Chapter 4: The Brother Who Knew Too Much
I didn’t sleep that night.
I sat in my car outside my house for nearly two hours.
Not because I didn’t have somewhere to go.
Because I didn’t know where home was anymore.
The same walls that held my happiest memories suddenly felt like a place full of secrets.
My phone kept lighting up.
Maya.
Again.
And again.
I ignored every call.
The last message she sent was simple.
“Please let me explain.””
I stared at those words for a long time.
Then I put the phone down.
Explain what?
How she betrayed me?
How she hid my father’s final wishes?
How she somehow ended up standing in the middle of a mystery involving my family?
By sunrise, I finally drove to Evelyn’s office.
She was waiting for me.
“You came alone.””
I nodded.
“I need the truth.””
She motioned toward the chair.
“That’s what your father wanted too.””
I sat down.
She placed an old photograph on the desk.
It was my father, my brother Daniel, and me.
We were standing in front of the family property.
A place where I spent every summer as a child.
“What does this have to do with Daniel?””
Evelyn folded her hands.
“Your father loved both of his sons.””
“I know.””
“But he knew Daniel had financial problems.””
I looked away.
That wasn’t exactly news.
My brother had always struggled.
He made bad investments.
Trusted the wrong people.
Borrowed money he couldn’t repay.
But he was still my brother.
“What are you saying?””
Evelyn looked at me carefully.
“Your father discovered Daniel was making arrangements to sell the property without permission.””
I froze.
“What?””
She slid a document across the desk.
A signature.
A contract.
Daniel’s name.
“This was found after your father died.””
I picked it up.
My hands felt numb.
“He tried to sell it?””
“Yes.””
“Why?””
Evelyn was quiet for a moment.
“Because someone promised him a large amount of money.””
“Who?””
She didn’t answer.
Instead, she opened another file.
A bank record.
A name appeared.
Marcus.
I stared at the paper.
“No.””
Evelyn nodded.
“Marcus wasn’t just your neighbor.””
My chest tightened.
“He was working with my brother?””
“Yes.””
Everything suddenly connected.
The strange looks.
The secret conversations.
The envelope.
Maya.
I stood up.
“Then why was Maya involved?””
Evelyn looked at me.
“That is the part I still don’t understand.””
My anger returned.
“Meaning?””
“Meaning your wife’s actions don’t match Marcus and Daniel’s plan.””
I frowned.
“What does that mean?””
Evelyn leaned forward.
“Marcus wanted access to your father’s property. Daniel wanted money. But Maya…”
She paused.
“What Maya wanted is unclear.””
I thought about the way she looked at me that morning.
The kiss.
The smile.
The goodbye.
A question kept repeating in my mind.
Was any of it real?
My phone suddenly rang.
This time, it wasn’t Maya.
It was Daniel.
I answered.
“What do you want?””
His voice sounded nervous.
“Ethan, where are you?””
“Why?””
A long silence.
Then he whispered:
“Because Marcus knows you found the documents.””
My grip tightened around the phone.
“How?””
Daniel didn’t answer.
Then I heard something in the background.
A door closing.
Someone breathing.
“Daniel?””
His voice dropped.
“You need to leave Evelyn’s office right now.””
“Why?””
Because then Daniel said something that made my blood run cold.
“Because Marcus isn’t the person you should be afraid of.””
I stood completely still.
“Then who is?””
Daniel whispered:
“The person who told Marcus where to find your father’s documents.””
The call suddenly ended.
And through the office window, I saw a black SUV slowly pull up outside.
The same SUV I had seen parked near my house that morning.
Evelyn looked out the window.
Her face changed.
“Ethan…”
I turned toward her.
“Who is that?””
She didn’t answer.
Because the person stepping out of the SUV was someone I never expected to see.
May you like
Someone who had been gone for years.
Someone my father had buried himself.
