Chapter 3: The Photograph in the Locked Archive
I stared at the screen.
The letters seemed to blur.
DENISE COLE.
My mother's name.
Not a birth certificate.
Not an old hospital record.
An employee file.
At the Grand Bellmont Hotel.
Twenty-five years ago.
"Why does my mother have an employee record here?"" I asked.
Darius leaned closer to the monitor.
"I don't know yet.""
"Can you open it?""
He clicked the file.
A red notification appeared.
<escape>ACCESS DENIED — EXECUTIVE AUTHORIZATION REQUIRED.</escape>
I felt my throat tighten.
"Who can access it?""
"Mr. Bellmont. Miss Bellmont. Possibly the former hotel administrator.""
"Then call Walter.""
Darius picked up the desk phone.
Before he could dial, the door opened.
Simone stood in the doorway.
Two security officers were behind her.
Her smile was gone.
"Step away from the computer.""
Darius stood.
"Miss Bellmont.""
"I said step away.""
He didn't move.
"We're investigating an incident involving your father.""
"That investigation is over.""
"Not until I secure the footage and complete the report.""
Simone looked at me.
"You're still here?""
I folded my arms.
"Your father asked me to stay.""
"My father isn't in a condition to make decisions.""
"He's perfectly capable of telling people the truth.""
Her eyes narrowed.
"Careful.""
Darius moved between us.
"Miss Bellmont, we have discovered a restricted personnel file belonging to Denise Cole.""
For a fraction of a second, Simone's face changed.
Then she recovered.
"That file is confidential.""
"Why?""
"Because it contains sensitive employment information.""
I pointed at the screen.
"She was my mother.""
Simone looked directly at me.
"Then perhaps you should understand why some things are better left alone.""
I felt something rise in my chest.
"Better for whom?""
She didn't answer.
Instead, she turned to the security officers.
"Remove the file from the workstation.""
Darius stepped forward.
"Nobody is touching that computer.""
The room went still.
Simone stared at him.
"You are an employee of this hotel.""
"Yes.""
"And I run this hotel.""
"Yes.""
"Then obey me.""
Darius met her eyes.
"I answer to the safety of the people inside this building. That includes your father.""
For several seconds, neither moved.
Then Simone took a step backward.
"This isn't finished.""
She looked at me one last time.
"Ask yourself why a man like Walter Bellmont would suddenly care about a cleaner.""
I didn't reply.
She turned and left.
But before the door closed, she added:
"Some family secrets are buried for a reason.""
The door clicked shut.
I looked at Darius.
"She knows something.""
He nodded.
"I think so.""
Twenty minutes later, Walter arrived.
He was no longer wearing his suit jacket. His tie had been loosened, and his face looked pale.
But his eyes were determined.
"Avery.""
I stood.
"Tell me about my mother.""
He looked at Darius.
"May I speak with her alone?""
Darius hesitated.
Then he glanced at me.
I nodded.
"I'll be outside," he said.
When the door closed, Walter pulled out the chair opposite me.
He didn't sit immediately.
Instead, he studied my face.
"You have her eyes.""
I swallowed.
"Stop saying things like that.""
He lowered his head.
"I'm sorry.""
"You keep telling me my mother is alive. You keep saying you took me away. I need you to explain what happened.""
Walter finally sat.
His hands rested on the desk.
"Twenty-five years ago, Denise worked here.""
"As what?""
"She was a receptionist. She was young, intelligent, and one of the kindest people I had ever employed.""
I listened without blinking.
"She was twenty-two when she became pregnant. The father was a man she had been involved with for several months. He disappeared when he learned about the pregnancy.""
"How do you know that?""
"Because she told me.""
He paused.
"Denise trusted me. I was not just her employer. I had promised her that she would never be left without help.""
I frowned.
"Why would she trust you?""
Walter looked down.
"Because I had made a terrible mistake years earlier, one that I was trying to make right.""
"What mistake?""
He didn't answer.
Instead, he continued.
"Denise went into labor early. There were complications. She was taken to the hospital, and you were born.""
I gripped the edge of the desk.
"What happened to her?""
"She survived.""
My eyes filled.
"Then why did everyone tell me she died?""
Walter closed his eyes.
"Because someone wanted you to believe that.""
"Who?""
He looked toward the door.
"Simone.""
I felt as though the floor had shifted.
"Your daughter?""
Walter nodded slowly.
"At the time, Simone was young, but she had already developed a terrible fear of losing control of the hotel. Denise had discovered something about the company. Something that could have damaged our family.""
"What?""
Walter's jaw tightened.
"Financial records had been altered. Money meant for employee welfare and medical assistance had been redirected. Denise found evidence.""
"She was going to report it?""
"Yes.""
"And you stopped her?""
"No.""
His voice broke.
"I promised to protect her.""
He looked at me.
"But I failed.""
I leaned forward.
"What does that have to do with me?""
Walter took a deep breath.
"After you were born, Simone arranged for you to be transferred from the hospital under false paperwork. She wanted Denise to believe you had died.""
I covered my mouth.
"That's impossible.""
"I found out two days later.""
"And?""
"I recovered you.""
My chest tightened.
"You took me?""
"I had you placed with a family member who agreed to raise you. Your aunt Margaret.""
I stared at him.
"My aunt knew?""
"Yes.""
I stood so abruptly that the chair scraped across the floor.
"You let me grow up believing my mother was dead?""
Walter looked devastated.
"I was afraid.""
"Of what?""
"Of what Simone might do if she learned I had brought you back.""
I laughed bitterly.
"So you saved me by taking me away from my mother?""
He didn't respond.
"Did Denise know I was alive?""
Walter's eyes filled.
"Not at first.""
"Not at first?""
"She discovered the truth several years later.""
My knees felt weak.
"Then why didn't she come for me?""
Walter's voice dropped.
"Because by then, Simone had made sure Denise could never leave.""
I stared at him.
"What does that mean?""
Walter reached into his inner pocket.
He removed a small, yellowed envelope.
My name was written across the front.
AVERY.
The handwriting was delicate.
Almost identical to the handwriting on the birthday cards Aunt Margaret had kept in an old box.
I touched the envelope.
"Who wrote this?""
"Your mother.""
My fingers trembled.
"When?""
"Twenty-four years ago.""
I looked at the date.
It was only a few months after my first birthday.
I opened the envelope.
Inside was a photograph.
A young woman stood beside a hospital window, holding a tiny baby wrapped in a white blanket.
She had dark hair.
Soft eyes.
And a smile I recognized immediately.
Not because I remembered it.
Because I had seen it in my own mirror every morning.
On the back of the photograph were six handwritten words.
My beautiful Avery. I never stopped looking.
A tear landed on the paper.
"Where is she?"" I whispered.
Walter looked at the photograph.
Then he looked at me.
"She's still in this city.""
"Where?""
He hesitated.
"At a private medical residence.""
My stomach twisted.
"Why is she there?""
Walter's face crumpled.
"Because Simone convinced everyone that Denise was mentally unstable. She used the stolen financial records to discredit her, then arranged for her to be placed under long-term care.""
I shook my head.
"You're telling me my mother has been alive this entire time, and your daughter has kept her hidden?""
Walter nodded.
"Yes.""
"How long?""
"Twenty-four years.""
I couldn't speak.
Twenty-four birthdays.
Twenty-four Christmas mornings.
Twenty-four years of wondering what my mother might have looked like.
And she had been somewhere nearby.
Alive.
Waiting.
I pressed the photograph against my chest.
"Take me to her.""
Walter reached for his phone.
"I will.""
But before he could make the call, the office door flew open.
Darius stood there, breathing hard.
"Mr. Bellmont, we have a problem.""
Walter stood.
"What is it?""
Darius looked at me.
Then at the photograph in my hands.
"Miss Bellmont has just issued an emergency order to transfer Denise Cole to another facility.""
Walter's face drained of color.
"She can't do that.""
Darius swallowed.
"There's something else.""
"What?""
"The transfer order was signed thirty minutes ago.""
I looked at the photograph.
My mother had been moved.
And suddenly, I understood why Simone had been so desperate to stop us.
Darius lowered his voice.
"Mr. Bellmont, the vehicle is already on its way.""
Walter grabbed his jacket.
"Where are they taking her?""
Darius looked at the paper in his hand.
Then he gave us the name.
*"An address outside the city. And according to the hospital, Denise is being transferred under an identity that doesn't belong to her.""*
I looked at Walter.
"Then how are we supposed to find my mother?""
He stared at the photograph in my hands.
May you like
And whispered:
"Unless we're already too late.""
