mother's funeral.
I stepped away.
“You need to understand something, Stephanie. I may help protect you from Nathan, but that doesn't mean we're sisters again.””
She nodded.
“I understand.””
My mother reached for both our hands.
Neither of us moved.
And then Margaret's phone rang.
She answered, listened, and slowly turned toward me.
“Olivia,” she said.
“What?””
“Someone has accessed your father's trust records.””
“Who?””
She glanced at Stephanie.
May you like
Then she answered.
“Charles Cole.””
