Chapter 8: The Voice From the Past
The message stayed on the screen.
Don’t trust anyone in that room.
I looked around.
Richard.
Arthur.
Claire.
Julian.
Everyone had secrets.
Everyone had lied.
The hardest part wasn’t discovering betrayal.
It was realizing betrayal had worn so many different faces.
Richard watched me.
“Call him.””
I looked at him.
“You want me to?””
“Yes.””
“Why?””
“Because he is the only person who knows what really happened.””
Arthur immediately shook his head.
“No.””
Everyone looked at him.
“No?”” Claire repeated.
Arthur’s face was pale.
“You don’t know what Daniel has been through.””
I stared at him.
“And you do?””
Arthur looked away.
That was enough.
I pressed call.
The phone rang.
Once.
Twice.
Three times.
Then a voice answered.
“Hello?””
I couldn’t speak.
The voice sounded older than Thomas.
But there was something familiar.
Something impossible.
“Mrs. Harper?””
My throat tightened.
“Yes.””
Silence.
Then:
“I’ve waited twenty years to hear your voice.””
I sat down.
“I’m sorry.””
The words surprised everyone.
Daniel was quiet.
“Why are you apologizing?””
“Because I should have known.””
“No.””
His voice cracked.
“That’s what everyone keeps saying. They should have known.””
The pain in his voice was unmistakable.
I closed my eyes.
“Tell me the truth.””
A long pause.
Then he said:
“My father didn’t abandon me.””
I looked at Richard.
“No.””
Daniel continued.
“He tried to find me.””
My heart ached.
“What happened?””
“He discovered my mother was being pressured by Richard.””
Richard’s expression changed.
“She was told Thomas wanted nothing to do with me.””
I gripped the phone.
“That’s not true.””
“I know.””
Daniel’s voice became softer.
“Because I found my father’s letters.””
Everyone went silent.
“Letters?””
“Yes.””
“How many?””
“Thirty-two.””
I covered my mouth.
Thirty-two letters.
Thomas had written to a son he thought he had lost.
“Why didn’t you send them?””
“I never received them.””
A cold feeling spread through me.
“Richard?””
“Yes.””
I looked at him.
The room suddenly felt darker.
“You destroyed them.””
Richard didn’t answer.
Daniel continued.
“But there’s more.””
“What?””
“My father knew someone else was helping Richard.””
I looked at Arthur.
Daniel said:
“The person who signed the final transfer documents.””
Arthur closed his eyes.
I whispered:
“Who?””
Daniel answered.
“Thomas’s closest friend.””
The words hung in the room.
“Who?””
A pause.
Then:
“Your husband’s brother.””
My heart stopped.
I almost dropped the phone.
“Thomas didn’t have a brother.””
Daniel was silent.
Then he said:
“He did.””
Nobody moved.
Richard suddenly stepped forward.
“Enough.””
Arthur looked at him.
“What did you do?””
Richard ignored him.
I looked at Richard.
“You knew.””
He looked at me.
“Yes.””
“And you never told me?””
“You never asked.””
The cruelty of the answer made my stomach turn.
Daniel spoke again.
“Mrs. Harper, there is something else.””
“What?””
“My father left one final message.””
“What message?””
Daniel hesitated.
“He said the person who destroyed him was not his enemy.””
I frowned.
“What does that mean?””
Daniel’s voice became quiet.
“He said his enemy was the person standing closest to him.””
Everyone looked at each other.
The underground room suddenly felt like a trap.
Then the lights went out.
Complete darkness.
Someone moved.
A box fell.
Claire screamed.
Arthur shouted:
“Everyone stay where you are!””
But footsteps echoed.
Someone was running.
I heard the door above slam.
Then silence.
The lights came back.
May you like
The envelope containing Thomas’s documents was gone.
And Julian was missing.
