For six years, I had celebrated birthdays, bought toys, read bedtime stories, and believed I was raising my daughter.
And now both little girls were caught in the middle of a crime committed by adults.
"Where is Sophie?"" I asked.
Elena shook her head.
"I don't know.""
I grabbed the phone.
This time, Daniel answered.
"Where is Ava?""
There was a pause.
"Sir, the little girl upstairs is here.""
"Then who sent me that message?""
Daniel lowered his voice.
"I found the box. But there's something else. There's a hidden compartment underneath it.
I found photographs of two little girls. One is Ava. The other is the child who's currently in the house.""
"Are they together?""
"No, sir. The second girl is with Rebecca.""
I closed my eyes.
"Your west wing security room.""
I looked at Elena.
She understood immediately.
"She's in the house," she whispered.
I turned back to Daniel.
"Lock every exit. Don't let anyone leave.""
"Already trying, sir. But the security system isn't responding.""
"Where's Rebecca?""
"She's in the main hall.""
I heard a crash through the phone.
Then Daniel shouted.
"Get away from her!""
The call ended.
I grabbed the pistol.
Elena tried to stand.
"Marcus, wait.""
"We're getting out.""
She caught my hand.
"There's something else.""
"Rebecca isn't doing this alone.""
I looked at her.
Elena shook her head.
She looked toward the ceiling.
"Your father.""
My father had died eight years earlier.
His name was Richard Hale.
He had built the company from a small construction business into one of the largest property development groups in the state.
He had been strict, controlling, and obsessed with protecting the family name.
But he had been dead for years.
"Elena, what are you talking about?""
She pointed to the papers scattered on the floor.
"Look at the trust documents.""
I picked them up.
There was a signature at the bottom.
The date was six years earlier.
My father's signature.
I stared at it.
"That's impossible.""
"Your father knew about the twins.""
I shook my head.
"He arranged the hospital switch.""
Elena took my hand.
"Richard believed the Hale family needed an heir. He wanted a grandson, but when he learned you were having daughters, he became furious. He believed your company would be vulnerable if the inheritance passed to a woman.""
I stared at her.
"So he arranged for Rebecca to raise one of our children?""
"And you let him?""
"I didn't know until after the birth.""
She began crying.
"By then, he had already threatened to destroy your career. He said he would make sure you lost everything if I told you.""
I looked at the photograph.
My father had been dead for eight years.
But his decisions were still destroying my family.
I felt anger rising inside me.
Then the speaker crackled.
Graham's voice returned.
"Mr. Hale, I hope you've enjoyed your family reunion.""
"Where are you?""
"Somewhere comfortable.""
"Where's my daughter?""
I clenched my jaw.
"You're finally beginning to understand.""
A video appeared on the monitor.
It showed the mansion's main hall.
Rebecca stood beside a little girl.
The child wore a pale blue dress.
Her hair was tied into two ponytails.
She looked exactly like Ava.
But she was smaller.
And she was crying.
Rebecca knelt beside her.
"Tell me your name, sweetheart.""
The little girl shook her head.
"My name is Ava.""
Rebecca smiled.
"No, darling. Your name is Sophie.""
The girl began sobbing.
"My daddy calls me Ava!""
Rebecca grabbed her chin.
"Your daddy doesn't know anything.""
I slammed my fist against the table.
Graham's voice came through the speaker.
"There's a problem, Marcus.""
I stared at the monitor.
"What problem?""
"Your wife has been keeping a secret.""
I turned toward Elena.
She was shaking her head.
Graham continued.
"The child you raised as Ava isn't your biological daughter. But she isn't Rebecca's daughter either.""
I felt my breath catch.
"Stop playing games.""
"Ask Elena who the biological father of Sophie is.""
Elena's face had gone white.
I stepped toward her.
She couldn't meet my eyes.
I stared at her.
"Rebecca had an affair with him. Before you married me. He was the father of the child she gave birth to.""
The room fell silent.
I looked at the little girl on the monitor.
The child I had raised.
The child who called me Daddy.
She was my half-sister's daughter.
My father's child.
My family had been built on a lie.
And somewhere in the mansion, the little girl who was actually my daughter was being held by the woman who had stolen her.
I turned toward the ventilation shaft.
"Can we get out through there?""
I helped her climb.
The passage was narrow, but we managed to crawl through it.
After several minutes, we reached a maintenance corridor behind the pool equipment room.