She presses a hand to her chest. “Jesus fuck.”
I can’t help it. I choke out a laugh at her words, so similar to mine. She blushes and shakes her head before running her fingers through her long hair.
“Okay,” she murmurs. “It’s one thing to know you were injured. A different thing entirely to hear it recounted so…” Her hands flap. “Easily.”
“It’s not easy, though.” I cock my head to the side and lift a brow. “It’s not easy at all, Madeline. It’s just my reality.” And it’s only the tip of it.
“I know.” She exhales a shaky breath. “Anyway. I was searching all over for you. Then I heard the explosion. I ran for the house, but when I got there, I saw Augustus and his men through the window.” Her brows furrow. “They were searching for something. I was terrified when I saw them go upstairs. Worried they were coming for you. So I snuck in through the service entrance, sticking to the restricted hallways.”
Her words jar my memory, bringing me back to another of many lessons. Miles taking me through a hidden hallway that, if discovered, would be explained away as a staff access hall. Really, it was created as a last resort for us to use if we needed to escape. I’d completely forgotten about it until just now.
“I followed the sound of their frantic voices. They went straight to your mom’s office and tore it apart.” She tugs on her hair, looking stricken. “They were searching for something. At first, I thought it was you. But up until that moment, they still believed you were the daughter of a staff member. A nobody. They were more concerned with this object.”
“What was it?”
“Augustus kept shouting aboutthe documents, andkeys. It wasn’t until years later when I’d taken on this position that I discovered what he’d been looking for.”
Anxiety pulses through me. I’m not sure I want to hear this.
“The Moreau’s are wealthy, Isabella.” She gives me a wide-eyed look. “It’s not thousands or millions sitting in a bank somewhere. There’s enough money to save nations, and it’s all in your name.”
My mouth falls open before closing again. I suck in a sharp breath that sounds more like a wheeze and double over.
She pats my back and hums. “Yep. I reacted about the same.”
“But…what…how…” I start, squeezing my eyes shut when the room spins. “That’s what he’s after?”
“Yes, and lucky for us, he can’t access it. It’s overseas in a vault.” I flick my gaze to her and she smiles softly. “It’s in your family home with your great uncle, Henri, back in Corsica.”
I shove upright. “Then why the hell is Augustus still after us? He has to know by now it’s not here. I can’t just simply give him the key.” I pause, my throat constricting. “Can I?”
Madeline shakes her head and pulls me gently toward a bench before sitting down. I follow suit, falling heavily next to her.
“No. He can’t. Even if he had access, it’s more than a key.” She hesitates before brushing sweaty hair from my face. “It’s you. You’re the only one who can gain entrance to the vault. Well, you and Henri, but…” she trails off, her smile growing. “He’s waiting for you, sweetheart. He’s very excited to meet you.”
“So,” I murmur. “There’s a person in my family who isn’t awful?”
She flinches, her hand falling to her side, and I jolt, realizing my mistake. “I didn’t mean you. I was talking about Sacha.”
Madeline waves me away. “I know I’ve done you wrong, Ella. I know I’ve hurt you. And those hurts are so deep, they’ll take time to repair. I just hope you at least give me a chance some day.”
We fall into silence for a long moment. When she finally speaks again, her voice is raw.
“His men split up. By this point, the fire was spreading from the Chamber. Staff was running and screaming. The kids—” She glances up at me, her delicate throat bobbing. “Gage, Nyxon, Maddox, and Alec were there. Along with a few other children who belonged to Circle members or staff. A little girl, Penny, was killed when she ran off to find her mother, Tilly, who was a maid.
“It was mayhem. But throughout it all, I never stopped looking for it. When I finally made it to your bedroom, Gus was already there. I saw it…the moment he realized you were Charlotte’s, not mine.”
Her eyes slide across my face, taking in my features. Slowly, she reaches up and trails her finger across my freckles. A shiver works its way down my spine.
“You look exactly like your mom, Skye,” she whispers, and for the first time, the name doesn’t make me uncomfortable.
It feels familiar. It’s filled with love, recognition. I can almost picture Miles and Charlotte here, loving me, looking at me like I’m their daughter, not their niece. It feels like home.
Maybe that’s why I grab Madeline’s hand and squeeze it. I don’t let go, even when it falls to the bench between us.
Madeline is all I have left of my past life, now. My childhood.
Well, her and Stone, but I’m too raw, too hurt, to think of that yet.
