Chapter 6: The Truth Behind The Fairy Tale
The hospital was quieter than the Sterling Estate.
No cameras.
No guests.
No carefully arranged smiles.
Just white walls, fluorescent lights, and the sound of footsteps moving through empty hallways.
For the first time that night, I felt like I could breathe.
But the questions were louder than ever.
Liam walked beside me.
Neither of us spoke for several minutes.
Finally, he stopped near the elevator.
“Avery.””
I didn’t turn around.
“What?””
“I’m sorry.””
Two words.
Two words I had waited years to hear.
But they felt different now.
Too late.
I looked at him.
“Are you sorry because your mother hurt me?””
His eyes dropped.
“Or are you sorry because I found out?””
He didn’t answer.
That was answer enough.
The elevator doors opened.
Inside, Liam finally said what he should have said years ago.
“My father knew about you before we met.””
I stared at him.
“How?””
He leaned against the elevator wall.
“Because he was looking for someone.””
“Who?””
His silence returned.
I closed my eyes.
“Liam.””
“My father had another life before he became Edward Sterling.””
The elevator stopped.
Neither of us moved.
“He had relationships he never talked about.””
My stomach tightened.
“And my mother?””
“She knew.””
Of course she knew.
Victoria always knew.
That was the terrifying thing about her.
She wasn’t powerful because she had money.
She was powerful because she collected information.
Every weakness.
Every mistake.
Every secret.
We reached the hospital floor.
A nurse directed us toward a private room.
When the door opened, I saw an elderly woman sitting by the window.
She looked fragile.
But her eyes were sharp.
The moment she saw me, tears filled them.
“Avery.””
I froze.
Because I had never met her.
Yet she said my name like she had been waiting years.
“Who are you?””
The woman looked at Liam.
Then back at me.
“My name is Clara Bennett.””
Liam stopped.
“Bennett?””
She nodded.
“Your father’s first assistant.””
The room became silent.
Clara reached into her bag and pulled out an old photograph.
She handed it to me.
My hands shook as I looked at it.
It was Edward Sterling.
And beside him…
Was my mother.
I couldn’t breathe.
My mother had died when I was young.
She had never mentioned the Sterlings.
Never mentioned wealth.
Never mentioned secrets.
“Why?”” I whispered.
Clara’s voice softened.
“Because Edward asked her to hide.””
“Hide what?””
Clara looked at Liam.
Then at me.
“The truth about Leo Sterling’s inheritance.””
I frowned.
“What does that have to do with me?””
Clara reached for another document.
“This.””
She placed it in my hands.
The paper was old.
The signature at the bottom was unmistakable.
Edward Sterling.
I read the first line.
Then the second.
And my entire body went cold.
Because it wasn’t about money.
It wasn’t about a secret account.
It was about ownership.
Control.
And a promise Edward Sterling made before he died.
A promise involving me.
Liam stepped closer.
“What does it say?””
I looked at him.
Unable to speak.
Clara answered for me.
“Your father left instructions that if anything happened to him…”
She paused.
“…Avery Collins would become the only person capable of exposing what Victoria Sterling had done.””
The room went silent.
Liam stared at me.
“What?””
Clara looked toward the hallway.
Then lowered her voice.
“But there’s something else you need to know.””
My fingers tightened around the document.
“What?””
Her face turned pale.
“Victoria didn’t just hide Edward’s secret.””
She looked directly at me.
May you like
“She tried to erase your entire connection to the Sterling family before Liam ever met you.””
And then the door behind us slowly opened.
