CHAPTER 4 — The Woman Who Hid the Past
Patricia Hartwell didn’t wait to be exposed.
She tried to leave that night.
But the Whitman security doors didn’t open for her anymore.
Evelyn walked into the hall as Patricia reached the exit.
“You destroyed my family,” Evelyn said calmly.
Patricia turned sharply.
“I protected it,” she snapped. “You would’ve raised her weak. I gave her a new life—”
Ava appeared behind them.
Her voice was quiet.
“You gave me nothing.”
Patricia froze.
Ava stepped forward, no longer shaking.
“Do you know what it’s like to grow up thinking you were unwanted?” she asked. “To clean tables while your real family ate at them?”
Hannah’s eyes filled with tears.
Evelyn whispered, “She was mine…”
Patricia’s mask finally cracked.
“I did it because you were going to leave her behind anyway.”
A silence fell.
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And for the first time, Patricia Hartwell had no audience to impress.
Only consequences.
