Chapter 7: The Truth About My Father
For years, I had lived with one sentence.
*Your father died in an accident.*
That was the sentence everyone used.
My mother.
My relatives.
The police report.
Even Ryan.
A simple sentence.
A clean sentence.
A sentence that closed a door.
But now Marcus had opened it again.
And behind that door was everything Diane had spent years hiding.
I looked at her.
She wasn’t angry anymore.
She wasn’t confident.
She looked afraid.
That frightened me more than anything.
Because Diane Carter was never afraid.
Not when she insulted me.
Not when she controlled Ryan.
Not when she stood in my kitchen holding a metal broom.
Fear was something I had never seen on her face.
Until now.
“What did you do?””
My voice barely sounded like mine.
Diane stared at me.
“Emma.””
“No.””
I shook my head.
“I want the truth.””
Ryan stepped closer.
“Emma, wait.””
I turned toward him.
“Why?””
He stopped.
“Why should I wait?””
He had no answer.
Nobody did.
I looked back at Diane.
“My father died when I was twelve.””
Her expression softened slightly.
A strange thing.
Almost sadness.
“I know.””
“You know?””
She looked away.
“I knew your family.””
My heart started beating faster.
“How?””
Silence.
Then Ryan spoke.
“Mom.””
Diane closed her eyes.
“Not everything is what it looks like.””
I laughed.
A quiet, painful laugh.
“That’s the sentence everyone says right before they admit something terrible.””
Ryan looked at me.
“Emma…”
“No.””
I pointed toward the door.
“Call Marcus back.””
Diane immediately said:
“No.””
I turned.
“Why?””
Her mouth opened.
Nothing came out.
That was enough.
“Ryan.””
He understood.
He picked up his phone.
Diane moved toward him.
“Don’t.””
Ryan stepped back.
“You don’t get to decide anymore.””
The words shocked her.
They shocked me too.
Because Ryan had spent his entire life letting her decide.
He called Marcus again.
This time, he answered immediately.
“You need to listen carefully,” Marcus said.
Ryan put the phone on speaker.
The three of us stood there.
Waiting.
Marcus continued.
“I should have told someone years ago.””
Diane whispered:
“Marcus.””
His voice changed.
“Don’t say my name like you still have power over me.””
The silence afterward was heavy.
Ryan looked at his mother.
“You threatened him too?””
Diane didn’t answer.
Marcus continued.
“Your mother hired me six years ago.””
Ryan frowned.
“Six?””
“No.””
Marcus corrected himself.
“She hired me sixteen years ago.””
My chest tightened.
Sixteen years.
The night my father died.
“She wanted me to watch someone.””
I swallowed.
“Who?””
Marcus didn’t hesitate.
“Your father.””
The room went cold.
I felt like I had stepped outside my own body.
“Why?””
Marcus sighed.
“Because your father found out something.””
Diane looked toward the door.
Like she wanted to escape.
“What did he find out?””
Marcus was quiet for a moment.
Then:
“He discovered Diane was moving money from the family business.””
Ryan looked shocked.
“What?””
Diane immediately spoke.
“That’s a lie.””
Marcus ignored her.
“Your father was going to expose her.””
I looked at Diane.
“My father knew you?””
She nodded slowly.
“Yes.””
“How?””
Diane’s face changed.
“We worked together.””
I stared.
“You never told me.””
“I didn’t think it mattered.””
I almost couldn’t believe her.
“My father died.””
Her eyes flickered.
“And you didn’t think your connection mattered?””
Diane looked away.
Ryan stepped closer.
“What happened that night?””
Marcus answered.
“I was supposed to scare him.””
The words hit like a physical blow.
“What?””
Marcus’s voice became quieter.
“I was supposed to follow him. Make him believe someone was watching him. Make him stop digging.””
Ryan looked sick.
“But?””
“But I didn’t expect him to fight back.””
My hands started shaking.
“What does that mean?””
Marcus exhaled.
“Your father found me.””
A pause.
“He knew someone was following him.””
The room became silent.
“Then what?””
Marcus’s voice broke slightly.
“He told me he knew about Diane.””
Diane’s face went pale.
“He told me he had proof.””
I looked at her.
“Proof of what?””
Marcus answered.
“Money transfers. Hidden accounts. Fake documents.””
Ryan stared at his mother.
“Mom?””
Diane didn’t look at him.
The silence was her answer.
“No.””
Ryan stepped back.
“No.””
Diane finally spoke.
“It wasn’t like that.””
I looked at her.
“Then explain.””
She looked at me.
And for the first time, she looked old.
Not physically.
Emotionally.
Like the years of secrets had finally become too heavy to carry.
“I made mistakes.””
Ryan shook his head.
“Mistakes?””
His voice cracked.
“You had someone follow her father?””
“I never wanted him dead.””
Nobody spoke.
The sentence was worse than a confession.
Because she wasn’t denying everything.
Only the worst part.
I felt tears forming.
“You knew?””
Diane looked at me.
“I knew he was in danger.””
The words destroyed me.
“You knew?””
My voice rose.
“You knew something could happen and you did nothing?””
“I thought Marcus would only scare him.””
I stepped back.
“You thought?””
The room blurred.
My father.
My childhood.
The funeral.
My mother crying.
All the unanswered questions.
All the nights wondering why he never came home.
And this woman knew.
She knew something.
And she let us believe it was just bad luck.
Ryan looked like he couldn’t breathe.
“Mom…”
Diane turned toward him.
“Ryan, listen to me.””
“No.””
His voice shook.
“You lied to me too.””
“I was protecting you.””
“From what?””
She looked at him.
“From losing everything.””
Ryan laughed bitterly.
“I lost everything anyway.””
A notification suddenly appeared on my phone.
Another unknown message.
My hands trembled as I opened it.
A video file.
No words.
Just a timestamp.
Sixteen years ago.
I looked at Marcus’s call.
“Did you send this?””
“No.””
His voice became tense.
“Someone else has it.””
I stared at the screen.
“What is it?””
Marcus answered slowly.
“Probably the original recording.””
Ryan looked at me.
“Recording of what?””
I pressed play.
The video quality was terrible.
Old.
Grainy.
Dark.
But the voices were clear.
A younger Diane appeared on screen.
Standing outside a building.
Talking to someone.
A man.
My father.
My heart stopped.
Because I knew his voice.
Even after all these years.
“Diane, you need to tell Ryan the truth.””
The younger Diane looked nervous.
“You don’t understand.””
My father shook his head.
“No. You don’t understand. This ends tonight.””
The video shook.
Someone moved the camera.
Then Diane said something that made my entire body freeze.
“Your daughter will never know what happened.””
I stopped breathing.
My father answered:
“Emma deserves the truth.””
Then the screen went black.
The video ended.
Nobody spoke.
Not Ryan.
Not Diane.
Not me.
Because we all understood one thing.
My father had been trying to protect me.
And someone had made sure he never got the chance.
Then another message appeared.
This time, from the same unknown number.
Only six words:
*The rest of the video is tomorrow.*
I looked at Diane.
She looked terrified.
And I knew why.
May you like
Because whatever was on the missing part…
Was the thing she had spent sixteen years trying to bury.
