CHAPTER 3: THIRTY YEARS OF LIES
Hélène opened the letter carefully.
The room had become completely silent.
Inside was a faded photograph.
Young Marion.
Holding a newborn baby.
Beside her stood Hugo.
Hélène looked up instantly.
The entire ballroom watched.
She continued reading.
Mother,
If you're reading this, it means Sofia finally found you.
I never abandoned you.
I never ran away.
Hugo told me you wanted nothing to do with us after Father died.
He said you chose your reputation over your family.
I believed him.
Years later, I discovered the truth.
You had been searching for us the entire time.
But by then, I was already sick.
Please don't waste another day living inside his lies.
Love,
Marion.
Hélène lowered the letter.
Her eyes filled with tears she had refused to shed for decades.
She turned toward Hugo.
"Why?"
His carefully built expression finally cracked.
"Because if Marion stayed beside you, everything would belong to her."
He looked around the ballroom.
"The empire. The fortune. The legacy."
Guests stared in disbelief.
Hugo exhaled heavily.
"I couldn't let that happen."
May you like
Thirty years.
Destroyed by greed.
