Chapter 9 - The Ghost of Thomas Vance
Julian stumbled backward, his hand flying to his mouth as he stared at the man sitting at the head of the table.
"Dad?" Julian whispered, the word tasting like ash on his tongue. "No... that's impossible. You're dead. We buried you in the family plot with full military honors!"
Thomas Vance closed the leather ledger with a soft thump that echoed through the candlelit room like a gunshot.
He stood up slowly, smoothing the front of his dark vest, revealing the exact same silver crescent moon pendant resting against his black silk tie.
"Funerals are expensive, Julian, but they are remarkably effective at closing police investigations," Thomas said smoothly, his voice carrying the rich, resonant timbre that had once commanded the boardroom of Vance Global Enterprises.
Eleanor didn't move. She stood in the doorway, her face devoid of surprise, as if she had known the truth all along.
"You faked your death," Eleanor said flatly, her voice chillingly devoid of emotion. "You left me to run the empire alone while you hid down here in the dark with her."
Thomas smiled, a cold, humorless twitch of the lips. "I didn't hide, Eleanor. I protected our asset. Do you really think the board would have allowed a family scandal of this magnitude to destroy our stock value?"
Julian looked between his mother and the man he had mourned for over three decades, his mind shattering under the weight of the betrayal.
"What scandal?" Julian screamed, his voice breaking with rage. "What are you both talking about? Who is this girl?!"
Thomas turned his gaze toward the young girl sitting quietly at the table. She picked up a silver spoon and tapped it lightly against the edge of a china teacup.
"Tell him, sister," Thomas said softly. "Tell your twin brother who you are."
Julian froze, the blood draining from his face until he felt as though he might faint right there on the dusty Persian rug.
"Twin..." Julian stammered, looking at the girl. "I... I don't have a sister."
The girl stood up, smoothing her red velvet dress, and walked slowly toward Julian until she stood right beneath the flickering candlelight.
May you like
"You did, Julian," the girl whispered, her pale blue eyes boring straight into his soul. "Until mom traded my life for your inheritance."
---
