Daniel stared at it.
His mother was standing beside a younger man in front of the same hotel, twenty-five years earlier.
But Daniel wasn’t looking at the man.
He was looking at the baby in his mother’s arms.
The receptionist covered her mouth.
“That’s me…”
The old man nodded.
Daniel shook his head.
“No. That’s impossible.”
Then the receptionist noticed something written on the back of the photo.
A date.
And one sentence:
“Keep her away from Daniel. He must never know why she was born.”
The entire lobby went silent.
Daniel grabbed the picture.
“What does that mean?”
His father looked at him for several seconds.
Then he finally said:
“Because your mother wasn’t protecting her from you.”
Daniel frowned.
“She was protecting YOU from her.”
Before Daniel could answer, the elevator doors opened.
A woman in a red coat stepped into the lobby.
She looked at the receptionist.
Then at Daniel.
And whispered:
“Oh God… he found the letter.”
Daniel turned pale.
Because he knew exactly who she was.
His mother’s former lawyer.
And she was carrying a second envelope.
One marked:
“OPEN ONLY IF DANIEL DISCOVERS THE TRUTH.”
