CHAPTER 13 — THE PERSON WHO RAISED ELENA
CHAPTER 13 — THE PERSON WHO RAISED ELENA
The screen went black.
But Elena could still see the photograph.
She could still see the face.
The person standing beside her younger self.
The person who held her hand after the worst night of her life.
The person who promised she would never be alone.
A person Elena had trusted more than anyone.
Her guardian.
Her family.
Her second parent.
Richard Vale.
Her uncle.
Elena slowly stepped away from the screen.
“No.”
The word barely left her lips.
Nobody spoke.
Because everyone in the room understood what had just happened.
The person Elena trusted most had been connected to the darkest secret of her life.
Daniel looked at her carefully.
“Elena…”
She turned toward him.
“Don’t.”
Her voice was filled with pain.
“Not right now.”
Daniel stopped.
Because he knew she needed to process the impossible.
For eight years, Elena believed Richard was the one person who protected her.
After her parents died, he was the person who stayed.
The person who attended every school event.
The person who helped her rebuild her life.
The person who told her to stop searching for answers.
Now she had to wonder why.
Why would the man who raised her hide the truth?
Why would he know about her parents’ death?
Why would he be connected to Claire and Lily?
Amelia moved closer.
“Elena.”
She looked at her sister.
“How long have you known?”
Amelia hesitated.
“About Richard?”
“Yes.”
Amelia looked away.
“Years.”
Elena felt another wave of betrayal.
“You knew?”
“I suspected.”
“That’s not enough.”
Amelia’s eyes filled with guilt.
“I didn’t have proof.”
“You could have told me.”
“And what would you have done?”
The question stopped Elena.
Amelia continued.
“You were young.”
“You had already lost everyone.”
“If I told you the person raising you might be involved…”
“I was afraid it would destroy you.”
Elena looked down.
The explanation made sense.
But the pain remained.
Because everyone had made decisions for her.
Everyone had protected her by keeping her in the dark.
Victor walked toward the table.
“There is something you need to know about Richard.”
Elena looked at him.
“What?”
Victor took a deep breath.
“Your uncle was not always a part of our family.”
“What does that mean?”
“He worked for the Hawthorne Foundation.”
The room became silent.
Elena stared at him.
“He worked for you?”
“Yes.”
“For how long?”
“Before your parents died.”
A terrible thought entered Elena’s mind.
“Was he there that night?”
Victor didn’t answer.
He didn’t need to.
Elena understood.
“He was.”
Victor looked down.
“Yes.”
The truth hurt more than she expected.
Because deep down, she had always wondered.
She had always felt there was something missing from that night.
A piece of memory locked away.
A sound.
A voice.
A face.
Something her mind refused to reveal.
Then Lily suddenly spoke.
“I know him.”
Everyone turned.
Elena looked at the little girl.
“What?”
Lily pointed toward the black screen.
“Richard.”
Elena froze.
“You’ve seen him?”
Lily nodded.
“He came to the room.”
The air disappeared from Elena’s lungs.
“When?”
“Many times.”
Elena felt sick.
“What did he do?”
Lily looked scared.
“He asked me questions.”
“What questions?”
Lily lowered her head.
“He wanted to know if I remembered my mother.”
Nobody moved.
Marcus whispered:
“Why would he ask that?”
Lily looked up.
“Because he was scared Claire would tell me everything.”
Elena felt a cold wave move through her.
Richard wasn’t protecting the secret.
He was protecting himself.
Suddenly, Elena’s phone rang.
Unknown number.
Everyone stared.
She answered.
A familiar voice came through.
A voice from her childhood.
A voice she had heard countless times.
“Hello, Elena.”
Her entire body froze.
“Richard.”
A long silence followed.
Then her uncle spoke.
“I know what you found.”
Elena’s anger rose.
“Where are you?”
“Somewhere safe.”
“Safe?”
She laughed bitterly.
“You mean hiding?”
Richard sighed.
“I knew this day would come.”
“Why?”
“Because Claire never knew when to stop.”
Elena gripped the phone.
“You trapped Lily.”
“No.”
“Then what did you do?”
Silence.
Then Richard answered:
“I protected the truth.”
Elena’s voice became cold.
“You locked a child behind a wall.”
“No.”
His tone changed.
“I protected her from something worse.”
Everyone listened.
“What could be worse than that?”
Richard paused.
Then he said:
“Her own mother.”
Elena froze.
“Claire?”
“Yes.”
“That’s impossible.”
Richard’s voice became serious.
“You think Claire was trying to save Lily.”
“But you don’t know what happened before she disappeared.”
Elena looked at Amelia.
Then at Daniel.
Everyone was silent.
Richard continued.
“Claire was not running from the enemy.”
“She was running because she became one.”
The call ended.
Elena stood there, completely lost.
Two sides.
Two stories.
Two people claiming to protect Lily.
Claire.
Richard.
Both saying the other was dangerous.
Then Elena noticed something.
A small detail nobody else saw.
On the screen where Claire’s video had played…
A hidden symbol appeared.
A symbol she recognized.
It was on the old documents.
On the foundation records.
On the file about her.
The same symbol connected every secret.
And underneath it were three words:
THE FINAL PROJECT
Elena stared at them.
“What is this?”
Marcus looked terrified.
Because he recognized it.
“No…”
“What?”
He whispered:
“That project was never supposed to exist.”
Elena turned toward him.
“Tell me.”
Marcus looked at her.
“The Hawthorne family didn’t create that project.”
“Then who did?”
Marcus swallowed.
“Your parents.”
The room went silent.
Elena felt the world collapse.
Her parents.
The people she lost.
The people she thought were victims.
Maybe they were not just victims.
Maybe they were the beginning of everything.
And now Elena had one final question.
What was the project that her own parents created?
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And why was she the final witness?
TO BE CONTINUED — CHAPTER 14: THE FINAL PROJECT
