PART 5 — THE WOMAN IN THE HOSPITAL BED
I couldn't breathe.
The image from the video kept replaying in my mind.
The hospital room.
The woman lying unconscious.
Thomas standing beside her.
My mother beside him.
And that ring.
A ring I had never owned.
I looked at Thomas.
“You said that was me.”
He didn't answer.
“Who was that woman?”
His silence was worse than any confession.
Daniel stepped closer.
“I know.”
I turned toward him.
“You know?”
He nodded.
“But you won't like the answer.”
“Tell me.”
He looked at the floor.
“The woman in that hospital bed was your older sister.”
My heart stopped.
“My… what?”
“I never met her personally,” Daniel said. “But I saw photographs. Your mother had another daughter.”
I shook my head.
“No. That's impossible.”
Daniel pulled an old photograph from his folder.
He handed it to me.
There were two young girls standing beside my mother.
One was me.
The other looked almost exactly like me.
Same eyes.
Same smile.
Same dark hair.
I stared at the photograph.
“Who is she?”
“Her name was Elise.”
My fingers tightened around the photograph.
“I don't have a sister named Elise.”
“You did.”
Daniel's voice became quieter.
“She died shortly after Lieke was born.”
The church seemed to disappear around me.
I looked at Thomas.
“You knew?”
He nodded.
“Your mother told me.”
“Why was Elise in that hospital room?”
Thomas swallowed.
“Because she was the key to everything.”
I felt sick.
Daniel took a breath.
“Your mother knew that you and Elise looked almost identical. She used that fact to create a false story.”
I looked at the photograph again.
“What story?”
“That you had died after giving birth.”
I shook my head.
“But I was alive.”
“Yes.”
Daniel looked at me.
“And that was the problem.”
I stared at him.
“What do you mean?”
“Thomas needed Daniel to believe you were dead.”
I turned toward Thomas.
“So my mother used my sister?”
Thomas didn't respond.
Daniel continued.
“They dressed Elise in your clothes. They put your identification beside her. They told Daniel that you and the baby had died.”
My stomach turned.
“But Lieke was alive.”
“Yes.”
“Where was she?”
Daniel looked at Bunny.
“Safe.”
I frowned.
“What?”
“Your daughter was never in danger at the hospital.”
I stared at him.
“Then why did Thomas act like she was?”
“Because he needed you to believe that you had no one left.”
I felt tears burning my eyes.
“He manipulated me.”
“Yes.”
“Why?”
Daniel looked at Thomas.
“Because your daughter wasn't the only thing he wanted.”
Thomas suddenly spoke.
“Enough.”
Daniel ignored him.
“He wanted the inheritance.”
I nodded slowly.
“But the inheritance wasn't available until Lieke turned eighteen.”
“Correct.”
“So he had to wait.”
Daniel nodded.
“And he needed someone close to you.”
I looked at Thomas.
He had been there every day.
Every birthday.
Every school event.
Every Christmas.
He had watched Lieke grow up.
He had learned her routines.
Her fears.
Her favorite toys.
Her habits.
He had made himself indispensable.
And all this time, he had been waiting.
I whispered:
“You chose me because of my daughter.”
Thomas looked at me.
“At first.”
My heart broke.
“At first?”
He looked away.
“Things changed.”
I laughed bitterly.
“You expect me to believe that?”
“I loved you.”
“You lied to me for five years.”
“I was supposed to leave.”
“But you didn't.”
“No.”
His voice became softer.
“Because I fell in love with you.”
For one dangerous second, I almost believed him.
Then I remembered Lieke's recording.
He gets mean when you're gone.
I shook my head.
“Then why were you afraid of Bunny?”
Thomas's face changed.
I noticed.
Daniel noticed too.
“Because of what she recorded,” I whispered.
Thomas stepped backward.
“You don't understand.”
“What did you say to her?”
He didn't answer.
I pressed play on the recording again.
Thomas's voice filled the church.
“If you tell your mother, everything will be her fault.”
Lieke's voice followed.
“Why?”
“Because she won't forgive you.”
I stopped the recording.
“What were you trying to make her believe?”
Thomas looked at me.
“That you had abandoned her.”
My heart shattered.
“You wanted my own daughter to hate me?”
He looked down.
“I needed her to become dependent on me.”
Daniel clenched his fists.
“You were grooming her.”
Thomas immediately snapped:
“Watch your words.”
I stepped between them.
“No.”
My voice was stronger now.
“Let him speak.”
Thomas stared at me.
“I wanted her to trust me.”
“You wanted to replace me.”
He didn't deny it.
The silence was enough.
Then my phone rang again.
Unknown number.
I answered.
A man's voice whispered:
“If you want your mother alive, come alone.”
My blood froze.
“Who is this?”
“Bring the original birth certificate.”
The call ended.
Daniel immediately asked:
“Who was it?”
I looked at him.
“They have my mother.”
Thomas's face changed.
Daniel noticed.
“You know who that was.”
Thomas shook his head.
“No.”
Daniel grabbed him by the collar.
“You're lying.”
I pulled Daniel away.
“Stop!”
Thomas looked at me.
“I swear I don't know.”
Then his phone buzzed.
Everyone looked at it.
A message appeared on the screen.
Thomas read it.
His face went completely white.
I held out my hand.
“Give me the phone.”
He hesitated.
“Now.”
He handed it to me.
The message contained one photograph.
My mother was sitting in a dark room.
Her hands were tied.
A man stood behind her.
But that wasn't what terrified me.
On the table beside her was a small hospital bracelet.
I zoomed in.
The name on it was clearly visible.
Lieke van Dijk.
But underneath the name was another line.
Mother: Elise van Dijk.
I couldn't move.
Daniel stared at the screen.
“That can't be.”
I looked at him.
“What?”
He whispered:
“Elise wasn't your sister.”
My blood ran cold.
“What are you saying?”
Daniel looked at me.
“She was Lieke's biological mother.”
The phone slipped from my hand.
“No.”
Thomas closed his eyes.
I backed away from both men.
“No…”
Daniel continued:
“Your mother didn't steal your daughter's identity.”
He swallowed.
“She stole yours.”
I looked toward the church doors.
My entire life suddenly felt like a lie.
My memories.
My childhood.
My family.
Everything.
Then a new message appeared on Thomas's phone.
Just six words:
“Bring the real mother to me.”
I looked at Thomas.
“What does that mean?”
He stared at me.
And for the first time, he looked genuinely terrified.
“It means…”
He paused.
“…they think you're Elise.”
My heart stopped.
Because suddenly I remembered something from my childhood.
A scar on my shoulder.
A scar my mother had always told me was from a childhood accident.
But I had never remembered the accident.
And now I understood why.
