Chapter 6: The Secret My Father Buried
“Turn it off, Marcus.””
My father's voice sounded different now.
It wasn't commanding anymore.
It was frightened.
I stared at the screen.
The woman standing beside the black SUV was unmistakably my mother, Margaret Hayes. Her silver hair was tied into the same elegant bun she had worn at every family gathering. Around her neck hung the small sapphire necklace she had given me when I turned eighteen.
I had watched them lower her coffin into the ground twelve years earlier.
I had stood beside my father while he cried.
I had spent years visiting her grave.
And now she was standing in front of me on a security recording.
Alive.
“Marcus,” Elena whispered.
I couldn't answer.
The video continued.
My mother turned toward the camera, her face illuminated by the marina lights.
“Richard, you promised me the boy would never know.””
My father stepped closer to the screen.
“Shut it down!””
Detective Miller grabbed his arm.
“Mr. Hayes, stay where you are.””
My mother continued speaking.
“He deserves to know what happened to his biological father.””
The words struck me harder than any physical blow.
Biological father?
I looked at Richard.
“What does she mean?””
He didn't answer.
I stepped toward him.
“Dad. What does she mean?””
Richard stared at the floor.
“Marcus, this isn't the time.””
“When is the time? After you bury another woman? After you lock another member of my family underneath this house?””
Vanessa, still handcuffed near the staircase, suddenly began laughing.
“You really don't know, do you?””
I turned toward her.
“Know what?””
She looked at Richard.
“Tell him.””
“Be quiet,” he ordered.
Vanessa smiled.
“You raised him. You made him believe you were his father. You made him worship you.””
I felt my stomach tighten.
“What are you talking about?””
Elena stepped closer.
“Marcus, please. Let me explain.””
I looked at her.
“You knew?””
She hesitated.
“I suspected.””
“How long?””
“Before the boating accident.””
I stepped away from her.
The woman I had just rescued from beneath my swimming pool had apparently been carrying another secret.
“Why didn't you tell me?””
“Because I didn't have proof.””
I looked at the screen again.
The recording had reached another scene.
My mother was standing beside the SUV. Richard was holding a folder.
Then a third person appeared.
A younger man.
He had dark hair, broad shoulders, and a small scar near his left eyebrow.
I recognized him.
I had seen his photograph in an old family album.
My father.
Not Richard.
The man in the video was Daniel Hayes, my biological father.
He had supposedly died in a car accident before I was born.
My mother had told me he was a kind man who loved music and wanted to become a pilot.
I had never questioned the story.
The recording showed him grabbing Richard by the collar.
“You stole everything from me,” Daniel said.
Richard shoved him away.
“You were never supposed to come back.””
My biological father pointed toward the camera.
“Where's my son?””
Richard laughed.
“Your son?””
The recording flickered.
Then my mother's voice came through again.
“Please. Both of you. He's just a baby.””
The screen went black.
I stood motionless.
Detective Miller broke the silence.
“Mr. Hayes, do you know who the man in that recording is?””
I nodded.
“His name was Daniel Hayes.””
“Was?””
“My mother told me he died before I was born.””
Richard suddenly lifted his head.
“That's enough.””
I turned toward him.
“No. You don't get to decide when enough is enough.””
He looked at me for a long moment.
Then he said something I would never forget.
“I gave you my name. I raised you. I made you the man you are.””
I stared at him.
“You stole my father's place.””
“I gave you a life!””
“You stole my family!””
Richard's face hardened.
“Your biological father was a weak man. He was going to destroy the company. He wanted to expose everything your grandfather had built.””
“So you killed him?””
Richard said nothing.
I stepped closer.
“Did you kill him?””
He finally answered.
“I did what I had to do.””
My knees felt weak.
Elena reached for my hand, but I couldn't move.
Richard continued.
“Daniel was unstable. He wanted to take you away from your mother. He threatened me. He threatened the family.””
“You were the threat.””
Richard's jaw tightened.
“You have no idea what I sacrificed.””
Vanessa interrupted.
“Richard, stop talking.””
He turned toward her.
“You're the reason this happened.””
She laughed bitterly.
“Me? You promised me the company. You promised me Marcus would sign everything over. You told me Elena would never come back.””
Detective Miller exchanged a glance with Officer Lewis.
“Keep talking,” he said.
Vanessa looked at him.
“Why? So you can arrest me? You already know what happened.””
She looked at me.
“Your father promised that after the wedding, Marcus would transfer his controlling shares into a family trust. I was supposed to manage it. Richard would remain chairman. Everyone would get what they wanted.””
I stared at her.
“And you agreed to help imprison my wife?””
Vanessa's expression changed.
“I didn't know how far he would go.””
Elena laughed weakly.
“You visited me every week.””
Vanessa looked away.
“You were supposed to give us the documents.””
“You showed me photographs of my daughter.””
“I was trying to protect myself!””
Elena stepped forward.
“You told me Ava would be taken if I escaped.””
Vanessa's eyes filled with tears.
“Because Richard told me he'd kill her!””
The room fell silent.
I looked at my father.
He didn't deny it.
Detective Miller immediately instructed Officer Lewis to separate them.
Then the video screen flickered again.
A new notification appeared.
*EXTERNAL SERVER ACCESS REQUESTED.*
Daniel moved toward the keyboard.
“Someone's trying to delete the backup.””
“Can you stop it?”” I asked.
He began typing.
“I'm trying.””
A progress bar appeared.
*REMOTE DELETION: 12%*
Daniel swore.
“Marcus, someone has administrator access.””
“Can you trace it?””
“Give me a minute.””
The percentage climbed.
Thirty percent.
Forty-five.
Then the screen displayed a name.
*USER: MARGARET HAYES.*
I stared at it.
My mother.
The woman in the recording was not simply alive.
She was online.
Daniel stopped typing.
“Marcus…”
A message appeared.
*DO NOT TRUST RICHARD. DO NOT TRUST VANESSA. DO NOT TRUST THE WOMAN WHO CAME BACK FROM THE WATER.*
I turned toward Elena.
She looked devastated.
“What does that mean?”” I asked.
She shook her head.
“I don't know.””
Another message appeared.
*I KNOW WHERE YOUR DAUGHTER IS.*
I spun around.
Ava was standing near the staircase.
But the officer who had been watching her was gone.
And so was my daughter.
“AVA!””
I ran toward the hallway.
My voice echoed through the mansion.
Then my phone vibrated.
An unknown number.
One message.
*Bring the original recording to the old marina. Come alone. If you want your daughter back.*
Below it was a photograph.
Ava was sitting inside a car.
Beside her was an elderly woman wearing a sapphire necklace.
My mother.
May you like
And underneath the photograph were five words:
*You have one hour, Marcus.*
