CHAPTER 5: THE MESSAGE ON THE PHONE
While Daniel waited anxiously outside the emergency room, a nurse approached him with Elena’s personal belongings. Among them was her mobile phone, its screen cracked but still functioning. Daniel noticed several unread messages from an unknown number. The latest message contained a photograph of an old medical document and a short warning: “If you want to know the truth about your first child, ask your mother what happened that night.” His hands began to tremble. He opened the photograph and recognized the name of the private clinic where Elena had received treatment after her previous pregnancy loss. The document appeared to contain information about a medical procedure that had never been mentioned to him. Before he could examine it further, the phone suddenly rang. The caller was Mrs. Collins, the housekeeper. She told Daniel that she had found something hidden inside Margaret’s private study. She begged him to come alone because the truth was more dangerous than he could imagine. Daniel looked toward the operating room, then back at the phone. He realized that his family’s secrets were connected in ways he had never imagined.
CHAPTER 6: THE MOTHER-IN-LAW’S HIDDEN ROOM
That evening, after receiving confirmation that Elena and the baby were temporarily stable, Daniel returned to the mansion. He entered his mother’s study using a spare key and began searching through the locked cabinets. Behind a collection of old family photographs, he discovered a small metal box containing medical records, handwritten letters, and several bank statements. One document revealed that Margaret had transferred a substantial amount of money to a doctor shortly before Elena’s previous pregnancy loss. Another letter contained a disturbing sentence: “The girl must never learn what happened, and Daniel must remain convinced that the loss was unavoidable.” Daniel felt physically sick. He had spent years believing his mother wanted nothing more than his happiness. Yet the evidence suggested that she had deliberately hidden information about his wife and their unborn child. Before he could examine the remaining papers, he heard footsteps outside the study. The door opened, and Margaret appeared. She looked at the documents in his hands and slowly closed the door behind her. For a long moment, neither spoke. Then she calmly said, “You should have left the past buried.”
CHAPTER 7: THE TRUTH BEHIND THE PERFECT FAMILY
Margaret finally admitted that she had known more about Elena’s previous pregnancy than she had ever revealed. However, she insisted that everything she had done was intended to protect the Hawthorne family. Years earlier, she had discovered that Elena’s family had financial difficulties and believed the young woman had married Daniel for his wealth. She had never accepted Elena as a suitable wife for her son. When Elena became pregnant the first time, Margaret secretly contacted a private physician who had treated several members of the Hawthorne family. She wanted the doctor to investigate Elena’s medical condition and determine whether the pregnancy could create complications for Daniel’s future. But the situation had become much worse than she expected. A medical decision had been made without Elena’s informed consent, and Margaret had used her influence to conceal the details. Daniel was horrified. He demanded to know whether his mother had caused the loss of their first child. Margaret refused to answer directly. Instead, she claimed that the doctor had acted independently. Daniel realized that his mother was still protecting someone, and he was determined to discover who.
CHAPTER 8: THE HOUSEKEEPER’S COURAGE
Mrs. Collins had served the Hawthorne family since Daniel was a child. She had witnessed Margaret’s controlling behavior for decades, but she had never dared to challenge her employer. That night, however, she decided that remaining silent was no longer an option. She met Daniel in the kitchen and revealed that she had secretly recorded an argument between Margaret and the family physician several months earlier. In the recording, the doctor mentioned that Elena had discovered irregularities in her medical records and was preparing to report them. Margaret responded by threatening to destroy the doctor’s career if he allowed the information to become public. Mrs. Collins explained that she had saved the recording because she feared Elena might be in danger. She also admitted seeing Margaret approach Elena shortly before the fall. Daniel listened without interrupting, his face growing increasingly pale. The recording did not prove that Margaret had physically pushed Elena, but it established a motive for silencing her. Mrs. Collins handed him a small memory card and whispered, “Your wife was trying to protect your family, even when your family was trying to destroy her.”
CHAPTER 9: A FIGHT FOR TWO LIVES