Chapter 15 - The Second Mirror
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The church went completely silent except for the crackle of the altar candles.
I spun around to face the woman standing in front of us, my mind spinning into complete overload.
"Two?" I whispered. "You... you have a twin sister?"
The woman standing near the altar let out a long, shuddering sigh and dropped her head. When she looked back up, the gentle warmth in her eyes had been replaced by a sharp, calculating coldness.
"My name is Elizabeth Bennett," she admitted, her voice dropping into a slightly higher, more clinical tone. "Evelyn was my twin sister. She died six years ago in a private care facility in Vermont from early-onset Alzheimer's."
I felt as though the floor beneath my feet had completely vanished. The mother I thought I had just reunited with was an imposter—an aunt I had never known existed.
"You're working with Andrew," I said, stepping back toward Ethan, who immediately placed a protective hand on my lower back.
"I am working for myself, Ava," Elizabeth replied smoothly, adjusting her coat. "Your mother was a fool. She wanted to play the noble whistleblower and ruin everyone. But I saw the true value of the Carter ledger. That micro-film doesn't just contain evidence of crimes... it contains the secret bank accounts of fifty of the most powerful people in America."
"And you used Andrew to try to get it from me," I said, fury replacing my shock. "You let him beat me, bruise me, and terrorize me for months just to find a key!"
Elizabeth looked at me without a shred of remorse. "You were the only one who had access to Ethan’s private offices. Andrew was supposed to handle you gently, but he lost his temper. He always was a volatile boy."
Ethan stepped in front of me, his tall frame completely blocking Elizabeth from my view.
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"You're done, Elizabeth," Ethan said, his voice dropping into a lethal, terrifying tone. "My security team has already surrounded this church. You're not leaving here with anything."
Elizabeth smiled softly. "Are you sure about that, Mr. Carter? Look behind you."
