Chapter 18: The Last Person I Trusted
Richard placed a folder on the table.
I didn’t touch it.
Not yet.
Because I had learned something important.
Documents could lie.
People could lie.
Even memories could lie.
“What do you want?””
Richard looked hurt.
“That’s the question you should have asked years ago.””
I laughed softly.
“Everyone keeps saying they were protecting me.””
His expression changed.
“Because everyone was.””
“No.””
I shook my head.
“Everyone was protecting themselves.””
Silence.
Richard nodded slowly.
“You have every right to feel that way.””
Rachel watched him carefully.
“You disappeared after Emily’s parents died.””
Richard looked at her.
“I was forced to.””
“By Victoria?””
“Yes.””
The answer was immediate.
I stared.
“Why?””
“Because I knew what your father discovered.””
He opened the folder.
Inside were company documents.
Old contracts.
Financial records.
“This was your father’s final investigation.””
I looked through them.
The names.
The accounts.
The hidden transfers.
Victoria wasn’t just stealing money.
She was building an empire.
Using people.
Destroying anyone who threatened her.
“Why didn’t you expose her?””
Richard looked at me.
“Because your mother tried.””
The room went quiet.
“And look what happened.””
The words hurt.
Because they were true.
My mother paid the price.
Richard continued.
“After she died, I tried to protect you quietly.””
“By disappearing?””
“By staying away.””
I stared.
“That makes no sense.””
“It does when you know Victoria.””
He pointed to the documents.
“She doesn’t attack people directly.””
“She attacks what they love.””
I looked toward my stomach.
My daughter.
Richard nodded.
“Exactly.””
The fear returned.
Not panic.
Awareness.
“She knows about the baby.””
“Yes.””
“Who told her?””
Nobody answered.
That was the worst part.
There were still secrets.
Still missing pieces.
Then Richard looked at Rachel.
“You need to tell her.””
Rachel went quiet.
“Tell me what?””
Richard looked uncomfortable.
“The truth about Damon and the baby.””
My heart stopped.
“What?””
Rachel looked at me.
“I didn’t want you to know yet.””
“Know what?””
She swallowed.
“The trust document Damon forged…”
I waited.
“It wasn’t just about money.””
“What was it about?””
Rachel looked down.
“It included custody.””
The room went silent.
“He planned to take my daughter.””
“Yes.””
“Without me.””
“Yes.””
I closed my eyes.
The pain was different now.
The betrayal was no longer surprising.
But it still hurt.
Because my baby had become a prize.
A possession.
A piece of a game.
My phone suddenly rang.
Damon.
Everyone looked at the screen.
I answered.
“Hello?””
His voice was calm.
Too calm.
“Emily.””
“Yes?””
“I know where you are.””
My heart tightened.
“How?””
A pause.
Then:
“Because someone told me.””
I looked around the room.
Richard.
Rachel.
Everyone silent.
Damon continued.
“You still don’t understand who the enemy is.””
“Then tell me.””
“I tried.””
“No.””
My voice hardened.
“You lied.””
A pause.
Then he said:
“Your father had another child.””
The room froze.
“What?””
Damon continued.
“And that person has been waiting for your inheritance.””
I looked at Richard.
Then Rachel.
Neither reacted.
They knew.
Someone knew.
“Who?””
Damon whispered:
“Your half-sibling.””
My hands went cold.
“Who?””
Silence.
Then Damon said the name.
The name that shattered everything.
“Claire.””
The call ended.
Nobody spoke.
Because suddenly the woman who betrayed me wasn’t just my best friend.
May you like
She was family.
And she had known all along.
