Chapter 184
Elle’s POV
Susan’s face crumpled as she continued, her voice barely above a whisper. The other twin… Elle, that baby was unnaturally strong. The doctor said he’d never seen anything like it. While one child was failing, the other seemed to be thriving almost aggressively.”
I felt my blood turn to ice. “What do you can, unnaturally strong
“The baby was moving so much, so powerfully, that Mrs. Stella was in constant pain, Susan said, her hands trembling. “Mrs. Eleanor became convinced that one twin was… draining the other. She made a decision,”
Susan took a shuddering breath. “Mrs. Eleanor ordered all the physicians to focus on saving the pregnancy, but she also commanded me to leave the Blair estate immediately. She told me to go as far away as possible and never return.“
“Why you specifically?” I asked, though my heart was already racing with dread.
“Because she trusted me,” Sesan said simply. “Td served the family loyally for years. She knew I would follow orders without question.”
r there Susan’s eyes grew distant. “I did as she commanded. I traveled to Moon Lake City, where I found work at a small diner. Your father… Tony was working ton, just trying to make ends meet. He was kind to me, patient. When he asked me to marry him and come with him to Moonshade Bay’s human community,
I said yes
I gripped the edge of the table. And then?”
“We’d only been married a few months when someone came to our door,” Susan continued, her voice growing steadier with the telling. A person I’d never seen before, carrying a baby wrapped in the fine silk blankets. They also brought an envelope with more money than I’d ever seen, and a letter from Mrs. Eleanor Dir herself.
My chest felt tight. “What did the letter say?”
Susan’s face went ashen. “It said that Mrs. Stella’s twins only one could surver. The Blair family had made their choice, and they were entrusting the other child to my care. The letter said. She paused, struggling with the words. “It said you were to be left to fate.”
The phrase hit me like a physical blow. Left to fate, In other words, they didn’t expect me to the.
“You were supposed to let me die, weren’t you?” I said quietly, and Susan’s tears confirmed my suspicion
“Elle, please
“Answer me,‘ 1 said, my voice sharper than I intended. They gave you money and expected you to let me die.”
Susan nodded miserably. “But how could I? You were just a baby, and despite what they said about leaving you to fate… Elle, you were the healthiest infant
Td ever seen.
I felt a bitter laugh escape me. ‘Of course I was healthy. I’ve always been healthy haven’t I? Even when I was starving in this community, even when Grace beat me, even when I worked myself to exhaustion–1 never got seriously sick, niver broke a bone, never had more than a scratch that didn’t heal within days.”
Susan reached for my hand. “Elle, I need you to understand something. When you asked me earlier about your birth mother. Mrs. Stella was told during delivery that one of the twins had died in the womb. She was shown a lifeless baby, held in briefly, and mourned for it. That baby was buried in the Blair
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Chapter 184
family cemetery.
My stomach dropped. “So she thinks I’m dead.”
* Susan whispered. ‘She has no idea you survived.”
‘But that means I felt my mind reeling. “Someone deliberately deceived her. Someone switched babies. Someone made sure she saw a dead child while
smugling the real me mit.”
Susan nodded slowly. The always suspected the same thing”
Before I could process this fully, I heard footsteps and turned to see Abigail approaching from the kitchen, carrying a tray of cut fruit. She paused when she saw out expressions.
I’m sorry, Abigail said quietly. “I couldn’t help but overhear some of this conversation.”
1 gestured for her to sit.
Abigail set down the tray and those her words carefully. “Mrs. Eleanor Blair… shes not just wealthy and influential. She’s one of the few people in the world who has mastered ancient alchemy and witchcraft. Some believe that these aren’t parlor tricks–they’re real, powerful abilities passed down through
generations.
My skin began to crawl “Go on”
Tve beard stories about Mrs. Eleanor’s… foresight,” Abigail continued. “She supposedly foresaw that the Blair family’s current generation would face a
pivotal moment–5
-something that could either restore the family to unprecedented power or destroy them entirely.”
Susan was nodding. “That matches what I remember. She was always talking about the crucial time and the choice that would determine everything. She performed divination rituals when she leamed about the twins. The results told her that both children couldn’t coexist–that one would thrive only if the other was removed from the equation.”
I felt sick. “And she chose to keep Dakota instead of me. But why? I was the healthy one.”
She shook her head. “That’s what I don’t understand either. From everything you’ve described, it seems like you would have been the obvious choice for a family concerned about continuing their bloodline. And Dakota… poor Dakota was always so frail,‘She died so young despite having every advantage. I never understood why Mr. Eleanor would choose the weaker child.”
“Maybe that’s exactly why,” I said slowly, a horrible thought forming. “Maybe she knew something we didn’t. Maybe she saw something in Dakota that made her the safer choice?”
The room fell silent as we all contemplated this possibility.
Then another thought struck me like lightning. “Susan,” I said urgently, in all the years since you took me in have you ever seen Mrs. Eleanor Blair? Ever received any other communication from the Blair family!”
Susan and Abigail both shook their heads.
Ive lived in Moonshade Bay my entire life, Susan said. “Mis. Eleanor never leaves the Blair estate. She’s completely reclusive, devoted to her studies.”
A cold certainty settled over me. That’s not possible,” I said quietly. “If she’s as powerful as you say, if she has real foresight abilities… there’s no way she jast abandoned me to chance after going to all the trouble of having me secretly removed.”
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Chapter 184
Now I knew what I had to do. “I need to find Mrs. Eleanor Blair,” I said with quiet determination. ‘She’s the only one who can tell me the complete truth about why this all happened”
Before anyone could respond, there was a sharp knock at the front dour.
Mrs. W
West!” a voice called from outside. Are you ready? We need to leave soon if we’re going to make it to the herb shop before it closest
Susan’s eyes widened. “Oh my goodness, I completely forgot! I promised to go with Mrs. Patterson to buy herbs for her special tea blend.”
I immediately stood. “Let me arrange for a car to take you.”
Susan waved her hand dismissively. “It’s not far, dear. Just a short walk to the local herb shop. But thank you.”
Sophia brightened. “Why don’t we all go? We could use some fresh air and a distraction.”
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Sara Lili is a daring romance writer who turns icy landscapes into scenes of fiery passion. She loves crafting hot love stories while embracing the chill of Iceland’s breathtaking cold.
