Chapter 2: The Key Beneath the Red Dress
Vivienne’s face drained of color when Nicholas replayed the footage.
“That woman is de@d,” she whispered.
“This is some cruel trick.”
Nicholas turned toward her.
“Then why are you wearing her dress?”
Vivienne grabbed the red fabric at her waist.
“It was delivered this morning.
There was no name on the box.”
Maria pulled Lucy close.
Nicholas gently examined the four marks on the child’s wrist.
“Who did this to you, Lucy?”
Lucy’s lips trembled.
She pointed toward Vivienne.
“She said Mommy had to leave before the lady came back.”
“I never touched her!” Vivienne cried.
Suddenly, Nicholas’s phone rang.
The caller ID showed the private number once used by his mother.
He put the call on speaker.
“Nicholas,” an elderly woman said, “do not let Vivienne remove that dress.
Check the inside hem.”
Vivienne rushed toward the door, but Nicholas blocked her path.
Maria lifted the hem and found a tiny brass key sewn beneath the lining.
“What does it open?” Nicholas demanded.
Before Vivienne could answer, the mansion doors swung open.
The elderly woman from the footage stood there, staring directly at Maria.
“That key opens the room where your father hid the truth,” she said.
“And Vivienne knows exactly what Maria will find inside.”
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