Chapter 8: The Enemy Within
After Evelyn said those words, nobody sat down.
Nobody cried.
Nobody shouted.
The silence was too heavy for that.
Someone inside their own family had tried to kill Daniel.
And somehow, that secret had survived for fifteen years.
Marcus looked at his father.
“Who?””
Daniel didn’t answer.
That scared me.
Because a man who has nothing to hide usually answers quickly.
A man who has spent years hiding answers chooses silence.
Marcus noticed too.
“You know.””
Daniel looked at him.
“I know who wanted me gone.””
“Then tell me.””
“It’s not that simple.””
Marcus shook his head.
“No.””
His voice became cold.
“You don’t get to decide what I can handle anymore.””
Daniel looked hurt.
But Marcus continued.
“You already made that choice fifteen years ago.””
Evelyn reached for Marcus’s arm.
“Please.””
He pulled away.
“No.””
He looked at everyone in the room.
“Every person here knew something.””
His eyes landed on Vanessa.
“You knew my father was alive.””
Then Evelyn.
“You knew he didn’t just leave.””
Then Daniel.
“You knew someone tried to kill you.””
He laughed quietly.
“And somehow I was the only person who didn’t know anything about my own life.””
I understood his anger.
Because I felt something similar.
My own husband had made decisions about my life without me.
Marcus had chosen what truths I deserved.
And now his family had done the same.
Daniel walked toward the window.
“The person who wanted me dead believed I had something valuable.””
“What?””
“A document.””
Evelyn frowned.
“What document?””
Daniel looked at her.
“The one I hid before I disappeared.””
Vanessa suddenly looked nervous.
Marcus noticed.
“You know about it.””
She shook her head.
“No.””
“You do.””
“I heard rumors.””
“From who?””
Vanessa stayed silent.
Marcus stepped closer.
“From who?””
Finally, she whispered:
“My mother.””
Daniel’s expression changed.
“Your mother knew?””
Vanessa nodded.
“She spent years trying to find it.””
“What was on that document?”” Marcus asked.
Daniel looked at him.
“Proof.””
“Proof of what?””
“That someone powerful was hiding money. Evidence of illegal deals. Names.””
The room became colder.
Evelyn covered her mouth.
“You mean…”
Daniel nodded.
“Yes.””
Marcus looked confused.
“Who?””
Daniel didn’t answer.
But his eyes moved toward one person.
Not Vanessa.
Not Evelyn.
Someone else.
Someone who wasn’t there.
Marcus followed his gaze.
“My uncle?””
Daniel said nothing.
That was confirmation.
I remembered Marcus mentioning his uncle only once.
A successful businessman.
A family favorite.
Someone who helped Evelyn after Daniel disappeared.
Someone everyone trusted.
My stomach tightened.
“Your uncle tried to kill your father?””
Marcus looked sick.
“No.””
Daniel looked at him.
“I wish I was wrong.””
Marcus walked away.
Everything he believed about his family was collapsing.
Then Vanessa spoke quietly.
“There’s something else.””
Everyone looked at her.
She looked at Marcus.
“The reason I got close to you…”
Her voice shook.
“It wasn’t just because of your father.””
Marcus stared.
“Then why?””
Vanessa took a deep breath.
“Because I thought you had the document.””
The room went silent.
Marcus’s face hardened.
“You used me.””
“I thought you were connected to it.””
“And when you realized I wasn’t?””
Vanessa looked down.
“That’s when I started caring about you.””
Nobody spoke.
Because it was the kind of confession that didn’t fix anything.
It only explained the damage.
Marcus turned away.
“You expect me to believe that?””
“No.””
Vanessa wiped her tears.
“I don’t.””
Then her phone rang.
She looked at the screen.
Her face changed instantly.
Marcus noticed.
“Who is it?””
She didn’t answer.
“Vanessa.””
Slowly, she handed him the phone.
There was a message.
One sentence.
*Stop pretending you are innocent. Tell Marcus what you did to Aaliyah.*
My blood went cold.
I looked at Vanessa.
“What did you do?””
She stared at the message.
Then she whispered:
“I made one mistake.””
Marcus looked at her.
“What mistake?””
Vanessa lifted her eyes.
May you like
And the fear on her face was real.
“I wasn’t the one who sent the message.””
