The Bride Pushed Her Future Mother-in-Law Off the 82nd-Floor Rooftop—But the Secret She Was Hiding Was Far More Terrifying

For several seconds, I couldn't speak.

Nathaniel stood beside the ambulance, staring at the message on my phone.

“You said your grandfather brought a little girl to the mansion,” I finally whispered.

He nodded.

“How old were you?””

“Six. Maybe seven.””

“What did she look like?””

Nathaniel closed his eyes.

“I don't remember everything. She had dark hair, like yours. She was small. She wore a yellow dress.””

“Did she say anything?””

His jaw tightened.

“She called me Nate.””

I felt something strange in my chest.

My mother had called Nathaniel that name in the phone conversation.

Nate.

“What happened to her?””

Nathaniel looked toward the gates through which Richard had escaped.

“I don't know. I remember waking up one morning and asking where she was. My grandfather told me she'd gone home.””

“Did you believe him?””

“I was a child.””

“Did you ever see her again?””

He shook his head.

“No.””

I looked down at the message.

Ask Nathaniel what happened to the other baby.

There were two birth certificates in the safe.

Two children.

But now there was a third child in Nathaniel's memory.

I turned toward Eleanor, who was being treated by a paramedic.

“Mrs. Callaway!””

She looked up.

“Rose?””

“Did my mother have another baby?””

Her expression changed.

The paramedic stopped wrapping the blanket around her shoulders.

Eleanor looked at Nathaniel.

Then at me.

“I was afraid this day would come.””

My stomach tightened.

“Answer me.””

Eleanor reached for my hand.

“Grace gave birth to three children.””

The world seemed to stop.

“Three?””

Nathaniel stepped closer.

“Mother, what are you saying?””

Eleanor began crying.

“Two girls and one boy.””

I shook my head.

“No. The records said twins.””

“They were changed.””

“Why?””

“Because Richard wanted Nathaniel. But when Grace discovered she was carrying triplets, everything became more complicated.””

Nathaniel stared at her.

“Triplets?””

Eleanor nodded.

“The first baby was a boy. Nathaniel. The second was Rose. The third was another girl.””

I struggled to breathe.

“Where is she?””

Eleanor looked toward the ambulance doors.

“I don't know.””

Nathaniel grabbed her hand.

“You must know something.””

“I saw her once.””

“When?””

“Three days after the birth. Richard brought her to the mansion. He said he had arranged a private adoption.””

I felt my legs weaken.

“Who adopted her?””

Eleanor shook her head.

“He never told me.””

I looked at Nathaniel.

The little girl in the yellow dress.

The child who had called him Nate.

“Was that her?””

He nodded slowly.

“I think so.””

“Why didn't you remember?””

“Because my grandfather told me she was a visitor. Then he told me I had imagined her.””

I looked at Eleanor.

“And you let him?””

She covered her face.

“I was terrified. Richard had already taken two children from Grace. I thought if I challenged him again, he would destroy the only family I had left.””

Nathaniel stepped away.

“Stop saying you were protecting us.””

Eleanor lowered her hands.

“I know.””

“No, you don't. You watched him erase my mother. You watched him erase Rose. And now you're telling me there was another sister?””

His voice broke.

“Did she have a name?””

Eleanor nodded.

“Lily.””

I repeated it softly.

“Lily.””

The name felt strangely familiar.

Then I remembered something.

A small silver bracelet my mother used to keep inside her jewelry box.

It had three tiny charms.

A rose.

A star.

And a lily.

When I was little, I used to ask why she kept it.

She always answered the same way.

“Because some promises should never be forgotten.””

I looked at Nathaniel.

“My mother had a bracelet with three charms.””

Eleanor gasped.

“She made that bracelet the day the triplets were born.””

I closed my eyes.

My mother had carried the memory of all three children.

Even when the world told her two were gone.

A police officer approached us.

“Miss Carter, we need to move you somewhere secure. The estate is no longer safe.””

Nathaniel shook his head.

“We're not going anywhere until we find my mother.””

“Mr. Callaway, the suspect is armed.””

“Then send more officers.””

The officer lowered his voice.

“There's something else. We found Daniel Price's car abandoned near the north gate.””

“Did you find him?”” I asked.

“No.””

He glanced at his notes.

“But we recovered a laptop.””

Nathaniel frowned.

“What's on it?””

“An encrypted folder containing several financial records and correspondence with Richard Callaway.””

Eleanor suddenly sat upright.

“Get that computer away from them.””

The officer looked at her.

“Why?””

“Because Richard won't just want the documents destroyed. He'll want the names erased.””

Nathaniel stared at her.

“What names?””

Eleanor looked at me.

“Children.””

The officer opened his notebook.

“We found records of several private transfers involving children's identities.””

I felt sick.

“Are you saying Richard was involved in selling children?””

Eleanor nodded.

“He used private adoption agencies to move children without their parents' knowledge. He had money, lawyers, and people in hospitals who would do anything for him.””

Nathaniel looked horrified.

“And Lily?””

“I believe she was one of them.””

The officer's radio crackled.

A voice came through.

“Command to all units. We have a possible location for the missing woman.””

I stepped forward.

“Where?””

“An abandoned private hospital in Briarcliff Manor.””

Eleanor grabbed my wrist.

“No.””

The officer looked at her.

“What?””

“That's where Richard took Grace after the fire.””

I felt my heart race.

“Why would he take her there?””

Eleanor swallowed.

“Because it was the last place where all three children were together.””

Nathaniel looked at me.

“We're going.””

The officer immediately shook his head.

“Absolutely not. We're sending a tactical team.””

I took one step toward him.

“You don't understand. My mother has spent twenty-nine years waiting for someone to find her. I'm not sitting in a safe house while she disappears again.””

Nathaniel stood beside me.

“Neither am I.””

The officer studied us.

Finally, he nodded.

“You stay behind the tactical team. You do not enter until we clear the building.””

We agreed.

But as the police vehicles pulled away from the estate, my phone rang again.

Unknown number.

I answered.

A little girl's voice whispered, “Rose?””

My heart stopped.

“Who is this?””