Chapter 12 - The Mother Who Chose an Heir
Margaret did not move closer.
She did not need to.
The red emergency lights made her face appear carved from stone.
“Adrian,” she said, “ask Elias why he was selected as Catherine’s lover.”
Elias closed his eyes.
Isabella looked at him.
“Selected?”
Margaret continued.
“Catherine believed she met him by chance, just as Isabella believed she met Adrian by chance.”
Adrian’s expression hardened.
“What are you saying?”
“My father chose Elias because of his genetic history. Catherine was expected to produce a strong heir.”
Elias gripped the edge of the table.
“I did not know until after she became pregnant.”
“And when he discovered the truth,” Margaret said, “he tried to take Catherine away. She refused because she believed she could expose the family and keep the company.”
“You killed her for the company,” Isabella said.
“I prevented everything Sebastian built from passing to an emotional girl and an unknown mechanic.”
Elias looked at Isabella.
“I was an engineer.”
Margaret ignored him.
“Catherine arranged the secret birth. Rosa helped her. One child was sent away, while the other remained hidden until transportation could be arranged.”
“Daniel,” Isabella said.
“Gabriel,” Margaret corrected. “His original name was Gabriel.”
“Why keep him in the house?”
“Because he was ill. Because his survival was uncertain. Because his blood was useful.”
Adrian’s face twisted with disgust.
“You speak about people like property.”
“Property is easier to protect than people.”
A warning light flashed above the laboratory door.
Margaret glanced toward it.
“You should put down the gun, Adrian. The ventilation system is sealed. Isabella is already in labor, and the nearest medical team loyal to you is outside three locked security zones.”
Adrian aimed directly at her chest.
“Open the doors.”
“Give me the ledger.”
“No.”
“Then your wife delivers her baby on this floor.”
Isabella clutched the counter as pain moved through her abdomen.
Elena held her upright.
“She needs a doctor.”
“Dr. Mercer is waiting.”
“I would rather give birth alone,” Isabella said.
Margaret’s eyes narrowed.
“You misunderstand your position.”
“No. I finally understand it.”
Isabella forced herself to stand straight.
“You spent your whole life believing the family was strong because you controlled everyone. But the truth is that you were afraid.”
“Of you?”
“Of Catherine. Of Rosa. Of Daniel. Of Adrian. Even of a baby who has not been born.”
Margaret’s mouth tightened.
“You sound exactly like your mother.”
“Good.”
For the first time, anger broke through Margaret’s composure.
“Your mother destroyed everything.”
“No,” Elias said. “She exposed what was already rotten.”
Margaret turned toward him.
That moment of distraction was enough.
Adrian fired.
The bullet struck the syringe in Margaret’s hand, shattering it against the wall.
Elena pulled Isabella behind the laboratory counter.
One of the guards rushed Margaret.
She pressed a hidden control on the wall.
The floor beneath the guard opened.
He disappeared into darkness.
The remaining guard fired toward the control panel.
Sparks burst from the wall.
The sealed door unlocked.
Adrian grabbed Margaret’s wrist.
She struck him across the face with a metal tray and ran into the east-wing corridor.
“Stay with Isabella,” Adrian told Elena.
He followed his mother.
Isabella grabbed his sleeve.
“Do not leave me.”
He stopped.
The fear in his face matched hers.
“I have to stop her from destroying the evidence.”
“She wants you separated from me.”
Another contraction bent Isabella forward.
Adrian caught her.
Elias opened the service door fully.
“There is a medical suite upstairs. We can reach it through the east wing.”
They moved together.
The corridor beyond the laboratory climbed toward the villa. As they ascended, Isabella heard Margaret speaking over the security system.
“You want the truth, Adrian? Then come to Catherine’s room.”
The final door opened into the east wing.
Margaret stood at the far end beneath a portrait of Catherine.
In one hand, she held a remote detonator.
Behind her, smoke curled from the room containing the family archives.
“Choose,” she said.
“Save the evidence.”
She looked at Isabella’s stomach.
May you like
“Or save the heir.”
Then she pressed the button.
