"This is what she had become."
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Cleopatra Banks' last week in the small town of New Chelsea is nothing like she would have imagined it, but nothing could have prepared her for the stinging betrayal she's faced with and suddenly the prospect of...
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Isabella
Cleopatra, you have no idea how terribly sorry I am for everything. You were innocent in all of this chaos that I was solely responsible for. You love too much, too deeply and you trust too easily. You always want to hope for the best in others but you see, not all of us have been blessed with a heart like yours and ultimately this would be your downfall.
Why did you have to go along with pretending to be me? I went off the grid for very important reasons. Security reasons.
You see, Angelia, Principal Regan's girlfriend...she was the sole mastermind behind my kidnapping all those years ago. She worked at the hospital where we were born and orchestrated the whole operation. I wasn't her first victim and Sage wasn't her first client. But unfortunately, Sage Jones was her wealthiest one.
Shortly after my accident late last year, Sage started getting letters, messages, phone calls, emails, you name it from someone named Angelia. She made it very clear that she had been caught red handed and needed money in order to leave the country. I'm not sure what her exact plan was but she needed lots of money.
She moved to Victoria Springs under some false identity and began threatening Sage that she'd expose her, defame her, bring shame to her family if she didn't cooperate.
It would have been easier for everyone if I simply just stayed "dead" even though I had made a full recovery, miraculously. Dad's company couldn't afford any scandals. I went into witness protection along with the rest of my family while police started to investigate. Angelia is a high profile criminal and you know Sage Jones is desperate if she's willing to share her secrets in exchange for protection. This is probably the only good thing she's ever done for me, I guess the fear of death changes people.
Anyway, we went off the grid and all my records were wiped clean from the system. I became a nobody. Angelia gave up looking for me. What use would a dead child be? I was somehow free but I was still looking for something...for you and my birth parents. I looked everywhere for you.
This would be one of the few times where I was grateful that I was taken in by one of the wealthiest families in the country. I suddenly had a whole lot of time and resources at my fingertips. I went looking for you, for mom, dad...only to find out after months of searching that you had moved to Victoria Springs.
Imagine that. Quite ironic isn't it? I watched you all from a distance. I didn't know what to do so I stayed in the shadows, watching. You were all better than what I had hoped you'd be and I didn't know how to approach anyone of you, I was scared of the implications. You all thought I was dead so I thought it best if I stayed dead.
And then I couldn't take it anymore. I started talking to Ruby. She's a sweetheart and quite oversharing, never a shy one and just like you she trusts easily and everyone is her friend.
