CHAPTER 2 — THE WOMAN EVERYONE HATED
CHAPTER 2 — THE WOMAN EVERYONE HATED
The apartment smelled like medicine and cold soup.
Eleanor followed Liam through a rundown building on the edge of the city.
Every step made her heart beat harder.
The bracelet.
The age.
The timing.
None of it could be coincidence.
When the apartment door opened, everything changed.
A woman sat on the couch.
Thin.
Pale.
Exhausted.
The moment Eleanor saw her face, she stopped breathing.
"Emily..."
The woman looked up.
Tears instantly filled her eyes.
Because she recognized Eleanor too.
Six years earlier, Emily Hayes had disappeared with Eleanor's daughter.
Police called it kidnapping.
News stations called it a tragedy.
The city called Emily a monster.
But nobody knew the truth.
Emily slowly pulled an old box from beneath the couch.
Inside were photographs.
Documents.
Hospital records.
DNA reports.
And a tiny pink blanket.
The same blanket Eleanor had wrapped around her newborn years ago.
Emily finally broke down.
"I didn't kidnap her."
Eleanor stared silently.
Then Emily whispered the sentence that changed everything.
May you like
"Your husband sold her."
The room went completely silent.
