Chapter 35 - THE GRAVE THAT WAS EMPTY
Daniel found Emma inside the old family chapel, frightened but alive.
Thomas confessed that the babies had been switched to protect the Hale inheritance. Before he could explain further, a gunshot struck him.
Adrian appeared at the entrance, holding a weapon.
“Give me the necklace,” he demanded.
Daniel refused.
Adrian warned him that the recording would reveal the person who ordered Claire's murder.
Then a woman stepped into the doorway.
She had Claire's face.
“Hello, Daniel.”
Emma screamed.
“That's not Mommy!”
The woman produced a photograph showing Claire beside Sarah Hale, each holding a newborn.
Written on the back were the words:
ONE CHILD DIED. ONE DISAPPEARED. THE THIRD WAS NEVER REGISTERED.
A limousine pulled into the cemetery.
Inside sat another little girl with Claire's eyes.
She held a sign against the window.
DADDY, DON'T BELIEVE HER.
Daniel turned toward Emma.
But his daughter was gone.
The woman wearing Claire's face smiled.
“Now you must choose.”
Daniel's phone vibrated.
A message appeared from Claire's old number:
May you like
YOU HAVE BEEN PROTECTING THE WRONG CHILD.
If Emma had vanished again, would the mysterious girl reveal the truth—or was Daniel about to lose both daughters to the same family curse?
