Night had fallen on Penelope Manor.
Outside, the rain was beginning to fall, light and silent, as if the sky itself wanted to wash away the sins that had accumulated within these walls.

Inside, Michelle was lying on the sofa, a glass of wine in her hand. She sneered, a sneer on her lips.
“What if she finds out, Alphonso? Do you think she won’t find out eventually?”

Robert—or rather Alphonso, as she called him in the privacy of their machinations—turned abruptly. His eyes flashed.
“She won’t find out anything,” he replied curtly.

Michelle burst out laughing coldly.
“Oh, she’ll find out sooner or later. And this time, even your two children won’t be able to save your theater. You wanted to play a role that was way too big for you. You spent all our money just to impress Penelope.”

Robert clenched his fists.
“Shut up, Michelle.”

“Me?” she mocked. “I just want to see what you’ll do when she exposes you.”

He stared at her, his jaw clenched.
“Not if I find a way before she does. There’s always a way.”

This sentence, spoken in an icy tone, sounded like a promise.
For Robert had never been a respectable businessman. He was a born con man. His entire life was based on lies, facades, and manipulation.
His marriage to Penelope was only the most audacious of his scams.

But the mask was beginning to crack. The financial pressure, the debts, the appearances he had to keep up… everything was closing in on him.
And it was in this spiral of despair that a monstrous idea took hold of his mind.

An idea that would destroy lives.

—If she’s expecting two children, he murmured one evening, why not… sell one?

Michelle froze, the glass suspended in mid-air.
“Are you out of your mind, Alphonso? Do you want to put a price on your own son?”

“If it’s to maintain this life, our future, then yes,” he replied coldly. “You know very well that I’ve never liked children, Michelle. My only passion is you.”

His eyes shone with a dangerous glare. And Michelle, though horrified, said nothing. For she knew he was capable of the worst.

Years later.

In front of the manor’s gate, Penelope held Luke in her arms.
She cried, laughing and sobbing all at once, caressing his dirty, tired face as if she wanted to forever engrave the warmth of a mother rediscovered.

“My son… my son…” she repeated, her hands trembling.

Robert watched the scene from a distance, his throat tight. He knew the past had just resurfaced.

Ashton, standing next to his mother, looked at Luke with eyes shining with emotion. Two identical faces, two souls finally reunited.

“It’s him,” Penelope whispered. “He’s my other son. I’ve always felt him, here, in my heart.”

Robert paled.
“You’re wrong, my love. This boy doesn’t look like you. He’s just a vagabond.”

Michelle stepped forward immediately, nervous.
“Yes, Penelope, look closely. He’s blond, yes, but that’s just a coincidence. He’s not your son.”

“You’re lying,” Ashton yelled. “Look, Mom, the birthmark! We have the same one!”

Penelope looked. And the truth hit her like a slap in the face.
The same mark, in the same place. No doubt about it.

—How…how is this possible?

Robert, cornered, went for broke. He took a step toward her, his hand raised.
“Let go of that boy, Penelope. He doesn’t belong to you. Look at him, he’s dirty, miserable…”

But Penelope pushed him away violently, clutching Luke to her like a lioness protecting her cub.
“No! He’s my son. I feel it, Alphonso. I feel it in every fiber of my being.”

Then Ashton, his eyes wet, said in a trembling voice,
“Dad, you’re the dirty one. You’re kissing Michelle behind Mom’s back.”

A deathly silence fell.
Penelope stood frozen.
“What did you say?”

Robert blanched.
“Shut up, you insolent little brat! I’m your father, show some respect!”

“I saw you,” Ashton insisted. “And you threatened to keep quiet.”

Penelope put a hand to her mouth. The world collapsed around her.
Michelle made one last defense, her voice trembling:
“This is absurd! I’m Alphonso’s sister!”

Hazel, who had been silent until then, stepped forward.
“That’s not true. Ashton and I checked. You don’t even have the same name. We took pictures of your IDs.”

Penelope’s eyes widened.
“I’ve never seen your ID,” she whispered.

—Show it then, Ashton said mockingly. Show your card, “Auntie Michelle.”

Michelle felt panic rise in her. Robert tried to speak, but she suddenly exploded, screaming,
“All right! I’ll tell you everything! But only if you pay me, Penelope! Give me money and I’ll reveal everything. Even who that boy is in your arms.”

— Stop it! roared Robert.

But Michelle, unleashed, screamed even louder:
“It’s your fault, Alphonso! You’re the one who had the idea of ​​selling your own son!”

A terrible silence fell over the room.
Penelope felt her blood run cold.

“Sell… our son?” she repeated in a blank voice.

Robert looked down, unable to speak.
Then Penelope slowly walked towards him, Luke still clutching her.
“What did you do, Alphonso?”

The mask fell. The crook had no escape.

She ripped off her diamond necklace and threw it at Michelle’s feet.
“Speak,” she said sharply. “Say everything, and you’ll get much more.”

Robert tried to intervene, but Theodore, quick as lightning, grabbed him and pinned him against the wall.

Michelle took a deep breath. Then, with a poisonous smile, she blurted out the truth.

—He lied to you from the start. The ultrasound doctor was complicit. He told you there was only one baby. You gave birth in a hospital linked to a child trafficking ring. You were drugged, Penelope. And while you slept, he sold your second son.

Penelope reeled. Hot tears rolled down her cheeks.
“My God… what next?”

— The buyer panicked when the police raided the place. He threw the baby… in a trash can.

A heart-rending scream ripped from Penelope’s throat.
She fell to her knees, clutching Luke, sobbing uncontrollably.

— My son… my poor child…

Michelle continued, coldly,
“The money from the sale was used to create a fake company, the one your husband used to infiltrate your empire.

Then Penelope slowly stood up. In her eyes, there were no more tears, only a glimmer of fire.
She rushed towards Robert and, with a slap, made his head fly aside.

“Monster!” she screamed. “You’ll go to prison for the rest of your life!”

Theodore gently held her back, protecting her from his own rage.

Michelle, intoxicated by her own audacity, held out her hand.
“Now give me my jewelry, sister-in-law. That’s the deal.”

Penelope took out her phone and held it up.
“It’s all recorded. Your entire confession. You’ll both go to jail.”

Michelle screamed in rage and tried to run away, but at that moment, police sirens wailed in the garden. Hazel triumphantly showed her cell phone.
“I called them.”

Robert and Michelle were handcuffed amid screams, cries, and thunder.

A few weeks later.

The trial made headlines everywhere.
Robert and Michelle were sentenced to many years in prison.

Penelope, despite the pain, finally found peace. The DNA test confirmed what she already knew: Luke was indeed her son.
Ashton and Luke grew up together, inseparable, united by blood and love.

Hazel, always mischievous, became their confidante, their sister of the heart.
And Theodore, loyal and caring, gradually became much more than a friend to Penelope.

In the garden one summer afternoon, the two boys were playing in the golden light. Penelope watched them from the terrace, her hand in Theodore’s.

“You see,” she murmured, “a mother’s heart is never wrong.”

The wind rustled the roses around them, carrying away the last shadows of the past.

And for the first time in a long time, Penelope Manor echoed with genuine laughter, peace, and newfound love.