Winning Her Heart Back (Emelie and William) novel Chapter 858

"I started by looking for photos of the Pierce family and the Graham family, which are pictures of two families of four, but I couldn't find a single photo. That was fine, as it could be chalked up to them being lost over time.

"Then, I tried to track down the former household staff of the Pierce family and the Graham family, hoping that they could identify Mrs. Filo from a photo. But I couldn't find a single one of them either.

"That's where things got really strange. There were at least 20 household staff between the two families. How could they all disappear like that?"

Emelie hummed in acknowledgment, switching to a new plate as she mechanically resumed peeling the sweet potatoes.

"So, I dug deeper. Some of those household staff had passed away naturally, and some had left the family homes to follow their children elsewhere. As for the rest... someone had bought them houses, found them jobs, and given them money to leave their original residences."

Lyle's voice grew serious. "They were forced to leave their homes so that no one could find them."

Emelie hummed again. It was a sound of agreement and acknowledgment that she was listening.

"I kept searching and finally found two former household staff of the Pierce family. When they saw Mrs. Filo's photo, one said that she looked just like Mrs. Pierce, while the other said that she was Mrs. Pierce. They also described Mrs. Pierce as lively, cheerful, and generous. These are traits that match Mrs. Filo."

Lyle licked his lips. "So, I believe that Mrs. Filo is the same Mrs. Pierce who was said to have jumped into a river in despair after her husband was sentenced to death and her son was kidnapped by human traffickers."

In other words, she was Emelie's biological mother.

Emelie lowered her head, her face expressionless.

She hadn't done a DNA test with Wesley because that would have been too offensive and would have humiliated the bond they had built over the past ten years. Besides, she couldn't bear the cold, hard facts laid out in black and white.