Chapter 6 - THE ARCHIVES OF ST. JUDE
The basement archives of St. Jude’s Memorial Hospital smelled of mildew, old paper, and industrial floor cleaner. Flourescent lights flickered rhythmically overhead, casting long, eerie shadows down aisles of metal filing cabinets containing medical records spanning over three decades.
Sophia had used a generous cash bribe from her emergency funds to convince a young, overworked night-shift archivist to give them thirty minutes alone in the 2004 accident records section.
"We need to hurry," Sophia whispered, pulling open a heavy drawer labeled *OCTOBER 2004 - EMERGENCY ROOM LOGS*. "The archivist said the shift changes in twenty minutes."
Mia flipped through yellowed manila folders frantically. "October 14th... October 15th... here it is! October 16th, 2004. Pacific Coast Highway accident."
Sophia rushed to Mia’s side as she pulled out a thick document stamped with red ink: *DECEASED / POLICE EVIDENCE RECORD*.
"Read it," Sophia urged, her heart pounding.
Mia scanned the medical examiner's report aloud in a hurried whisper. "'Patient 1: Arthur Vance. Pronounced dead at scene. Cause: Severe blunt force trauma resulting from vehicular collision. Patient 2: Elena Vance. Transported to St. Jude ER at 11:42 PM. Pronounced dead at 12:15 AM due to internal hemorrhaging.'"
"What about the children?" Sophia asked desperately.
Mia flipped to the paramedic intake log. Her eyes widened as she pointed to a handwriting sample at the bottom of the page.
"'Infant 1 (Sophia Vance): Found in rear car seat. Mild bruising, unharmed. Custody transferred to attorney Richard Montgomery per living trust documentation.'"
"And you?" Sophia asked. "What does it say about you?"
Mia’s finger dragged across the second entry. "'Infant 2 (Maya Vance): Transported via ambulance with mother. No physical trauma. Custody claimed by on-duty ER nurse Clara Vance per verbal authorization of dying mother, Elena Vance.'"
Sophia gasped. "So it's true! Your adoptive mother didn't kidnap you! Our real mother gave you to Clara directly!"
"Look at the note written in the margin," Mia pointed out, her voice trembling.
Written in faint blue pen by Nurse Clara Vance was a frantic note: *'Mother repeatedly warned that father's business partners, R.M. and J.S., orchestrated the crash to steal Arthur's biological patent. Begged me to hide Maya under a false identity to protect her life.'*
Sophia felt the room spin around her. Her breathing became fast and shallow as the horrifying truth crashed down upon her.
"R.M. and J.S.," Sophia whispered in utter horror. "Richard Montgomery... and Julian Sterling."
"My God," Mia gasped, covering her mouth. "They didn't just adopt you out of kindness, Sophia! They murdered our parents to steal our father's technology!"
"Our father was a medical technology scientist," Sophia recalled, her mind racing back through scattered childhood memories. "He was developing an advanced genetic diagnostic tool—a revolutionary patent worth hundreds of millions. Richard and Julian weren't his friends... they were his executioners!"
Suddenly, the heavy metal door at the end of the archive hallway creaked open.
The loud, deliberate crunch of footsteps echoed down the narrow aisle.
"Who's there?" Sophia called out, standing in front of Mia defensively.
A shadow appeared at the end of the aisle. Out stepped Ethan Sterling, flanked by two large, imposing men in dark suits.
Ethan held a smug, mocking smile, though his eyes were cold and dead.
"I had a feeling you two would end up here," Ethan said smoothly, stepping over a stack of old file boxes. "You really should have taken the trust fund, Mia. You were much safer as a broke catering maid."
"Ethan!" Sophia yelled, her voice echoing off the concrete walls. "You knew? You knew your father and mine murdered my real parents?!"
Ethan shrugged casually. "Business is business, Sophia. My father and Richard built a multi-billion dollar empire on your father's patent. Do you really think we were going to let a couple of lost girls destroy everything we’ve built?"
"You're sick!" Mia spat, clutching the medical folder tight against her chest.
"Give me the file, Mia," Ethan commanded, extending his hand. "Hand over the folder, and maybe I can convince my father to let you both leave the country alive."
"Never!" Sophia shouted.
Sophia suddenly grabbed a heavy metal filing tray off a nearby shelf and smashed it directly into the face of the henchman nearest to her. The man grunted, stumbling back into a towering cabinet, which crashed down with a deafening bang, blocking the aisle.
"Run, Mia!" Sophia screamed.
May you like
The two sisters sprinted down the parallel aisle toward the emergency exit, the sound of Ethan shouting orders and heavy footsteps pursuing them in the dark basement archives.
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