Chapter 5: The Secret Marcus Buried Before Me
I wanted to walk away.
That was my first instinct.
To turn around.
To get into my car.
To drive until I couldn’t recognize the streets anymore.
Because sometimes the truth hurts less when you don’t hear all of it at once.
But I stayed.
Maybe because I was tired of running from a story Marcus had written without me.
Daniel handed me the folder.
I didn’t take it immediately.
“What is this?””
His expression softened.
“Evidence.””
Marcus stepped between us.
“Nia, don’t listen to him.””
I looked at Marcus.
“Why?””
He opened his mouth.
Nothing came out.
That was enough.
I took the folder.
The first document was a report.
The second was a bank statement.
The third was a photograph.
A photograph of Marcus standing beside another woman.
Not Lauren.
Another woman.
My hands started shaking.
“Who is she?””
Marcus looked away.
“Nia…”
“Who?””
Daniel answered.
“Her name is Emily Carter.””
I looked at Marcus.
“How many?””
He looked confused.
“What?””
“How many women?””
His face tightened.
“There weren’t—”
“Don’t.””
My voice cracked.
“Don’t insult me by lying again.””
Marcus closed his eyes.
Daniel watched silently.
“You need to know what happened before Lauren,” Daniel said.
I looked at him.
“Why are you helping me?””
A strange expression crossed his face.
“Because I helped him.””
That surprised me.
“What?””
Daniel looked at Marcus.
“I thought I was helping a friend.””
Marcus’s expression changed.
“Daniel.””
But Daniel continued.
“Marcus came to me two years ago. He was drowning in debt.””
I looked at Marcus.
“Debt?””
Daniel nodded.
“He had loans. Bad investments. Money problems.””
Marcus stepped forward.
“That’s not relevant.””
“It’s everything,” Daniel said.
Then he looked at me.
“He discovered something.””
“What?””
Daniel opened another document.
“He realized your identity was valuable.””
My heart stopped.
“What does that mean?””
Marcus immediately shook his head.
“Don’t listen to him.””
Daniel ignored him.
“Your credit history was clean. Your financial record was excellent. You had no major debts.””
I felt sick.
“You’re saying he used me?””
Daniel nodded slowly.
“At first, it was small.””
Marcus whispered:
“No.””
“Changing paperwork. Moving accounts. Using your information to make his situation look better.””
I looked at Marcus.
“Is this true?””
He looked like he wanted to disappear.
“It wasn’t supposed to become this.””
I almost couldn’t believe those words.
“Become what?””
He looked at me.
“Like this.””
I laughed.
A painful, empty laugh.
“You mean become something I could discover?””
Marcus looked away.
That was the answer.
Daniel took another paper from the folder.
“This is why Lauren believed he was single.””
I looked down.
It was a copy of a legal document.
A fake divorce record.
My name was there.
Marcus’s name was there.
And beneath it:
*Marriage terminated.*
My knees almost gave out.
“He created a divorce?””
Daniel nodded.
“Not just created one.””
He looked at Marcus.
“You convinced me to help.””
Marcus looked furious.
“You said you deleted everything.””
“I tried.””
“You promised.””
Daniel’s voice hardened.
“You promised you were going to fix it.””
The two men stared at each other.
And suddenly I realized something.
Marcus wasn’t just a liar.
He was someone who had been hiding a disaster.
A disaster that kept growing because every lie required another lie.
I looked at Marcus.
“Did you ever love me?””
His face changed.
That question hurt him.
Good.
Because I needed him to feel something.
“I did.””
“Then why?””
He swallowed.
“Because I was scared.””
I stared at him.
“Scared of what?””
“Losing everything.””
I shook my head.
“You lost it anyway.””
For the first time since this began, Marcus looked truly broken.
Not because he lost control.
Because he finally understood he had lost me.
My phone buzzed.
I looked down.
A message appeared.
Unknown number.
*You’re finally learning the truth. But Daniel isn’t telling you everything.*
My heart raced.
Another message appeared.
*Ask him why Marcus chose you.*
I looked up.
Daniel noticed my expression.
“What happened?””
I showed him the phone.
The color drained from his face.
Marcus whispered:
“Nia…”
I looked between them.
“Why did Marcus choose me?””
Neither man answered.
And that was when I knew.
The affair wasn’t the beginning.
The fake documents weren’t the beginning.
Something had started long before I ever met Marcus.
Something planned.
Something intentional.
Daniel slowly said:
“There’s something you need to know about the day Marcus met you.””
I held my breath.
“What?””
He looked at Marcus.
May you like
Then back at me.
“He didn’t meet you by accident.””
