Chapter 6: The Woman Who Knew Everything
I stared at the name for a long time.
Clara.
The woman who called me.
The woman who claimed she was trying to help Livia.
The woman who said Bianca was hiding something.
Now I was looking at proof that Clara had been part of the secret from the beginning.
I felt betrayed.
But I also felt confused.
Because Clara had risked everything to warn me.
Why?
I called her immediately.
She answered after one ring.
“Alessandro?””
“You knew.””
Silence.
That was all I needed.
“You knew about Isabella’s letter.””
Her breathing changed.
“I knew you would find it eventually.””
My voice hardened.
“No. You knew before I did.””
“Please let me explain.””
“Start talking.””
A long pause followed.
Then Clara whispered:
“Isabella asked me to promise.””
I closed my eyes.
“Promise what?””
“To protect Livia.””
The anger inside me softened slightly.
“But why keep this from me?””
“Because Isabella was afraid.””
“Afraid of me?””
“No.””
Clara’s voice broke.
“She was afraid of what would happen after she was gone.””
I looked out the window.
“What does that mean?””
“Isabella believed someone would try to use the truth against you.””
I thought about Bianca.
About her smile.
About how quickly she had revealed information that should have been impossible for her to know.
“Did Bianca know?””
Clara didn’t answer.
“Clara.””
Finally, she spoke.
“Yes.””
My stomach dropped.
“How?””
“I don’t know exactly.””
“But she knew.””
“Yes.””
I walked across the room.
“She searched through my son’s things. She tried opening Isabella’s box. She knew about the letter.””
Clara whispered:
“She wasn’t looking for memories.””
I stopped.
“What?””
“She was looking for something else.””
“What else?””
Clara hesitated.
“I don’t know.””
That answer frustrated me.
“Then what do you know?””
“I know Bianca has been asking questions about Livia’s birth for months.””
“Why?””
“I don’t know.””
I looked toward the stairs.
Livia was upstairs sleeping.
My son.
My responsibility.
My world.
“Did Isabella tell you anything else?””
Clara became quiet.
“Clara.””
“She told me if anything happened to her, I needed to watch carefully.””
“Watch what?””
“People who suddenly became interested in Livia.””
The words settled heavily.
Suddenly, everything felt connected.
The engagement.
The wedding plans.
Bianca moving into my home.
Her obsession with controlling everything.
But there was still one question.
Why?
That evening, I went to the old hospital where Livia was born.
I needed answers from someone who had been there.
The records department gave me access to the archived files.
A nurse named Evelyn agreed to meet me.
When she saw my name, her expression changed.
“You’re Isabella’s husband.””
“Yes.””
She looked uncomfortable.
“I wondered if this day would come.””
My heart sank.
“You knew?””
She nodded slowly.
“I knew something was wrong.””
“What happened?””
She looked around before lowering her voice.
“After Isabella gave birth, someone came to the hospital asking questions.””
“Who?””
“A woman.””
“Who?””
Evelyn looked directly at me.
“She wasn’t family.””
My hands tightened.
“Then why did she have access?””
The nurse opened an old file.
“She claimed Isabella asked her to help.””
I looked at the papers.
“Who was she?””
Evelyn took a breath.
Then she said:
“Her name was Bianca.””
The room went silent.
My entire body froze.
Bianca.
She wasn’t just someone who discovered Isabella’s secret.
She had been near it from the beginning.
“But that’s impossible,” I whispered.
Evelyn shook her head.
“No, Alessandro.””
She pushed the file toward me.
“She was there the night your son was born.””
I looked down.
And inside the folder was a photograph.
A photograph of Bianca standing outside the hospital room.
Holding something in her hand.
Something that belonged to Isabella.
May you like
And written on the back of the photo were four words:
She knows the truth.
