The Hidden heir’s revenge

Chapter 62 — The Child in Richard’s Arms

Varek stared at his phone.

The call had disconnected, but Adrian’s final words remained clear in his mind.

He’s holding a newborn baby. Mine.

Varek immediately called back.

No answer.

He tried again.

Still nothing.

“Victor!”

Victor appeared from the archive room.

“What happened?”

“Adrian just found a photograph of Richard holding a newborn baby. According to the record, the child is Adrian.”

Victor frowned.

“How old is the photograph?”

“Naomi needs to check that.”

Varek called Naomi.

She answered almost immediately.

“Varek?”

“Adrian called me. He found a photograph of Richard holding a baby. I need you to trace his location and get that photograph.”

“I’m already trying. His phone went offline a few minutes ago.”

“Where is Daniel?”

“With Evelyn. They’re both safe.”

“Find Adrian.”

“I’m working on it.”

Varek ended the call and turned toward Victor.

“We’re leaving.”

“Where?”

“To find my brother.”

Victor looked at him carefully.

“Which brother?”

Varek stopped.

For a moment, neither man spoke.

Then Victor gave a bitter laugh.

“That’s the problem, isn’t it? We have so many brothers that nobody knows who belongs to whom.”

Varek picked up the photograph from the archive table.

“Whatever their names are, I’m not leaving them to die because some old men wanted to control an inheritance.”

Victor nodded.

“Then let’s go.”

⸻

At Naomi’s secure location, Evelyn sat beside Isabella.

The young woman had refused medical attention for the small cut on her forehead.

She kept staring at the two necklaces on the table.

“Do you remember anything?” Evelyn asked.

Isabella shook her head.

“Only pieces.”

“What pieces?”

“I remember a room with white walls. Someone was singing. There was a woman standing beside my bed.”

“Was it Grace?”

“No.”

“Helena?”

Isabella closed her eyes.

“I don’t know.”

Evelyn touched her necklace.

“Naomi said our pendants unlock the original Black Ledger.”

“Then we should open it.”

Naomi looked up from her laptop.

“Not yet.”

Isabella frowned.

“Why?”

“Because I found something disturbing. The keys are not just access devices. Each one is connected to a beneficiary identity.”

Evelyn leaned forward.

“Meaning?”

“Meaning the system may require both girls to confirm their identities before it opens.”

“Then confirm them.”

Naomi shook her head.

“I can’t. The original records are protected by a separate verification system. It requires a live biometric match.”

Isabella looked at her.

“Whose biometric?”

Naomi turned the laptop around.

A name appeared on the screen.

JONATHAN THORNE — ORIGINAL TRUST HOLDER.

Evelyn frowned.

“I thought Jonathan was dead.”

“According to the records, he is.”

“Then how can we verify him?”

Naomi opened another file.

“Because someone has been accessing the system using his biometric identity.”

Isabella stared at the screen.

“Who?”

Naomi hesitated.

“Richard Thorne.”

Evelyn shook her head.

“Richard isn’t Jonathan.”

“That’s what we believe. But the system recognizes him as the original trust holder.”

Isabella looked toward the door.

“Then the man in the wheelchair…”

Naomi nodded.

“May be the real Jonathan.”

⸻

At the old Thorne estate, Varek and Victor reached the underground parking area.

A black car was waiting.

Varek approached it cautiously.

The driver’s door opened.

A woman stepped out.

It was Miriam Cole.

Victor immediately raised his weapon.

“Don’t move.”

Miriam lifted both hands.

“I’m not here to fight.”

Varek stared at her.

“Where is Adrian?”

“I don’t know.”

“Then why are you here?”

“Because I know what happened to him.”

Varek moved closer.

“Talk.”

Miriam looked at Victor.

“Can we do this somewhere private?”

“No,” Varek replied. “You have spent years giving people half-truths. You’re going to speak here.”

Miriam sighed.

“Adrian was born twenty-nine years ago. His biological mother was Helena Vale.”

Varek frowned.

“That’s what the first records said.”

“Those records were changed.”

“Then who is Miriam Cole?”

Miriam looked directly at him.

“His biological mother.”

Victor shook his head.

“You’re standing here telling us you gave birth to Adrian, but another record says Helena did.”

“Because Helena carried him.”

Varek went still.

“What?”

Miriam continued.

“Twenty-nine years ago, I was unable to carry a pregnancy to term. I worked with Isabel at St. Catherine’s. When Helena became pregnant, Alistair arranged for me to become the child’s legal mother.”

“Why?”

“Because he needed a child who could inherit the third position in the Black Ledger without being connected to Richard’s household.”

Varek studied her.

“Then why does Adrian have two different birth records?”

“Because Helena changed her mind. She wanted her son back. Richard refused. The child was transferred, and his identity was altered.”

Victor folded his arms.

“You’re saying Adrian was born to Helena, raised under your identity, and later registered as Damian Mercer?”

Miriam nodded.

“Yes.”

“Why?”

“Because Alistair believed the original identity had become dangerous.”

Varek looked at her.

“And the photograph of Richard holding a baby?”

Miriam’s face changed.

“Where did you see it?”

“Adrian found it.”

She closed her eyes.

“Then he has discovered the final part.”

“What final part?”

Miriam opened her handbag and removed a small envelope.

Inside was an old photograph.

Richard stood beside a hospital bed, holding a newborn baby.

A woman lay on the bed.

Her face was visible.

Varek recognized her.

Grace.

He looked at Miriam.

“Why is Grace in this photograph?”

“Because she was there when Adrian was born.”

“Who was the man holding the baby?”

“Richard.”

“And the woman beside him?”

Miriam pointed at Grace.

“She was the person who signed the first transfer.”

Varek’s eyes narrowed.

“Where were you?”

Miriam lowered her voice.

“I was the one who delivered the child.”

Victor stared at her.

“You’re a doctor?”

“I was a medical officer at St. Catherine’s. I worked under Isabel.”

Varek examined the photograph.

There was a handwritten note on the back.

THE THIRD CHILD HAS BEEN DELIVERED. THE ORIGINAL FATHER HAS ACCEPTED HIM.

Varek looked up.

“Original father?”

Miriam nodded.

“Richard was not Adrian’s father.”

“Then who was?”

Miriam hesitated.

“Jonathan Thorne.”

Varek felt his stomach tighten.

“So Richard was holding his brother’s child?”

“Yes.”

“Why would he do that?”

“Because Jonathan was believed to be dead before Adrian was born.”

Varek stared at her.

“That makes no sense.”

“Jonathan disappeared before the birth. Richard was given control of the family and told everyone his brother was dead. But Jonathan had already fathered a child with Helena.”

Victor shook his head.

“Then who is the old man in the wheelchair?”

Miriam looked at him.

“Jonathan.”

Varek stepped closer.

“Are you certain?”

“I treated him after the fire. I know his face.”

“Marcus said the man called him Jonathan.”

Miriam nodded.

“Because he recognized his father.”

Varek was silent.

Then he asked the question that had been bothering him.

“Why would Richard pretend to be Jonathan?”

Miriam looked at the photograph again.

“Because the Black Ledger belonged to Jonathan. Richard could only control it if he convinced the system that he was the original heir.”

⸻

Meanwhile, Adrian stood inside an unfamiliar room.

His hands were tied behind a chair.

Across from him sat Richard Thorne.

The photograph Adrian had discovered lay on the table.

Richard picked it up.

“You shouldn’t have gone through those files.”

Adrian stared at him.

“Who is the baby?”

Richard smiled.

“You.”

“Why were you holding me?”

“Because your father couldn’t.”

“Jonathan?”

Richard’s smile disappeared.

“That old man has caused enough trouble.”

Adrian leaned forward.

“Why did you take me from Helena?”

“She wasn’t capable of raising you.”

“That doesn’t answer my question.”

Richard stood.

“Your father wanted you to inherit the third position. Alistair wanted you to protect the firstborn. Everyone had a plan for you.”

“And what did you want?”

Richard moved closer.

“I wanted the Black Ledger.”

Adrian stared at him.

“So you used me.”

“I used everyone.”

Richard placed another photograph on the table.

It showed Adrian as a young boy standing beside a woman.

Adrian recognized her.

Miriam.

But there was another person in the photograph.

A little boy standing behind her.

Adrian stared at the child.

“Who is that?”

Richard smiled.

“Your younger brother.”

Adrian looked again.

The boy had the same eyes as Varek.

“Varek?”

Richard shook his head.

“No. Not Varek.”

He leaned closer.

“That boy was the first child I successfully removed from Jonathan’s bloodline.”

Adrian’s heart began racing.

“Who is he?”

Richard picked up the photograph.

“His name was Daniel.”

Adrian went still.

“Daniel?”

“Your son is carrying a name that belonged to another child.”

Richard placed the photograph back on the table.

“And now that the original heir has returned, the Black Ledger will finally recognize its rightful owner.”

Adrian struggled against the ropes.

“Where is Daniel?”

Richard smiled.

“Safe. For now.”

⸻

Varek’s phone rang.

Naomi.

He answered.

“Have you found Adrian?”

“Yes.”

“Where?”

Naomi sent him a location.

But before Varek could respond, she spoke again.

“There’s something else. I accessed the old medical records Miriam gave us.”

“What did you find?”

“Adrian’s birth record has been altered, but the original document contains a different father.”

“Jonathan?”

“No.”

Varek frowned.

“Then who?”

Naomi hesitated.

“Richard Thorne.”

Varek looked at Miriam.

She shook her head immediately.

“That’s impossible.”

Naomi continued.

“There’s a DNA verification report attached to the record. It lists Richard as the biological father.”

Varek closed his eyes.

“Then Miriam’s story is another lie.”

“Maybe. But there’s a second report. It identifies Jonathan as the father.”

“Which one is genuine?”

“I don’t know. Both carry valid hospital authentication numbers.”

Varek stared at the photograph in his hand.

“Send me everything.”

“I will. But Varek, there’s a final detail.”

“What?”

“The photograph Richard showed Adrian was taken twenty-nine years ago. The little boy standing behind Miriam wasn’t a newborn. He was around four years old.”

Varek frowned.

“Then how could he be Adrian’s younger brother?”

Naomi’s voice became quiet.

“Because the photograph was taken four years after Adrian’s birth.”

Varek looked at Miriam.

She was staring at the ground.

He stepped toward her.

“What happened four years after Adrian was born?”

Miriam’s lips trembled.

“Another child was brought to St. Catherine’s.”

“Who?”

She looked up.

Then she whispered:

“Daniel Thorne.”

Varek’s phone vibrated again.

A new message had arrived from an unknown number.

It contained a photograph of Adrian tied to a chair.

Beneath it was a message.

BRING THE ORIGINAL BIRTH REGISTER. COME ALONE.

A second message followed.

AND DON’T TELL YOUR BROTHER.

Varek stared at the screen.

Victor looked over his shoulder.

“Which brother?”

Before Varek could answer, the unknown sender sent one final message.

ASK ADRIAN WHY HE HAS NEVER TOLD YOU ABOUT THE CHILD HE KILLED.