Chapter 9: The Truth Isabella Buried
For several seconds, nobody spoke.
The sentence on the paper stared back at me.
*If anything happens to me, Victor is not the person you should fear.*
I read it again.
And again.
Because my entire life had been built around one belief.
That I was the person responsible for protecting my family.
But now I was standing in the middle of my own home, surrounded by people who had hidden pieces of the truth from me.
Margaret.
Daniel.
Evelyn.
All of them knew something I didn’t.
The detective looked at Margaret.
“Mrs. Hayes, you need to explain.””
Margaret took a slow breath.
“I wanted to.””
Her eyes moved toward me.
“But Isabella stopped me.””
I felt my chest tighten.
“Why?””
“Because she was afraid.””
The word echoed.
“Afraid of me?””
Margaret shook her head.
“Afraid of what would happen if the wrong person learned the truth.””
I looked at the documents again.
“What truth?””
Margaret sat down.
For the first time, she looked older.
Tired.
Not like the powerful woman everyone respected.
Like a mother who had carried a secret too heavy for too long.
“Years ago, before Isabella died, she discovered someone had been manipulating your company.””
I frowned.
“Daniel.””
“No.””
Everyone turned toward Margaret.
She shook her head.
“Daniel was involved. But he wasn’t the person who started it.””
My eyes moved toward Daniel.
He looked away.
The detective stepped closer.
“Then who?””
Margaret looked at me.
“Someone who knew Victor’s habits better than anyone.””
A cold feeling moved through me.
“Someone inside my company?””
She shook her head.
“Someone inside your family.””
Silence.
Noah grabbed my hand.
I looked down at him.
He looked scared.
I squeezed his hand.
“I’m here.””
Margaret opened another document.
“This was Isabella’s final investigation.””
The pages showed financial records, private notes, and dates.
Then I saw a name.
Not Daniel.
Not Evelyn.
A name I never expected.
My own.
But next to it was a note.
*Unauthorized use of identity.*
Margaret explained.
“Someone created fake approvals using your signature.””
The detective nodded.
“We’ve seen similar cases.””
I stared at the papers.
“So someone wanted it to look like I was stealing from myself.””
“Yes.””
“And when the truth came out…”
“Everyone would believe you were guilty.””
I finally understood.
The plan wasn’t just to take my company.
It was to make sure nobody would defend me.
The accusations.
The family conflict.
The public rumors.
Everything had been designed.
But one question remained.
“Why Noah?””
Margaret looked toward him.
“Because Isabella left him the final piece.””
Noah froze.
“What?””
Margaret reached into the folder and pulled out a small envelope.
My son stared at it.
“It has your name on it.””
Noah slowly took it.
His hands shook.
He looked at me.
“Should I open it?””
I nodded.
“You don’t have to be afraid anymore.””
He opened the envelope.
Inside was a small memory card.
The detective immediately secured it.
“We need to examine this properly.””
But before he could put it away, Daniel spoke.
“She knew.””
Everyone looked at him.
Daniel lowered his head.
“Isabella knew Noah had seen something.””
I stared at him.
“What did he see?””
Daniel closed his eyes.
“The night before she died.””
My heart stopped.
“What happened that night?””
Daniel looked at me.
“I was there.””
My anger returned.
“You were there?””
“Yes.””
“Then why didn’t you tell me?””
His voice broke slightly.
“Because I was afraid.””
“Afraid of what?””
Daniel looked toward Margaret.
Then toward Evelyn.
Then back at me.
“Because the person controlling everything had power over all of us.””
The detective stepped forward.
“Name them.””
Daniel hesitated.
Then his phone suddenly rang.
Everyone looked at him.
He checked the screen.
His face changed.
“What is it?”” I asked.
He didn’t answer.
He just showed me the message.
One sentence.
*“You should have stayed quiet.””*
Daniel’s hands started shaking.
Then another message appeared.
This time with a photo.
A photo taken inside the mansion.
A photo of Noah.
Taken minutes earlier.
My blood ran cold.
Someone was still inside.
The detective immediately moved toward the doors.
But before anyone left, Daniel whispered:
“There’s one more room.””
I looked at him.
“What room?””
“The room Isabella found.””
“Where?””
Daniel looked upward.
“The attic.””
I followed his eyes.
Because suddenly I remembered.
There was one place in the mansion nobody ever entered.
A locked room above everything.
A room Isabella had forbidden everyone to touch.
May you like
And now I knew why.
Because the final secret was waiting there.
