Chapter 5 - Whispers in the Vault
By dawn, the local police captain—a man deeply indebted to the Vance family—had cleared the bodies quietly, sealing off the manor under the guise of an armed robbery attempt. Dr. Marcus Cole, Julian’s trusted personal physician and forensic specialist, arrived with portable genetic screening equipment.
In the private study, Dr. Cole swabbed Elena’s inner cheek, then Leo’s, and finally Julian’s.
""It will take four hours on the rapid sequencer,"" Dr. Cole muttered, his expression grim as he glanced at Elena’s surgical scars. ""Julian, whoever did this facial reconstruction had world-class surgical tools. They altered her nasal bridge, shaved her cheek contours, and grafted skin over her collarbone to erase distinctive birthmarks.""
Elena sat wrapped in a wool blanket, sipping tea while Leo slept curled against her side on the sofa. Julian watched them from across the desk, a whirlpool of guilt, fury, and agonizing hope tearing through his chest.
""I buried an empty coffin,"" Julian murmured, running a hand through his disheveled hair. ""The dental records at the crash site matched Clara. The coroner confirmed it.""
Elena looked up, her voice fragile. ""Whose body was in that car, Julian?""
""The coroner who signed the certificate was Victoria’s personal physician,"" Julian said, his jaw clenching so hard a muscle twitched violently. ""He died in a mysterious boating accident six months later. I thought it was bad luck. I was drowning in grief, blind to everything she was doing.""
Suddenly, the security monitor on Julian’s desk chirped. An encrypted video feed intercepted from Victoria's private laptop had just been decrypted by Julian’s cybersecurity team.
Julian clicked the icon. The screen illuminated a dimly lit clinical basement recorded six years ago. On the gurney lay a sedated woman—Clara. Standing above her was Victoria, holding a syringe, accompanied by an older man in a white lab coat.
""Erase her memory completely,"" Victoria’s recorded voice instructed coldly. ""Julian must believe she burned on Highway 9. Once she's buried, I step in as the grieving sister and raise her heir. If she ever remembers who she is, terminate her.""
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Before the video could finish, Dr. Cole’s rapid sequencer chimed. The doctor took the printed sheet, his eyes widening in pure shock.
""Julian,"" Dr. Cole breathed, his hands shaking. ""You need to see this.""
