Chapter 9
“I’m not afraid,” I said, still smiling.
“I just thought I’d give you a chance–to spare yourself a little more disgrace.”
Brandon shot back, visibly flustered. “That’s not true!”
“Oh, for God’s sake,” Evelyn snapped. “You’re still giving her chances at this point? Just wait for the results to come back.
She’s going to be humiliated beyond repair.”
“We shouldn’t let this get too messy…” Brandon muttered, visibly uncomfortable.
Thomas rolled his eyes. “What are you afraid of? If we’re in the right, the we’ve got nothing to hide. But if we don’t get to
the bottom of this now, your reputation’s finished.”
With both parents pressing him, Brandon went quiet. He glanced at Madison for reassurance.
She gave a slight shake of her head, signaling him to stay calm.
This time, no one in the courtroom dared to speak out prematurely.
They’d learned their lesson.
Everyone waited.
Ten minutes later, the forensic report arrived.
“All video footages submitted by Ms. Whitmore,” the technician announced clearly, “have been verified as authentic and
untampered.”
The room froze.
“…Wait, what? How can that be?”
“If both sets of evidence are valid… then how could Madison have been in two places at the same time?”
“She can’t teleport!”
Even the judge frowned and flipped through the reports again, searching for inconsistencies.
There were none.
Madison stepped forward quickly. “The test must be wrong. I’m telling you–I couldn’t have been in both places. So if the meeting footage is real, then obviously Brandon is innocent.”
She was trying to logic her way out.
But the judge wasn’t so easily convinced. He turned to me.
“Do you have any additional evidence?”
“I do,” I said with a nod.
Daniel stepped up, holding a fresh folder. He looked directly at Madison.
“True–one person can’t be in two places at once. But what if… she has a twin?”
Chapter 9
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A gasp swept through the room.
That possibility changed everything.
“I’m an only child!” Madison said instantly, letting out a cold, sharp laugh. “You can check with the authorities if you’d like.”
“She’s right,” Brandon added. “Madison doesn’t have siblings. What kinda game are you playing now, Claire?”
Even Thomas chimed in, though hesitant. “I’ve met her family before. I don’t remember anyone ever mentioning a sister…”
But something in his expression shifted. A flicker of doubt. If I had nothing, why was I still standing so calm?
Meanwhile, Brandon was starting to look nervous.
That said it all.
“We located records of your twin sister,” Daniel said coolly and precisely. “She was raised abroad, returned to the U.S. two years ago–under a different name. The identity you’ve been using here? Entirely falsified.”
He handed the evidence to the judge.
“Lies!” Madison shouted, her face twisted. “You have got nothing to prove that! Nothing!”
But just then, the courtroom screen lit up.
Dozens of photos flashed across it–pictures of Madison and another woman, side by side, from toddlerhood to
adulthood.
And then…
A certified DNA test report.
The final nail in the coffin.
