The Hidden heir’s revenge

Chapter 55 — The Brother Who Raised Him

“Matthew is your older brother.”

Eleanor’s words seemed to silence everything around Varek.

He stared at his phone.

“Say that again.”

“I said Matthew is your older brother.”

Varek shook his head.

“Matthew Cross?”

“Yes.”

“The man who manipulated Samuel? The man who altered the hospital records? The man who tried to kill Daniel Thorne?”

Eleanor began crying.

“I know what he has done.”

“Then explain how he is my brother.”

“Twenty-nine years ago, Isabel gave birth to two boys. The first was Matthew. The second was you.”

Varek looked toward Grace.

She had covered her mouth.

Eleanor continued.

“Isabel was afraid Alistair would take both children. She arranged for me to remove you from the hospital. Matthew was supposed to remain with her until she could escape.”

“But he didn’t.”

“No. Someone changed the plan.”

“Who?”

“Richard.”

Varek closed his eyes.

“Of course.”

“Richard took Matthew and gave him to Mara Mercer. He wanted the firstborn under his control. You were supposed to be taken to Helena, but I changed the arrangement.”

“Why?”

“Because I discovered what Richard planned to do with Matthew.”

“What?”

Eleanor’s voice dropped.

“He wanted to turn him into the perfect replacement for the original heir.”

Varek looked at the photograph of six-year-old Matthew.

“And what happened to him?”

“He was moved between families. Mara raised him for a while, then he was transferred to St. Catherine’s. By the time I found him again, he was already using another name.”

“Matthew Cross.”

“Yes.”

Varek’s anger rose.

“So you knew all these years?”

“I knew he was your brother. I didn’t know what he had become.”

“You could have told me.”

“I was afraid he would come after you.”

Varek laughed bitterly.

“Instead, he came after everyone.”

Eleanor was silent.

Then she said something that made him stop.

“Varek, there is something else. Matthew wasn’t the only child I brought home that night.”

Varek frowned.

“What do you mean?”

“I brought three children out of that hospital.”

“Who was the third?”

Eleanor took a shaky breath.

“Samuel.”

Varek turned toward the young man standing beside him.

Samuel stared at him.

“What?”

Eleanor continued.

“Matthew was the firstborn. You were the second. Samuel was the third child I was instructed to protect.”

Varek looked at Samuel.

“Then why did Helena say he wasn’t her son?”

“Because he wasn’t.”

“Who was his mother?”

Eleanor hesitated.

“Isabel.”

Varek’s eyes narrowed.

“Isabel had three boys?”

“Yes.”

Grace suddenly stepped forward.

“That’s not true.”

Varek turned.

“What’s not true?”

“Isabel gave birth to two boys. Not three.”

Eleanor heard her.

“Grace, don’t.”

Grace looked directly at the phone.

“Stop using those children to cover your mistakes.”

Eleanor’s voice became sharp.

“You have no idea what you’re talking about.”

“I was there when Isabel delivered.”

“So was I.”

“And I saw two babies, Eleanor. Two.”

Samuel stepped backward.

“Then whose child am I?”

Nobody answered.

His face tightened.

“Why does everyone keep telling me I belong to someone else?”

Varek moved toward him.

“Samuel, we will find out.”

Samuel shook his head.

“That’s what everyone keeps promising.”

He walked away from the group.

⸻

At the safe location, Adrian was trying to get Daniel to eat.

The little boy had refused food since waking up.

“Just one spoon,” Adrian said gently.

Daniel shook his head.

“I want to go home.”

“We’ll go home soon.”

“Will the bad man come again?”

Adrian paused.

“No one is going to take you from me.”

Daniel looked at him.

“But he said you weren’t my daddy.”

Adrian placed the spoon down.

“Daniel, look at me.”

The boy raised his head.

“I may not know everything about my family. I may not know what name you were given when you were born. But I know I love you. I have taken care of you, held you when you cried, and stayed beside you when you were sick.”

Daniel’s eyes filled with tears.

“Does that mean you’re still my daddy?”

Adrian pulled him into his arms.

“Always.”

Evelyn watched them quietly.

She had heard enough family secrets to understand that blood was not always the truth people wanted it to be.

Her phone vibrated.

A message had arrived from Naomi.

I FOUND THE ORIGINAL MATERNITY REGISTER.

Evelyn immediately called her.

“What did you find?”

“The birth records for Isabel’s delivery.”

“How many children?”

“Two. Just as Grace said.”

Evelyn looked at Adrian.

“Then where did Samuel come from?”

Naomi continued.

“That’s the strange part. Samuel’s birth record was created eleven months later, but the original hospital file contains a reference to a third child.”

“What reference?”

“An unnamed male infant transferred to a private medical facility.”

Evelyn frowned.

“Who authorized the transfer?”

“Matthew Cross.”

“Was the baby Isabel’s?”

Naomi hesitated.

“According to the medical notes, no.”

“Then whose child was he?”

Naomi lowered her voice.

“Helena Vale.”

Evelyn went still.

“Samuel is Helena’s child?”

“Not according to the official record. But the medical notes say the baby was delivered by Helena and transferred under Isabel’s family registration.”

Evelyn looked at Daniel.

“Why would they do that?”

“To hide Helena’s delivery from Alistair.”

Evelyn ended the call and stared at the screen.

The identities were becoming more complicated, not less.

⸻

Back at Eleanor’s house, Varek was still waiting for answers.

“Where are you?” he asked her.

“An old property outside the city.”

“Send me the address.”

“I can’t.”

“Why?”

“Because Matthew is looking for me.”

Varek’s expression hardened.

“Then stay where you are. I’ll come for you.”

“No, Varek. You must find Isabel first.”

“Isabel is dead.”

Eleanor became silent.

Then she whispered:

“That is what Alistair wants you to believe.”

Varek remembered the woman who had called him.

“Someone claiming to be Isabel contacted me.”

“Don’t trust her.”

“Why?”

“Because the real Isabel never used that name after the hospital fire.”

Varek frowned.

“Then what name did she use?”

Eleanor took a deep breath.

“She called herself Mara.”

Varek looked at Victor.

Victor’s face changed.

“Mara Mercer?”

Eleanor heard him.

“Yes. The woman who raised you was Isabel Thorne.”

The room fell silent.

Victor stepped forward.

“That’s impossible. I grew up with her.”

“She was not your biological mother, Victor. She was Isabel’s sister. She used the name Mara to protect the children.”

Varek stared at Grace.

“Is this true?”

Grace nodded slowly.

“Isabel and Mara were sisters. They both worked at St. Catherine’s. After the fire, Mara disappeared with the children.”

Victor looked devastated.

“Then who was my mother?”

Grace looked at him.

“Isabel.”

Victor shook his head.

“But the documents say—”

“The documents were changed.”

Varek returned his attention to the phone.

“Eleanor, if Mara was Isabel, who was the woman who called me?”

Eleanor’s breathing became unsteady.

“That’s what I’ve been trying to tell you.”

“Tell me.”

“The woman who called you is the person who took Isabel’s place after the fire.”

Varek frowned.

“Who is she?”

Eleanor’s voice dropped to a whisper.

“Helena.”

Varek looked across the room.

Helena was standing near the doorway.

She had heard everything.

“That’s not true,” Helena said.

Eleanor continued speaking.

“Varek, listen carefully. The woman you have been calling Helena Vale is not Helena.”

Varek stared at the woman before him.

Helena took a step backward.

“End the call.”

Varek raised his hand.

“Don’t move.”

Eleanor’s voice suddenly became desperate.

“Find the birthmark behind her left ear. If it is still there, you’ll know.”

Varek slowly approached Helena.

She raised a hand to cover the area behind her ear.

His expression changed.

“Show me.”

“Varek, don’t.”

“Show me!”

Helena lowered her hand.

Behind her left ear was a small crescent-shaped birthmark.

The same mark described in the original medical record.

Varek looked at her.

“Who are you?”

Helena’s eyes filled with tears.

Then she gave him an answer he never expected.

“My name is Isabel Thorne.”

Before Varek could speak, she reached into her handbag and pulled out a photograph.

It showed two newborn boys.

One was wrapped in a white blanket.

The other wore a blue one.

On the back was a handwritten message.

THE FIRSTBORN IS MATTHEW. THE SECOND IS VAREK. THE THIRD CHILD MUST NEVER BE FOUND.

Varek stared at the final sentence.

“Who was the third child?”

Isabel looked toward Samuel.

Then she whispered:

“Samuel is not the third child.”

She turned the photograph over again.

Beneath the message was another name.

THE THIRD CHILD: ADRIAN THORNE.

Varek’s phone slipped slightly in his hand.

Adrian was not just connected to the family.

He had been part of the original birth records all along.

And if the photograph was genuine, the entire family had been searching for the wrong third child.