Married to a Billionaire Stranger

Chapter 24: Bloodlines and Broken Trust

The car ride to the estate was long, but quiet.

Xavier hadn't said much since they left the hospital. Ella sat beside him in the back of the dark SUV, arms crossed tightly over her chest, eyes fixed on the blur of trees flying past her window. The sun had begun to sink behind the horizon, casting long shadows across the road. It felt like the kind of drive people took before everything changed.

And everything had.

Her mother was alive. Charles King was behind her disappearance. And Xavier's family, the one she'd unwillingly married into, had been hiding secrets that tied directly to her own blood.

"You're sure he'll talk to us?" she asked finally.

Xavier nodded, not taking his eyes off the road ahead. "He was Anthony's personal assistant for over a decade. If anyone knew what really happened, it's Thomas Caldwell. He disappeared after Anthony's death. But he still owns a cottage near the estate. He agreed to meet."

Ella tilted her head slightly. "Why would he agree now?"

"Because I told him the truth." Xavier paused. "That we think Anthony may have had a child with a woman he tried to erase."

The air shifted in the car. Heavy. Unspoken.

Ella swallowed. "You mean me."

Xavier turned his gaze to her, his expression unreadable. "I mean whoever the Kings tried to erase. If that's you, then yes."

She looked away.

They arrived at the edge of the old King estate just after dusk. The once-grand mansion loomed in the distance, windows dark, ivy climbing its outer walls like scars. But they weren't going there.

They followed a winding path through the woods until they reached a small cabin tucked deep into the trees. Faint light glowed behind drawn curtains.

Xavier knocked twice. Then again.

A pause. Then the door creaked open.

Thomas Caldwell was thinner than Xavier remembered. His once-dark hair had turned silver, and his shoulders were hunched from years of silence. But his eyes were sharp—clear, if not cautious.

"You brought her," Thomas said quietly.

Xavier stepped back, letting Ella forward. "This is Ella Grace Carter."

Thomas studied her face for a long time. "You look like her."

"My mother?"

He nodded. "Katherine was kind. Smarter than most of them. Too smart. That's why Anthony hated losing her."

Ella felt her heart squeeze. "Did he... did he hurt her?"

Thomas exhaled and gestured them inside.

The cabin smelled of cedar and old books. A fire crackled in the stone hearth. Papers were scattered across the table—handwritten notes, newspaper clippings, faded photographs.

He sat. They did too.

"What I'm about to tell you," Thomas said slowly, "never made it into any report. And it won't. Because if it does, the Kings will bury it—along with anyone tied to it."

Xavier leaned forward. "We can protect you."

Thomas gave a dry laugh. "Son, you still wear the name. But I believe you want the truth. That's why I'm talking."

Ella waited.

Thomas tapped a folder on the table. "Katherine worked for Anthony for only six months. Long enough for him to become obsessed. She didn't know at first. He was subtle. Charming. But when she tried to resign, things changed. He threatened her. Then when she told him she was pregnant, he snapped. Said the child was his legacy. That he'd take it. Raise it. Mold it."

Ella flinched.

Thomas looked at her. "She ran. Your father—whoever he was—wasn't in the picture. She tried to disappear. And she almost did. But Charles found her."

Xavier's voice was tight. "Why keep her alive, then? Why not eliminate the threat?"

"Because killing a woman draws attention. But erasing her quietly? That they could do. Charles paid for her to be committed, locked away under an alias. Anthony believed she was dead. Charles let him. And then, six months later, your father sealed all records."

Ella felt numb. "Did Anthony ever find out the truth?"

Thomas hesitated. "Not before he died. But he suspected. That's why he kept a file on her, even after her disappearance. It's probably still in the estate vault."

Xavier stood abruptly. "Then that's where we go next."

Thomas stood too, slow and heavy. He handed Ella a photograph—an old one, dated and faded. A woman standing in front of the King estate, looking over her shoulder.

"She didn't want to be a part of this world," Thomas said. "She just wanted her child to be free."

Ella held the photo tight. Her mother's eyes stared back at her, wide and fearful.

"Thank you," she whispered.

Thomas nodded. "Be careful. You're not the only one looking into this."

As they stepped out into the cold night air, Ella glanced at Xavier.

"Do you believe me now?"

He met her gaze. "I always did. I just didn't know how deep it went."

Behind them, a curtain in the cottage window moved. And in the far distance, headlights flickered once before vanishing into the trees.

Someone had followed them.

And the next move might not be legal.