Chapter 6: The Last Witness
The message stayed on my screen.
*ASK MARCUS WHY HE WAS THE LAST PERSON TO SEE YOUR FATHER ALIVE.*
I read it once.
Then again.
The words didn’t change.
But everything I believed about Marcus did.
The room was still dark.
Broken glass covered the floor.
Somewhere outside, an alarm had started ringing through the building, but all I could hear was my own heartbeat.
Marcus stood across from me.
The man who had spent twelve years telling me he was my father’s closest friend.
The man who had helped me survive the aftermath of my father’s death.
The man who now looked like he was carrying a secret too heavy to hold.
“Evelyn…”
I raised my hand.
“Don’t.””
His mouth closed.
For once, Marcus Vale had no explanation ready.
No carefully prepared answer.
No business strategy.
No calm voice telling me everything would be fine.
Because there was one question he could not escape.
“Were you the last person who saw my father alive?””
Marcus looked away.
That was all the confirmation I needed.
My chest tightened.
“Answer me.””
“Yes.””
The word was quiet.
But it destroyed everything.
I stepped backward.
“When?””
“The night he died.””
I stared at him.
“You told me you left the office hours before.””
“I lied.””
The honesty almost hurt more than the lie.
“Why?””
Marcus ran a hand through his hair.
“Because I was trying to protect you.””
I laughed once.
There was no humor in it.
“Stop saying that.””
His expression changed.
“Evelyn—”
“No.””
My voice grew sharper.
“You don’t get to use that excuse anymore.””
I pointed toward the box.
“You hid information about my father.””
I pointed toward my phone.
“Someone is watching me.””
I looked at the broken window.
“Someone just tried to scare me.””
Then I looked directly at him.
“And you expect me to believe every secret you kept was for my benefit?””
Marcus lowered his eyes.
“No.””
The answer surprised me.
He didn’t defend himself.
“I understand why you don’t trust me.””
“Good.””
“But you need to know what happened that night.””
I said nothing.
Because despite everything, I needed the truth.
Twelve years of questions.
Twelve years of wondering.
Twelve years of feeling like my father’s death was a wound that never closed.
I needed answers.
Marcus walked slowly toward the desk.
He didn’t touch anything.
He just stared at the old wooden surface where my father had spent countless nights working.
“Your father called me at 10:17 p.m.””
I listened.
“He told me he had proof.””
“Proof of what?””
Marcus hesitated.
“The person who betrayed him.””
My fingers tightened.
“Who?””
“I didn’t know then.””
“You’re lying.””
“I swear.””
His eyes met mine.
“Your father wouldn’t tell me over the phone. He said he couldn’t risk anyone hearing.””
“Anyone?””
“Yes.””
“Why?””
“Because he believed his phone was compromised.””
A cold feeling moved through me.
The unknown messages.
The photo.
The person watching me.
Maybe my father had been right all along.
“What happened next?””
Marcus took a breath.
“I went to meet him.””
“Where?””
“Here.””
I looked around the office.
“This office?””
“Yes.””
“You met him here?””
“Yes.””
“And then?””
Marcus’s jaw tightened.
“He showed me documents.””
“What documents?””
“The same kind you found.””
My eyes moved toward the box.
“Financial records?””
“Yes.””
“About Ashford Holdings?””
“Yes.””
“Who inside Bennett Group was involved?””
Marcus was silent.
Again.
That silence.
“Marcus.””
He looked at me.
“I don’t know.””
I stared at him.
“You expect me to believe that?””
“It’s the truth.””
“You were his closest executive.””
“I know.””
“You were there.””
“I know.””
“Then how could you not know?””
His face changed.
Pain crossed his expression.
“Because your father was protecting me.””
The words confused me.
“What?””
“He knew I would be the first person they would suspect.””
“Why?””
“Because I was closest to him.””
Marcus looked toward the window.
“Powerful people don’t attack strangers first. They attack the person standing beside the target.””
I thought about it.
Then something clicked.
“Wait.””
I looked at him.
“If someone wanted to frame you…”
Marcus nodded.
“They would make it look like I was responsible.””
The room became quiet.
“But the message said you were the last person to see him alive.””
“Yes.””
“Whoever sent that wants me to suspect you.””
“Yes.””
“Why?””
Marcus looked at the broken window.
“Because they’re afraid of what you’ll find.””
Before I could respond, footsteps echoed in the hallway.
Marcus immediately became alert.
“Someone is coming.””
I grabbed the box.
“Security?””
He shook his head.
“No.””
The office door handle moved.
Slowly.
Marcus stepped in front of me.
A strange feeling passed through me.
Because despite everything…
He was still protecting me.
The door opened.
A security officer appeared.
“Ms. Bennett?””
I watched Marcus carefully.
The officer looked at the broken window.
“What happened?””
“Someone tried to enter,” Marcus said.
The officer looked confused.
“Enter from the window?””
Marcus didn’t answer.
That hesitation bothered me.
“Search the building,” I ordered.
The officer nodded.
“Yes, ma’am.””
When he left, I turned back to Marcus.
“You didn’t tell him the truth.””
“No.””
“Why?””
“Because if the person who did this is inside the company, I don’t know who I can trust.””
The words stayed with me.
Because I felt the same way.
An hour later, I sat in my apartment with the black box on the table.
The city lights outside my window looked peaceful.
Almost mocking.
The world had no idea my entire reality had shifted.
I opened the first document.
Bank records.
Private transactions.
Names.
Companies.
Numbers.
My eyes moved quickly.
Then I found something.
A company name.
A shell corporation.
A company that had received millions of dollars.
A company owned by…
I froze.
“No.””
I looked closer.
The name was impossible.
Marcus Vale.
My hands went cold.
For a moment, I couldn’t breathe.
The evidence was right there.
A company registered under Marcus’s name.
Payments connected to Ashford Holdings.
The same Marcus who claimed he was protecting my father.
The same Marcus who said he had been framed.
I reached for my phone.
I almost called him.
Then I stopped.
Because another document was underneath.
A handwritten note.
My father’s handwriting.
I unfolded it carefully.
Only one sentence was written.
*Evelyn, if you are reading this, then Marcus failed to stop them.*
My heart raced.
I continued.
*But do not make the mistake of believing he betrayed me.*
I froze.
The next line was even more shocking.
*Marcus was the only person I trusted to survive what was coming.*
I stared at the paper.
The documents.
The impossible contradiction.
Either Marcus was my father’s murderer…
Or someone had spent twelve years building the perfect evidence to make him look guilty.
Then my phone rang.
Unknown number.
I answered.
No one spoke.
“Hello?””
Silence.
Then a voice.
A woman’s voice.
A voice I recognized.
“Evelyn.””
I stood up.
Because I knew that voice.
It belonged to someone who had cried beside me at my father’s funeral.
Someone who had hugged me and promised she would always be there.
Someone I had never once suspected.
“Don’t trust Marcus,” she whispered.
My heart stopped.
“Who is this?””
A pause.
Then:
“You need to know the truth about what happened that night.””
I gripped the phone.
“Tell me.””
Her voice trembled.
“Your father didn’t die because Marcus betrayed him.””
I waited.
“Your father died because Marcus tried to save him.””
My breathing stopped.
Then she said the words that shattered everything I thought I knew.
“The person who killed your father…”
May you like
A long pause.
“…was sitting beside you at his funeral.””
