Chapter 7: The Sister Nobody Knew Existed
For several seconds, Rebecca couldn't move.
The woman standing in front of her was smiling.
Not Margaret Ellis.
Not the frightened older woman who had entered Sterling Aviation hours earlier.
Not the woman who had cried when she saw Rebecca.
This woman looked younger somehow.
The loose skin around her jaw had been carefully disguised.
The silver-gray hair had been altered.
Even the posture was different.
But the eyes were the same.
Rebecca knew those eyes.
Because she had spent thirty-four years looking into a mirror.
“Hello, sister.””
The words seemed to echo through the hangar.
Elliot was the first to react.
He stepped backward.
“That's impossible.””
The woman smiled.
“That's what everyone said.””
David stared at her.
“Who are you?””
She laughed softly.
“Still asking the wrong question, David.””
David's face tightened.
“Where is Margaret?””
The woman looked at him.
“She never came.””
Rebecca felt a chill.
“You've been pretending to be her.””
“Yes.””
“Why?””
“To get close to you.””
Rebecca's heart hammered.
“What do you want?””
The woman's smile faded.
“The same thing my father wanted.””
Rebecca stared.
“Thomas?””
“Yes.””
“No.””
She shook her head.
“My father didn't have another daughter.””
“He did.””
Rebecca looked toward Richard.
He stood motionless.
“You knew?””
Richard didn't answer.
“Richard.””
He finally nodded.
“Yes.””
Rebecca's eyes filled with anger.
“How long?””
“Since the beginning.””
“The beginning of what?””
“Your life.””
Rebecca turned toward David.
“You knew too.””
“Yes.””
“And you both let me believe I was an only child.””
David looked devastated.
“We thought it was the only way to keep you alive.””
Her twin laughed.
“That's the lie they always use.””
Rebecca turned toward her.
“Then tell me the truth.””
The woman looked around the hangar.
“Which truth?””
“All of it.””
She considered Rebecca for a long moment.
Then she walked toward the aircraft.
“My name is Caroline Ellis.””
Rebecca felt something inside her collapse.
“Caroline.””
“Yes.””
“Where have you been?””
Caroline smiled.
“Everywhere.””
“That isn't an answer.””
“No.””
She looked at the old jet.
“But it is the truth.””
Caroline placed her hand against the aircraft.
“After Thomas discovered Black Meridian, they decided one daughter needed to disappear.””
Rebecca's throat tightened.
“Why one?””
“Because two daughters were a liability.””
She looked directly at Rebecca.
“One could be hidden.””
“The other?””
“Controlled.””
Rebecca stared.
“They took you.””
Caroline nodded.
“They took me first.””
A silence settled over the hangar.
“When I was four,” Caroline continued, “they told everyone I had died.””
Rebecca shook her head.
“Why?””
“Because my existence was inconvenient.””
“Inconvenient for whom?””
Caroline looked at Henry Sterling.
“For the people who owned the network.””
Henry's face remained calm.
Rebecca's voice hardened.
“And Henry?””
“He was one of them.””
David stepped forward.
“Don't listen to her.””
Caroline turned toward him.
“You're still protecting yourself.””
“I'm protecting Rebecca.””
“No.””
She smiled bitterly.
“You're protecting the version of history that keeps you out of prison.””
David flinched.
Rebecca looked at him.
“Is she telling the truth?””
David said nothing.
Rebecca waited.
“Is she?””
Finally, David whispered,
“Part of it.””
Caroline laughed.
“Part of it.””
She shook her head.
“That is David's favorite phrase.””
Rebecca looked at her.
“Then tell me the whole story.””
Caroline nodded.
“When Thomas and Margaret built Sterling Aviation, they believed they were creating a legitimate company.””
Rebecca listened carefully.
“They were wrong.””
“Why?””
“Because the money behind the company wasn't clean.””
Richard spoke quietly.
“Black Meridian invested through intermediaries.””
Caroline nodded.
“They wanted infrastructure.””
“What kind?””
“Aircraft.””
“Why?””
“For movement.””
“Of money?””
“People. Information. Assets. Sometimes prisoners.””
Rebecca felt sick.
“Prisoners?””
Caroline looked at her.
“You still think this was simply a financial crime.””
“What was it?””
“A private intelligence network.””
The hangar became silent.
“They could move someone from Dallas to Geneva without appearing in a conventional government database.””
“They had private airfields.””
“Government cooperation.””
“Offshore accounts.””
“Compromised officials.””
“And Sterling Aviation was their vehicle.””
David lowered his head.
Rebecca looked at him.
“How much did you know?””
David answered quietly.
“Not enough.””
Caroline laughed.
“That's another lie.””
David looked at her.
“I knew there were irregularities.””
“You signed every flight.””
“I trusted Thomas.””
“And Thomas trusted you.””
“Yes.””
“Which is why he was betrayed.””
David's face hardened.
“What did you do?””
Caroline smiled.
“I didn't betray him.””
“Then who did?””
Caroline looked toward Richard.
Richard closed his eyes.
“Richard.””
Rebecca's voice was quiet.
“Did you betray my father?””
Richard looked at her.
“No.””
“Then why is your name in the files?””
“Because I was trying to protect him.””
Caroline shook her head.
“You were protecting the wrong person.””
Richard ignored her.
“Thomas had evidence.””
“What kind?””
“A complete archive.””
“The Meridian Archive.””
“Yes.””
“He wanted to release it?””
Richard nodded.
“And you stopped him.””
“I tried to convince him to wait.””
“Why?””
“Because the archive contained information powerful enough to destabilize governments.””
Rebecca looked at him.
“So you chose silence.””
“I chose survival.””
Caroline stepped forward.
“No.””
She looked at Rebecca.
“He chose control.””
Richard's expression changed.
Caroline continued.
“Richard didn't want the archive destroyed.””
Rebecca frowned.
“Then what did he want?””
“The archive intact.””
“Why?””
“So he could control who had access to it.””
Rebecca looked at Richard.
He said nothing.
The silence was an answer.
Caroline turned toward Henry.
“And Henry wanted it for himself.””
Henry smiled.
“That's unfair.””
Caroline laughed.
“You used my father.””
“I used Thomas because he was weak.””
David stepped forward.
“Don't.””
Henry looked at him.
“You're still pretending to be loyal?””
David's voice became cold.
“You killed him.””
Henry shook his head.
“No.””
“Then who did?””
Henry smiled.
“You did.””
David froze.
Rebecca stared.
“What?””
Henry walked closer.
“David didn't kill Thomas.””
He looked at Rebecca.
“But he created the circumstances that allowed it to happen.””
David's face went pale.
“That isn't true.””
“You changed the shareholder documents.””
“I did it to protect Margaret.””
“You isolated Thomas.””
“I was trying to stop the company from collapsing.””
“You removed his authority.””
“Because he was unstable.””
“You made him believe he was being betrayed.””
David's breathing became heavy.
“And when he disappeared,” Henry continued, “you signed the paperwork declaring him legally incompetent.””
Rebecca stared at David.
“You did that?””
David looked at her.
“I thought he was mentally ill.””
Caroline laughed.
“He was terrified.””
Rebecca turned to Richard.
“Then what happened?””
Richard answered.
“Thomas disappeared for six days.””
“Where?””
“He went underground.””
“To find the archive.””
“Yes.””
“Did he find it?””
Richard nodded.
“He did.””
Rebecca looked at Caroline.
“What happened next?””
Caroline's expression hardened.
“They found him.””
“Who?””
“Everyone.””
“Black Meridian?””
“Government officials. Corporate executives. Security contractors.””
Rebecca stared.
“And my father?””
“He called Margaret.””
“Then?””
“He gave her the location of the archive.””
Rebecca's eyes narrowed.
“And that's when he died.””
Caroline nodded.
“Not in a car accident.””
“How?””
“He was taken.””
Rebecca felt cold.
“Kidnapped?””
“Yes.””
“For how long?””
“Three days.””
“Then?””
Caroline's eyes dropped.
“He escaped.””
David looked at her sharply.
“Escaped?””
“Yes.””
“Then how did he die?””
Caroline didn't answer.
Richard did.
“Thomas reached the airport.””
Rebecca looked at him.
“And?””
“He tried to board a private aircraft.””
“Which one?””
Richard pointed to the old Sterling jet.
“This one.””
Rebecca stared.
“He was going to leave.””
“He was taking the archive.””
“Where?””
“Europe.””
“Why?””
“To expose everything.””
Rebecca walked toward the aircraft.
“And someone stopped him.””
Richard nodded.
“Who?””
“No one knows.””
Caroline spoke quietly.
“I do.””
Everyone turned.
“Who?””
She looked at Rebecca.
“Your mother.””
Rebecca froze.
“My mother killed my father?””
“No.””
Caroline shook her head.
“She saved him.””
“What?””
“She helped him escape.””
“Then why did he die?””
Caroline's eyes filled with tears.
“Because someone was waiting for them.””
“Who?””
Caroline looked directly at Henry.
Henry remained completely still.
Rebecca stared at him.
“You killed him.””
Henry sighed.
“No.””
“Then why are you here?””
“Because I want what he left behind.””
“You can't have it.””
Henry smiled.
“I don't need your permission.””
He pulled out a gun.
Everything changed.
Elliot reacted first.
He grabbed Rebecca and pulled her behind the aircraft stairs.
Richard drew his own weapon.
David moved between Caroline and Henry.
“Put it down.””
Henry shook his head.
“You always were sentimental.””
A gunshot exploded through the hangar.
The bullet struck the metal wall.
Rebecca screamed.
Elliot dragged her behind the aircraft.
“Stay down.””
Another shot.
Richard fired back.
Henry disappeared behind a support column.
Caroline grabbed Rebecca's arm.
“Come with me.””
“Where?””
“To the cockpit.””
“Why?””
“Because that's where your father left the real key.””
Rebecca followed her.
They climbed the stairs.
Inside the aircraft, everything was dark.
Caroline moved quickly.
“Open the cockpit.””
Rebecca grabbed the handle.
Locked.
Caroline pushed her hand toward the panel.
“Use your fingerprint.””
Rebecca stared.
“What?””
“Try.””
Rebecca placed her thumb on the scanner.
A green light appeared.
The cockpit opened.
Rebecca stared.
“How?””
Caroline looked away.
“I told you.””
“You already knew who I was.””
“Yes.””
“You knew I would be able to open it.””
“Yes.””
“Why?””
“Because Thomas built it for both of us.””
Rebecca froze.
“Both?””
Caroline nodded.
“Two fingerprints.””
Rebecca stared at her.
“You're my twin.””
“Yes.””
“And the plane recognizes us both.””
“Yes.””
They entered.
The cockpit came alive.
Screens flickered on.
A map appeared.
Dallas.
Then Geneva.
Then a third location.
A tiny island in the Mediterranean.
Rebecca looked at the coordinates.
“What is that?””
“The archive.””
Caroline pointed.
“The physical location.””
Rebecca looked at her.
“How do you know?””
“Because I went there.””
“When?””
“Four years ago.””
“Then why didn't you take it?””
Caroline looked at her.
“Because the archive doesn't belong to me.””
“Who does it belong to?””
“You.””
Rebecca stared.
A drawer opened beneath the navigation panel.
Inside was a small black drive.
Beside it was a letter.
Rebecca took it.
Her father's handwriting.
My daughter,
If you are reading this, then Caroline has finally found you.
Rebecca looked at her twin.
Caroline looked away.
Rebecca continued.
There is something you must understand.
Caroline is not your enemy.
Rebecca stopped.
She looked at Caroline.
Then read the next line.
But she is not completely innocent either.
Rebecca's heart dropped.
Caroline's expression changed.
“You shouldn't read that.””
Rebecca kept going.
She will tell you she was forced to help them.
She will tell you she had no choice.
Some of that is true.
Rebecca looked up.
Caroline whispered,
“Enough.””
Rebecca ignored her.
But Caroline made one decision that changed everything.
She gave them your location.
Rebecca stopped breathing.
She slowly lowered the letter.
“You gave them my location.””
Caroline's eyes filled with tears.
“Yes.””
“Why?””
“I didn't know who they would send.””
“You knew they would come.””
“Yes.””
“And they came for my father.””
“Yes.””
Rebecca stepped backward.
“You killed him.””
Caroline shook her head desperately.
“No.””
“You gave them the location.””
“I thought they were going to take the archive.””
“They took my father.””
“I didn't know.””
“You knew enough.””
Caroline began crying.
Rebecca felt her anger rising.
“You watched me grow up.””
“Yes.””
“You watched my mother die.””
“Yes.””
“You knew I was your sister.””
“Yes.””
“And you never came for me.””
“I couldn't.””
“You chose not to.””
Caroline covered her face.
“I was afraid.””
Rebecca laughed bitterly.
“You were afraid?””
“Yes.””
“While I spent thirty-four years believing my father abandoned me?””
“I know.””
“You don't know anything.””
A gunshot sounded below.
Caroline grabbed Rebecca.
“We need to go.””
“No.””
“Rebecca.””
“No.””
Another shot.
Then another.
The aircraft shook.
Caroline pointed toward the rear cabin.
“There's another exit.””
Rebecca didn't move.
“Who is shooting?””
“Henry.””
“And David?””
“Trying to stop him.””
“What about Elliot?””
“Protecting your father.””
“My father is dead.””
Caroline stared at her.
“No.””
Rebecca froze.
“What?””
Caroline took a breath.
“I don't mean Thomas.””
She looked down toward the hangar.
“Henry isn't the only Sterling brother.””
Rebecca's expression changed.
“What?””
Caroline whispered,
“There was another.””
Rebecca stared.
“David had a brother.””
“I know.””
“Not Henry.””
Rebecca's heart sank.
“Who?””
Caroline opened a hidden panel beneath the cockpit.
Inside was a photograph.
Three young men.
David.
Henry.
And a third.
Rebecca stared at the third face.
She knew him.
She had seen him tonight.
At the party.
In a photograph.
In the background.
Someone nobody had mentioned.
Someone everyone had ignored.
Rebecca whispered his name.
“Michael.””
Caroline nodded.
“Michael Sterling.””
Rebecca stared.
“The man who disappeared.””
“He didn't disappear.””
“Then where is he?””
Caroline's eyes moved toward the cockpit door.
“Behind you.””
Rebecca turned.
A man stood in the doorway.
He was holding a gun.
Michael Turner.
The former Sterling executive.
The man Rebecca had been told had resigned.
His expression was calm.
But he looked exhausted.
“Hello, Rebecca.””
Rebecca's blood ran cold.
“You're Michael.””
He nodded.
“I've been trying to reach you for six months.””
“Why?””
“Because your father asked me to protect you.””
Rebecca stared.
Michael lowered the gun slightly.
“But I failed.””
“Why?””
“Because I trusted Richard.””
Rebecca looked toward Caroline.
Then at Michael.
“What does Richard have to do with this?””
Michael's expression hardened.
“He wasn't protecting your father.””
“He said he was.””
Michael shook his head.
“Richard was protecting the archive.””
“From whom?””
“Everyone.””
A loud explosion rocked the hangar.
Michael grabbed Rebecca.
“We have to go.””
“Where?””
He looked at the black drive in her hand.
“Geneva.””
Rebecca stared.
“Why?””
Michael's eyes hardened.
“Because that's where the truth is.””
Behind them, the cockpit door suddenly slammed shut.
Someone had locked it from the outside.
Michael looked at the door.
Then at Rebecca.
“Too late.””
Rebecca heard footsteps approaching.
Slow.
Calm.
Measured.
Someone was coming up the stairs.
Then Henry's voice came through the cockpit door.
“Rebecca.””
She looked toward Michael.
Henry continued.
“You have something that belongs to me.””
Rebecca gripped the black drive.
Henry laughed softly.
“And now you're finally going to learn why your father was so afraid of me.””
The cockpit lights suddenly turned red.
May you like
The aircraft doors locked.
Then the engines began to start.
