The drive home was unusually quiet.
Seraphina sat beside Lucien with Alexander’s envelope resting in her lap.
She had been staring at it since they left the lawyer’s office, but she still hadn’t opened it.
Her grandfather’s handwriting was unmistakable.
Seeing his name written on the envelope made the reality of his death feel even heavier.
Lucien glanced at her briefly.
“You’ve been staring at that letter for twenty minutes.”
Seraphina didn’t answer.
“What did the lawyer tell you?” he asked.
She looked down at the envelope.
“He said my grandfather left it for me.”
Lucien waited.
“And he said my parents weren’t exactly what I thought they were.”
His hands tightened slightly around the steering wheel.
“What do you mean?”
“I don’t know.”
Seraphina’s voice became quieter.
“I’ve always been told they died in a car accident. That’s all I’ve ever known.”
Lucien said nothing.
Something about the situation bothered him.
Alexander had known he was dying.
He had been away for five months, supposedly on business, while secretly searching for treatment.
Now he was dead, and a letter had been left behind containing information about Seraphina’s parents.
Too many things were beginning to connect.
When they arrived home, Seraphina went straight upstairs.
She sat on the edge of her bed and placed the envelope in front of her.
Her hands trembled as she opened it.
Inside was a single folded sheet of paper.
She unfolded it carefully.
The first line immediately brought tears to her eyes.
My dear Seraphina,
She stopped reading for a moment.
Then continued.
If you are reading this, then I am no longer there to explain these things to you myself.
For that, I am sorry.
A tear rolled down her cheek.
There are things about your childhood that I chose to keep from you.
I told myself I was protecting you, and perhaps I was.
But I also know that one day you would have to learn the truth.
Seraphina wiped her face.
Her eyes moved down the page.
Your parents did work for Alexandria Corporation.
But their deaths were not as simple as you were told.
Before they died, they discovered something inside the company that frightened them.
They came to me because they believed someone was watching them.
Seraphina’s breathing became unsteady.
“What did you discover?”
She continued reading.
I promised them I would protect you.
I kept that promise by keeping you away from the people and places connected to what happened.
Her eyes widened.
She looked toward the door.
For some reason, she suddenly felt as though someone was watching her.
She forced herself to continue.
I never wanted you involved with Alexandria.
I wanted you to have an ordinary life. This story is hosted at g.com.
That is why I kept certain records away from you.
Seraphina looked at the letter again.
“Records?”
There was another paragraph.
There is a file bearing your parents’ names.
It was created shortly before their deaths.
I kept it hidden because the people who wanted that file disappeared soon after your parents did.
Her heart pounded.
Then she reached the final part of the letter.
Seraphina, if you’re reading this, it means they found me before I could tell you everything.
Her eyes froze on the sentence.
She read it again.
They found me.
Not I died.
Not my illness took me.
They found me.
Her fingers tightened around the paper.
The next sentence made her blood run cold.
Do not trust anyone at Alexandria Corporation—not even the people who share your blood.
Seraphina slowly lowered the letter.
Her three relatives.
Sebastian.
Victoria.
Nathaniel.
Could one of them know something?
Could one of them have known about her parents?
She shook her head.
“No.”
She couldn’t believe it.
But another thought entered her mind.
The medication.
Her grandfather had been receiving treatment for months.
He had been sick, yes.
But Lucien had acted strangely at the hospital.
Seraphina stood.
She grabbed the letter and hurried downstairs.
Lucien was sitting in the living room, looking through his phone.
“Lucien.”
He looked up.
“What happened?”
She handed him the letter.
He read it carefully.
When he reached the final paragraph, his expression hardened.
“You shouldn’t have been left with this alone.”
“What does it mean?”
“It means Alexander knew he was in danger.”
Seraphina swallowed.
“Do you think someone killed him?”
Lucien didn’t answer immediately.
Then he said quietly,
“I think we should find out.”
Later that night, Lucien returned to the medical facility.
He had waited until Seraphina was asleep.
The hallway was almost empty. You are reading on g.com, the official source.
He entered Alexander’s former room and walked toward the bedside table.
The medication bottle was still there.
Lucien picked it up.
He remembered the strange smell from before.
He opened the bottle.
One pill fell into his palm.
His eyes narrowed.
“This isn’t what he was supposed to be taking.”
He called Darius.
“Run the prescription against the pills found in Alexander Vale’s room.”
There was a pause.
Then Darius replied.
“Already did.”
Lucien’s expression changed.
“And?”
“They don’t match.”
Lucien stared at the bottle.
“How different?”
“Different enough to cause a serious reaction in someone with his condition.”
Lucien’s jaw tightened.
“Find out who accessed the medication.”
“I’ll handle it.”
Lucien ended the call.
For several seconds, he stood completely still.
Then he noticed something on the floor beside the bed.
A tiny piece of black paper.
He picked it up.
There was only one word written on it.
Vale.
Lucien’s eyes darkened.
Someone had been here.
And whoever it was had known exactly what they were doing.
Across the city, a black car sat beneath a streetlight.
The same man from the medical facility sat inside.
Alexander’s missing envelope lay on the passenger seat.
His phone vibrated.
He answered.
“Yes.”
A voice spoke from the other end.
“Did she receive the letter?”
The man looked toward Seraphina’s house in the distance.
“Yes.”
“And the file?”
“She doesn’t have it.”
Silence.
The man smiled faintly.
“Then we still have time.”
He ended the call.
Inside the house, Seraphina suddenly woke.
Her heart was racing.
She sat up and looked toward the window.
Across the street, she saw a black car.
It was parked beneath the same streetlight.
And this time…
someone was standing beside it, staring directly at her bedroom window.