Chapter 2: The Doctor Who Knew Too Much
Chapter 2: The Doctor Who Knew Too Much
The name stayed in the air long after Rosalie spoke it.
“Adrian.”
A single word.
A single name.
But it carried the weight of a storm about to break.
Outside the hospital room, Theodore Vale stared at his brother.
Sebastian’s face had changed.
Not dramatically.
Not enough for anyone else to notice.
But Theodore noticed.
He always noticed.
The slight tightening around his eyes.
The way his shoulders became rigid.
The way his fingers curled into his palm.
Sebastian Vale was a man who controlled everything.
His emotions.
His business.
His reputation.
His family.
But hearing that name had cracked something.
“Adrian Mercer,” Theodore whispered.
Sebastian didn’t answer.
That was the answer.
Theodore stepped closer.
“The family doctor?”
“Lower your voice.”
“No.”
Theodore’s voice sharpened.
“My sister almost died today, and you’re worried about someone hearing?”
Sebastian glanced toward the nurses’ station.
“There are things you don’t understand.”
“Then explain.”
Silence.
Again.
That silence was becoming more terrifying than any confession.
Theodore looked through the glass window of Rosalie’s room.
She was awake now.
Barely.
But alive.
Alive because he had refused to walk away.
Alive because he had ignored every person telling him he was wrong.
A strange thought crossed his mind.
If he had listened…
If he had accepted what everyone else accepted…
Rosalie would have been buried.
Not unconscious.
Not sick.
Buried.
Theodore felt anger rising again.
“Why was Dr. Mercer at the funeral?”
Sebastian looked away.
“He was Rosalie’s physician.”
“He declared her dead.”
The words came out slowly.
“And then he stood there watching while they put her in a coffin.”
Sebastian’s expression darkened.
“Be careful.”
“No.”
Theodore stepped forward.
“You keep saying that like it scares me.”
For a moment, Sebastian looked almost impressed.
Then the expression disappeared.
“You think you know what happened.”
“I know enough.”
“No.”
Sebastian’s voice lowered.
“You know what you saw.”
A pause.
“You don’t know what happened before.”
Before.
The word caught Theodore’s attention.
“What happened before?”
Sebastian didn’t answer.
And that made Theodore even more certain.
There was a secret.
A large one.
Two hours earlier, before the ambulance arrived, the Vale estate had been transformed into a crime scene.
Detectives moved through the conservatory.
Every flower arrangement was photographed.
Every chair was examined.
Every person who attended the memorial was questioned.
But the most important evidence was inside the coffin.
The gray satin ribbon.
The one tied beneath Rosalie’s mouth.
The one that had left a red mark on her skin.
Detective Olivia Grant held the evidence bag under the bright forensic lights.
She was known for being impossible to intimidate.
Which was why Sebastian Vale disliked her immediately.
“Mr. Vale,” she said, “we need a complete timeline.”
Sebastian stood near the broken coffin.
The marble floor still carried tiny pieces of glass from Theodore’s desperate attempt to save his sister.
“Timeline of what?”
Detective Grant looked at him.
“Your sister’s death.”
Sebastian’s jaw tightened.
“She isn’t dead.”
“Correct.”
She paused.
“That changes things.”
Behind her, an officer approached.
“Detective?”
Grant turned.
“We found something.”
The officer handed her a small plastic container.
Inside was a medication vial.
Sebastian recognized it immediately.
His expression changed.
“What is that?”
Detective Grant looked at the label.
“Sedative.”
A cold silence filled the room.
“Was it hers?” Sebastian asked.
The detective studied him.
“That’s what we’re trying to determine.”
Sebastian stared at the vial.
Something impossible happened.
For the first time in years...
He looked afraid.
At the hospital, Theodore finally entered Rosalie’s room.
The machines beeped softly.
The sound was almost comforting.
Almost.
He approached the bed slowly.
“Hey.”
His voice broke.
Rosalie opened her eyes.
A weak smile appeared.
“Theo.”
He immediately grabbed her hand.
“Don’t talk.”
She ignored him.
“You always looked angry when you were scared.”
He almost laughed.
Almost.
Instead, tears filled his eyes.
“You scared me.”
“I know.”
“You were in a coffin.”
“I know.”
“You were gone.”
Rosalie looked at him.
And something in her expression changed.
She wasn't just tired.
She was guilty.
Theodore noticed.
“What?”
She looked away.
“Theo…”
“What?”
“There’s something you need to know.”
Theodore leaned closer.
“What happened?”
Rosalie swallowed.
“I wasn’t supposed to die.”
His face tightened.
“What does that mean?”
She closed her eyes.
“Someone wanted everyone to believe I was dead.”
“Who?”
Rosalie didn’t answer immediately.
Instead, she looked toward the closed door.
Checking.
Making sure nobody was listening.
That terrified Theodore more than anything.
“Rosalie.”
Her voice dropped.
“I found something.”
“What?”
“Something about Dad.”
Theodore froze.
Their father had been dead for six years.
Theodore was seventeen now.
He barely remembered the man.
But Rosalie never stopped talking about him.
Their father had built the Vale empire before Sebastian took over.
Officially, his death had been an accident.
A boating accident.
Everyone accepted it.
Except Rosalie.
“What about Dad?”
Rosalie’s fingers tightened weakly around his.
“He didn’t die by accident.”
Theodore stopped breathing.
“What?”
“He was investigating someone inside the family.”
A horrible feeling spread through him.
“Who?”
Rosalie looked at him.
And whispered:
“Sebastian.”
Across town, inside the Vale Foundation headquarters, Sebastian entered his private office.
The city skyline stretched behind him.
Millions of dollars.
Hundreds of employees.
A company built from generations of power.
Everything he had protected.
Everything he had sacrificed.
Everything that was now at risk.
His phone rang.
He looked at the screen.
Unknown number.
He answered.
“Hello?”
A voice responded.
Calm.
Cold.
“You should have finished the job.”
Sebastian’s expression changed.
“You don’t know what you’re talking about.”
A quiet laugh.
“I know exactly what happened.”
Sebastian walked toward the window.
“No one was supposed to find out.”
“No.”
The voice corrected him.
“She was never supposed to wake up.”
Sebastian closed his eyes.
The words confirmed his worst fear.
Someone had planned this.
Someone had expected Rosalie to disappear forever.
“Where are you?”
No answer.
Only a final sentence.
“She remembers everything.”
The call ended.
Sebastian stood completely still.
Then slowly lowered the phone.
Because there was only one person who knew enough to destroy him.
Rosalie.
That night, Theodore refused to leave the hospital.
At 2:17 a.m., he woke up in the waiting room chair.
A movement caught his attention.
A shadow passing outside Rosalie’s room.
He immediately stood.
“Hello?”
No answer.
The hallway lights flickered.
Theodore moved closer.
The door to Rosalie’s room was slightly open.
His heart began pounding.
He pushed it.
Inside—
Rosalie was awake.
And someone was standing beside her bed.
A man wearing a dark coat.
Holding a syringe.
Theodore’s voice exploded.
“GET AWAY FROM HER!”
The man turned.
For one second, Theodore saw his face.
Then the man ran.
Theodore chased him into the hallway.
Security alarms started screaming.
Nurses shouted.
Footsteps echoed.
The man reached the emergency exit.
Theodore was only a few feet behind.
“Stop!”
The man looked back.
And smiled.
Not like someone caught.
Like someone who wanted to be seen.
Then he disappeared through the exit.
Theodore reached the door seconds later.
Outside, rain poured over the empty parking lot.
The attacker was gone.
But on the ground...
Something remained.
A silver object reflecting the hospital lights.
Theodore picked it up.
A medical identification badge.
His blood ran cold.
Because the name printed on it was:
May you like
Dr. Adrian Mercer.
End of Chapter 2
