Chapter 6: The Brother Who Came Back From the Dead
The smile on Henry Sterling's face was the most frightening thing Rebecca had seen all night.
It wasn't a cruel smile.
It wasn't angry.
It was almost affectionate.
The kind of smile an older brother might give when seeing a younger sibling after years apart.
But David Sterling looked as though he had just seen a ghost.
“Turn that camera off,” he whispered.
Elliot stared at him.
“Why?””
“Turn it off.””
Elliot didn't move.
Henry was still standing beneath the harsh garage lights, staring directly into the security camera.
Then he lifted one hand.
He waved.
Rebecca felt the hair rise along her arms.
“How does he know we're watching?””
Elliot shook his head.
“He probably doesn't.””
Henry lowered his hand.
Then he reached into his jacket.
David's voice became urgent.
“Open the door.””
Elliot looked at him.
“What?””
“Open the garage.””
“No.””
“If you don't, he'll force his way in.””
“Then we'll keep it closed.””
David stepped toward him.
“You don't understand Henry.””
“I don't understand any of this.””
“Henry doesn't negotiate.””
Richard finally spoke.
“He will today.””
David turned.
“Why?””
“Because he needs something.””
Rebecca looked at Margaret.
“What?””
Margaret's expression was grim.
“You.””
Rebecca felt cold.
“Me?””
“Henry believes your father's inheritance belongs to him.””
Rebecca looked at David.
“Your brother wants my inheritance?””
David shook his head.
“He wants more than that.””
“What?””
“The archive.””
Rebecca tightened her grip around the silver key.
“The Meridian Archive.””
“Yes.””
Richard stepped closer.
“Henry has spent twenty years looking for it.””
“And he thinks I can lead him to it.””
“Yes.””
Rebecca looked at Margaret.
“How?””
“Because Thomas trusted you.””
Rebecca shook her head.
“I didn't even know Thomas.””
“But he knew you.””
Richard corrected gently.
“And he knew what you would become.””
Rebecca looked at the security screen again.
Henry was gone.
“He's not there anymore.””
Elliot checked another camera.
Then another.
“Nothing.””
David moved toward the elevator.
“Too late.””
Rebecca followed.
“Where are you going?””
“To find Henry.””
Margaret grabbed his arm.
“No.””
David stopped.
“I have to.””
“He wants you to come outside.””
“I can handle my brother.””
“You couldn't handle him twenty-five years ago.””
The words struck David hard.
His eyes darkened.
“Don't.””
Margaret released his arm.
“I'm not trying to hurt you.””
“Yes, you are.””
“No.””
Margaret looked at Rebecca.
“I'm trying to keep her alive.””
David followed her gaze.
Rebecca still held the key.
He stared at it.
“Then we're running out of time.””
The lights flickered again.
A deep metallic boom echoed through the garage.
Everyone froze.
Elliot looked at the monitors.
“Something just hit the outer gate.””
Another boom.
The lights went out.
Emergency lighting switched on.
Red.
The underground room suddenly looked like a war bunker.
Rebecca heard footsteps overhead.
Many footsteps.
Elliot moved toward the door.
Richard caught his shoulder.
“Don't.””
Elliot turned.
“Why?””
“Because they're already inside.””
A gunshot cracked somewhere in the garage.
Rebecca gasped.
Margaret pulled her behind a concrete wall.
“Stay down.””
Another shot.
Then another.
David looked around.
“How many people are with Henry?””
Richard answered.
“Too many.””
“Can we get out?””
“Not through the garage.””
“What about the service tunnel?””
“They'll have it covered.””
Elliot stared at the floor plan displayed on one of the monitors.
“There is another route.””
David turned.
“Where?””
“Behind the archive room.””
Rebecca looked at him.
“What archive room?””
Elliot pointed toward a steel wall.
“That.””
David's face changed.
“You built this room around it?””
“I didn't know what was behind that wall.””
Richard looked at him.
“Now you do.””
Elliot entered a code.
Nothing happened.
He tried again.
The system rejected him.
“What?””
Rebecca stepped forward.
“Maybe it doesn't need your access.””
Elliot looked at her.
“What do you mean?””
She held up the key.
“The key.””
Richard nodded.
“Of course.””
Elliot took the key.
At the base of the wall was a small slot.
He inserted it.
There was a mechanical click.
The steel wall moved.
A narrow passage appeared.
Everyone stared.
David whispered,
“Thomas.””
Rebecca looked at him.
“What?””
“He built this.””
“You knew?””
“I knew he was obsessed with emergency exits.””
“That isn't an answer.””
“No.””
David touched the wall.
“He was preparing for the day somebody came after him.””
A burst of gunfire echoed through the garage.
Richard grabbed David.
“Move.””
They entered the passage.
Rebecca went first.
Margaret followed.
Elliot stayed behind long enough to close the hidden door.
When the wall sealed itself, the gunfire became distant.
The passage was dark.
Rebecca's phone flashlight was the only light.
“Where does this lead?””
Richard answered.
“The old hangar.””
Rebecca stopped.
“The one Margaret mentioned?””
“Yes.””
“How far?””
“Three hundred feet.””
“That's all?””
Richard nodded.
“There's a reason it was hidden beneath this building.””
Rebecca looked ahead.
“What reason?””
Richard didn't answer.
They walked in silence.
Then David stopped.
“Wait.””
Everyone turned.
“What?””
David pointed toward the wall.
There were markings.
Old ones.
Painted symbols.
Three intersecting lines inside a circle.
Black Meridian.
Rebecca stared.
“This is where it started.””
Richard nodded.
“No.””
He looked at the markings.
“This is where Thomas discovered it.””
They continued.
The tunnel opened into a massive underground hangar.
Rebecca stopped.
She had never seen anything like it.
The hangar was enormous.
Dust-covered equipment stood beneath tarps.
Old aircraft parts lined the walls.
At the center sat a silver-and-black private jet.
It looked old compared with Sterling's modern aircraft.
But it was intact.
Perfectly intact.
Rebecca stared.
“That can't be the original Sterling aircraft.””
David nodded.
“It is.””
Richard walked toward it.
“Thomas refused to let them destroy it.””
Elliot looked around.
“Who are they?””
Richard didn't answer.
Rebecca walked toward the aircraft.
Something about it felt familiar.
She couldn't explain why.
Then she noticed a small emblem beneath the cockpit window.
Three intersecting lines.
She touched it.
Her fingers trembled.
A memory surfaced.
Not her own.
Her mother's voice.
When you're old enough, you'll understand why your father left you something.
Rebecca closed her eyes.
She remembered being eight years old.
Her mother had handed her a small silver key.
She had told her never to lose it.
Rebecca opened her eyes.
“This is it.””
Margaret approached.
“Yes.””
“The key opens this.””
“No.””
Rebecca frowned.
Margaret shook her head.
“The key opens what's inside.””
Rebecca looked toward the aircraft.
“What's inside?””
Margaret didn't answer.
Suddenly, they heard something.
An engine.
Everyone turned.
The massive hangar doors were beginning to open.
David's face went pale.
“How?””
Elliot looked at the controls.
“The system is waking up.””
“Who activated it?””
Elliot turned.
The monitors beside the hangar flickered on.
A single line appeared.
*WELCOME HOME, REBECCA.*
She froze.
“How does it know my name?””
Richard stared at the screen.
“Because Thomas programmed it.””
The aircraft doors opened automatically.
A set of stairs extended from the fuselage.
Margaret stepped toward Rebecca.
“Your father expected this moment.””
Rebecca stared at her.
“Why?””
“Because he knew eventually you would come looking.””
“I never came looking.””
Margaret's eyes softened.
“You didn't.””
She pointed toward the aircraft.
“But something brought you here.””
Rebecca looked at the key.
Then the plane.
Then the message.
“I'm not getting on that plane.””
Margaret smiled faintly.
“You don't have to.””
A voice came from the darkness behind them.
“Yes, she does.””
Everyone turned.
Henry Sterling stepped into the hangar.
He was alone.
No security team.
No weapons visible.
He looked exactly like a man arriving for a business meeting.
Dark gray suit.
White shirt.
Silver hair.
Calm eyes.
David stepped forward.
“Henry.””
Henry smiled.
“David.””
“Stay away from her.””
Henry glanced toward Rebecca.
“I've wanted to meet her for a very long time.””
Rebecca stepped back.
“Who are you?””
Henry looked at her.
“Your father's oldest mistake.””
David's face tightened.
“Leave.””
Henry ignored him.
“Thomas was always sentimental.””
He looked toward the aircraft.
“He thought he could hide his secrets in machines.””
Richard stepped between them.
“You don't have access here.””
Henry smiled.
“I have more access than you think.””
He held up a small device.
Every light in the hangar turned green.
Elliot stared.
“What did you do?””
Henry looked at him.
“I bought the system.””
“You can't.””
“Everything can be bought.””
Margaret stepped forward.
“Not Rebecca.””
Henry looked at her.
“Especially Rebecca.””
David clenched his fists.
“You won't touch her.””
Henry sighed.
“You still don't understand.””
“Understand what?””
Henry looked around the hangar.
“Thomas didn't leave Rebecca the archive.””
David stared.
“Then what did he leave her?””
Henry smiled.
“The key.””
Rebecca's hand tightened around the silver object.
Henry continued.
“But the key isn't for a door.””
“What is it for?””
Henry looked directly into her eyes.
“It's for memory.””
Rebecca frowned.
“What does that mean?””
Henry took a step closer.
“Your father knew someone would erase the truth.””
Margaret's face changed.
“Henry.””
“You've been carrying the answer your entire life.””
Rebecca stared.
“My key?””
“No.””
Henry shook his head.
“You.””
Silence.
Rebecca felt her stomach drop.
“What are you talking about?””
Henry looked at David.
“Tell her.””
David didn't move.
“Tell her what?””
“That she wasn't born with all her memories.””
Rebecca's face went white.
“What?””
David closed his eyes.
“Rebecca…”
“No.””
She backed away.
“Tell me.””
David whispered,
“When you were a child, there was an accident.””
“I know about the accident.””
“No.””
His voice broke.
“You don't.””
Rebecca stared.
“What happened?””
David swallowed.
“Your mother found out someone was following you.””
Rebecca shook her head.
“My mother died when I was twelve.””
“Yes.””
“She died in an accident.””
“Yes.””
Henry laughed softly.
“No.””
Rebecca looked at him.
Henry's expression had lost all humor.
“Your mother didn't die.””
Rebecca froze.
“She disappeared.””
“What?””
“Just like my brother.””
Henry turned toward Margaret.
“Isn't that right?””
Margaret looked down.
Rebecca's voice trembled.
“Margaret.””
The older woman couldn't meet her eyes.
“My mother is alive?””
Margaret whispered,
“She was.””
Rebecca's heart stopped.
“What does that mean?””
“She died five years ago.””
Rebecca stood perfectly still.
Five years.
Not twenty.
Not when Rebecca was twelve.
Five.
Margaret continued.
“She spent the rest of her life trying to keep you hidden.””
Rebecca felt tears burning her eyes.
“Where?””
“Europe.””
“Why didn't she contact me?””
“She tried.””
“When?””
“Several times.””
Rebecca laughed through tears.
“Then why didn't I know?””
David answered.
“Because I stopped the messages.””
Rebecca looked at him.
“You did what?””
“I believed contact would expose you.””
“You had no right.””
“I know.””
“You had no right!””
Rebecca's voice echoed through the hangar.
Henry watched quietly.
Then he said,
“Now you understand.””
Rebecca turned toward him.
“Understand what?””
“Why your father hid the archive.””
“What does my mother have to do with it?””
Henry's expression became serious.
“She knew where it was.””
Rebecca stared.
“Where?””
Henry looked toward the old aircraft.
“Inside your father's plane.””
Richard suddenly moved.
“Don't.””
Henry smiled.
“Too late.””
The aircraft's rear compartment opened.
A hidden panel slid aside.
Inside was a narrow metal chamber.
Rebecca approached slowly.
At the center sat a small black box.
No lock.
No handle.
Only a fingerprint scanner.
She stared at it.
Henry spoke behind her.
“Your father didn't trust keys.””
Rebecca looked at the silver key.
“Then why give me this?””
Henry smiled.
“Because you haven't understood yet.””
Rebecca stepped toward the scanner.
A voice came through the aircraft speakers.
Thomas.
Her father's voice.
“Rebecca.””
She froze.
The entire hangar seemed to disappear.
It was him.
Not a recording from a distant file.
Not a distorted message.
A clear, warm voice.
Her father.
“If you've found this, then they finally told you enough.””
Rebecca covered her mouth.
Thomas continued.
“I don't know whether I will ever meet you.””
His voice softened.
“But if I don't, there are three things you need to remember.””
The chamber lights turned on.
The first panel displayed a name.
*MARGARET ELLIS.*
The second displayed another.
*RICHARD HAYES.*
The third displayed a photograph.
Rebecca stared at it.
The photograph showed Thomas standing beside a young woman.
A woman who looked almost exactly like Rebecca.
But it wasn't her mother.
Rebecca knew that immediately.
“Who is she?””
Thomas's recorded voice continued.
“The person in this photograph is the woman who caused everything.””
Rebecca stared.
The young woman looked directly into the camera.
She wore a black dress.
Her expression was calm.
Confident.
Familiar.
Rebecca suddenly understood why Margaret had cried when she looked at her.
Why Evelyn had kept looking at her.
Why David had been afraid.
Rebecca had seen that face before.
In her own mirror.
Same eyes.
Same jawline.
Same smile.
She looked at the photograph again.
“No.””
Margaret stepped closer.
“I was hoping you wouldn't have to learn this tonight.””
Rebecca turned.
“Who is she?””
Margaret whispered,
“Your twin sister.””
Rebecca couldn't breathe.
“I don't have a sister.””
Margaret closed her eyes.
“You did.””
“Where is she?””
Margaret looked at Henry.
Henry smiled.
Then he answered.
“She is standing right here.””
Rebecca turned slowly.
Nobody moved.
Nobody spoke.
Henry's smile disappeared.
He looked directly at Rebecca.
“Because the woman you've been calling Margaret Ellis for years…”
Margaret stepped backward.
Rebecca stared at her.
Henry finished:
“…was never Margaret.””
The older woman suddenly reached for something inside her handbag.
Richard shouted,
“Margaret, don't!””
She pulled out a photograph.
Dropped it.
Rebecca looked down.
The photograph was old.
Two babies.
Two identical girls.
And on the back, written in Thomas's handwriting, were six words:
*Only one of them is Rebecca.*
Rebecca stared at the photograph.
Then she looked at the woman beside her.
The woman who had claimed to be Margaret Ellis.
The woman's face slowly changed.
Her hand moved toward her cheek.
She began peeling away a thin layer of artificial skin.
Elliot stepped backward.
David whispered,
“No…”
And the woman smiled.
But it wasn't Margaret's smile.
It was the same smile Rebecca had seen in the photograph.
May you like
Her twin's smile.
“Hello, sister.””
