The Hidden heir’s revenge

Chapter 67 — The Original Firstborn

The road to the medical facility was unusually quiet.

Varek sat in the passenger seat while Victor drove. Neither man spoke for several minutes.

The photograph of the little boy remained open on Varek’s phone.

Matthew Thorne.

The original firstborn.

According to Grace, the boy Jonathan had brought into the facility was the real Matthew. But if that was true, who had been using the name all these years?

And why had Richard insisted that Adrian was responsible for Daniel’s death?

Varek’s phone rang.

Naomi.

“Have you reached the facility?” she asked.

“Almost.”

“Don’t enter through the main entrance.”

“Why?”

“I checked the security system. There are at least six armed men inside.”

Victor glanced at Varek.

“Richard’s men?”

“Some of them. But two security officers have been identified as former employees of St. Catherine’s.”

Varek frowned.

“Medical staff?”

“No. They were involved in the original child transfers.”

“Can you open the underground entrance?”

“I’m working on it. There’s a service tunnel behind the eastern building. It leads directly to the lower nursery.”

Varek looked through the window.

“Send the location.”

“I already have.”

A message appeared on his screen.

Naomi continued.

“There’s something else. I found a record connected to the boy Grace identified as Matthew.”

“What?”

“His fingerprints were entered into the system yesterday.”

“By whom?”

“Jonathan Thorne.”

Varek sat up.

“Why would he need to register the fingerprints of a child he claims is his grandson?”

“Because the fingerprints didn’t match the original Matthew’s file.”

Victor slowed the car.

“Meaning?”

“Meaning the child Jonathan brought into the facility may not be the original Matthew.”

Varek looked at the photograph again.

“Then Grace was wrong.”

“Not necessarily. She may have identified the boy correctly, but that doesn’t mean the child beside Jonathan is the same person.”

Varek rubbed his forehead.

“How many people are using Matthew’s identity?”

“At least two. Possibly three.”

Victor stopped the car near a narrow road.

“We’re here.”

Varek looked ahead.

The medical facility stood behind a high concrete fence. Its windows were dark, and the main gate was closed.

“Stay on the line,” Varek told Naomi.

“Be careful.”

He ended the call.

Victor checked the small weapon he had managed to obtain from one of their security contacts.

“Ready?”

Varek nodded.

They moved toward the eastern side of the building.

⸻

Inside the facility, Adrian was watching Richard carefully.

The man had placed the original birth certificate on the table and was now speaking to Jonathan.

“Varek is bringing the register,” Richard said.

Jonathan shook his head.

“He may not bring it.”

“He will.”

“You’re too confident.”

Richard smiled.

“He’s looking for his brother. He’ll do anything to save him.”

Adrian pulled against his restraints.

“Leave Varek out of this.”

Richard turned.

“Still protecting him?”

“He’s done nothing to you.”

“That’s where you’re wrong. His existence destroyed the original arrangement.”

Adrian looked at Jonathan.

“Tell him the truth.”

Jonathan’s expression remained blank.

“Which truth?”

“That Varek wasn’t the child you were supposed to take.”

Richard laughed.

“Don’t start that story again.”

Adrian ignored him.

“You know who was supposed to be taken. You know what happened to the original fifth child.”

Jonathan walked toward him.

“Your memory is incomplete.”

“I remember enough.”

“Then tell me what happened to Daniel.”

Adrian looked down.

For a moment, he seemed unable to speak.

Richard noticed.

“Ah. There it is.”

Adrian raised his head.

“I didn’t kill him.”

“Nobody said you did.”

“You made everyone believe I did.”

Richard shrugged.

“People believe what the records tell them.”

Adrian’s voice became stronger.

“Daniel was alive when Jonathan took him. Grace helped him escape. I saw them leave.”

Jonathan’s expression changed.

Richard immediately turned toward him.

“Is that true?”

Jonathan said nothing.

Adrian continued.

“You told me Daniel was being moved to another ward. You promised me he would be safe.”

Jonathan approached the chair.

“And you believed me.”

“I was a child!”

“Exactly.”

The words silenced the room.

Jonathan leaned closer.

“You were too young to understand what was happening. You thought saving one child would save all of them.”

Adrian stared at him.

“What happened to Daniel?”

Jonathan’s eyes moved toward the door.

“That is something you should ask Grace.”

Richard’s face tightened.

“Grace has already interfered enough.”

He picked up his phone and made a call.

“Find her.”

Then he ended the call.

Adrian looked at him.

“You don’t even know where she is?”

Richard ignored him.

The little boy sitting near the wall suddenly stood.

“Can I go now?”

Jonathan looked at him.

“Sit down.”

“I want to go home.”

“Your home is here.”

The boy shook his head.

“No. I want the woman who sings.”

Adrian’s expression softened.

“What woman?”

“The woman who used to call me her little star.”

Jonathan grabbed the child’s arm.

“Enough.”

The boy began to cry.

Adrian pulled violently against his restraints.

“Don’t touch him!”

Jonathan released the child.

Richard watched Adrian with interest.

“You see? Even now, you can’t stop trying to save children who don’t belong to you.”

Adrian glared at him.

“Children don’t belong to anybody.”

For the first time, Jonathan looked uncomfortable.

⸻

Varek and Victor found the service entrance behind the eastern building.

The metal door was partially covered by overgrown plants.

Victor tried the handle.

Locked.

Varek examined the wall and noticed a small keypad.

He removed the pendant from his pocket.

It had opened the private archive beneath the estate. He placed it against the scanner.

Nothing happened.

“Wrong key,” Victor whispered.

Varek examined the device.

There was another small opening beneath the scanner.

He remembered the second pendant Naomi had identified in the original archive.

The one marked 05.

He took it from his pocket.

A green light appeared.

The door unlocked.

Victor stared at him.

“How many keys did you collect?”

“Not enough.”

They entered.

The passage was narrow, with pipes running along the ceiling. A faint light came from the far end.

Varek switched on his phone flashlight.

They walked carefully.

After several minutes, they reached a metal staircase leading downward.

A voice came from the phone in Varek’s pocket.

“Varek?”

Naomi.

He answered quietly.

“We’re inside.”

“Good. I can see your signal moving through the lower passage.”

“Can you access the cameras?”

“Some of them. I have one camera showing the room where Adrian is being held.”

“Is he alive?”

“Yes.”

Varek stopped walking.

“Can you see him clearly?”

“He’s tied to a chair. Richard and Jonathan are there.”

“Who else?”

“A little boy.”

Varek exchanged a glance with Victor.

“Matthew?”

“I can’t confirm that.”

Naomi paused.

“Wait. Someone just entered the room.”

“Who?”

“I don’t know. The camera angle is poor.”

Varek continued down the stairs.

“Can you open the doors?”

“I’m trying. But the system has been locked from inside.”

“Then find another way.”

“Varek, listen. There’s a second problem.”

“What?”

“The original register isn’t in the facility.”

He stopped.

“What do you mean?”

“I traced the transfer documents. The first section was taken from the estate years ago. The second section was transferred to a private medical archive in Lagos.”

Varek stared ahead.

“Then what does Richard expect me to bring?”

“Probably the copy you recovered.”

“Why would he want a copy?”

“Because it contains the original subject numbers. But I suspect he’s after something else.”

“What?”

Naomi’s voice dropped.

“Your biometric identity.”

Varek looked at Victor.

The second door opened before them.

Beyond it was a long corridor.

At the far end stood a man.

He was dressed in a grey suit and held a folder under one arm.

Varek recognized him immediately.

Matthew Cross.

The man who had appeared in Eleanor’s video.

The man who had called him little brother.

Matthew looked at Varek and smiled.

“You’re late.”

Victor raised his weapon.

“Step away from the door.”

Matthew didn’t move.

“Put that down, Victor. You’re not the person they came for.”

Varek stepped forward.

“Where is Adrian?”

Matthew looked behind him.

“Alive.”

“Take us to him.”

“Not so fast.”

He opened the folder and removed a photograph.

It showed two newborn boys lying in separate hospital cots.

One had a small bracelet marked ADRIAN.

The other had a bracelet marked VAREK.

Between the two cots stood a nurse.

Her face was clearly visible.

It was Eleanor.

Varek stared at the picture.

“Where did you get this?”

“From the original nursery archive.”

“Who are the babies?”

Matthew smiled.

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

Varek moved closer.

“Tell me.”

Matthew placed the photograph back inside the folder.

“One of those babies was born first. The other was registered as his replacement.”

Victor frowned.

“Which one was Varek?”

Matthew looked at him.

“That’s the question nobody has been willing to answer.”

He turned toward the corridor.

“Come with me. I’ll show you something Richard doesn’t know exists.”

Varek didn’t move.

“Why should I trust you?”

Matthew’s smile disappeared.

“Because Richard is not the man who ordered your death.”

Varek’s eyes narrowed.

“Who did?”

Matthew looked directly at him.

“Eleanor.”

The silence was immediate.

Victor lowered his weapon slightly.

“You’re lying.”

Matthew shook his head.

“She signed the original death order. She also signed the transfer that placed Varek in another family.”

Varek felt something tighten in his chest.

“No.”

Matthew opened the folder again.

“Then explain this.”

He showed them a document.

At the bottom was Eleanor’s signature.

Above it was a statement:

SUBJECT FIVE MUST BE REMOVED BEFORE THE ORIGINAL FIRSTBORN RETURNS.

Varek stared at the words.

For years, Eleanor had been the person who raised him, protected him and told him that he was her son.

Now her signature was appearing on documents connected to his disappearance.

“Why?” he whispered.

Matthew looked at him.

“Because she knew what would happen if the original firstborn ever discovered which child had been given his life.”

Before Varek could respond, the lights in the corridor went red.

A warning alarm began to sound.

Naomi’s voice burst through his phone.

“Varek, get out of there! Someone has locked down the facility!”

A heavy metal door slammed behind them.

Another closed ahead.

Victor turned toward Matthew.

“What did you do?”

Matthew raised both hands.

“Nothing.”

Then a speaker crackled above them.

Richard’s voice filled the corridor.

“Welcome home, Varek.”

A second later, the door at the far end opened.

Richard stood there.

Adrian was beside him, still restrained.

And behind them stood Eleanor.

She looked directly at Varek.

“Don’t listen to anything Matthew tells you,” she said.

Varek couldn’t move.

Eleanor’s eyes filled with tears.

“He’s not your brother.”

Then she looked at Adrian.

“And neither is he.”