Chapter 5: The Woman Who Wanted His Daughter Gone
Darius returned to the mansion shortly before sunset.
Margaret had taken Lily to her house so the little girl could rest somewhere familiar.
He had wanted to go with them, but James had called twice.
The financial documents needed his immediate attention.
When he entered the study, a thick folder was waiting on his desk.
He opened it.
The first document was a bank statement.
The second was a company registration.
The third was a property purchase agreement.
Darius read every page.
Then he reached the final document.
It was a guardianship inquiry.
His hands stopped moving.
The document contained Lily's full name, date of birth, school information, and medical history.
Under the section marked Proposed Temporary Caregiver, one name appeared.
*Vanessa Carter.*
But the section marked Alternative Emergency Contact contained a name that made Darius's blood run cold.
*Victor Hayes.*
He picked up his phone.
“James, I need you to come here.””
“I'm already downstairs, sir.””
James entered a moment later.
Darius pushed the document across the desk.
“Explain this.””
James examined it.
“I found it in the digital files associated with the property transaction. It appears to be a draft.””
“A draft for what?””
“An arrangement involving Lily's temporary placement outside the family home.””
Darius stood.
“Who prepared this?””
“The documents were uploaded using credentials associated with Mrs. Carter's personal account.””
Darius stared at him.
“Did she have legal authority to do this?””
“No, sir. Not without the proper legal process and authorization.””
Darius walked to the window.
The evening sky had turned dark blue.
He remembered the first time Vanessa had met Lily.
She had brought the little girl a stuffed rabbit and knelt beside her.
“I hope we can be friends,” she had said.
Lily had smiled.
Darius had believed he was giving his daughter another person who would love her.
Now he wondered how long Vanessa had been pretending.
“Find out everything about Victor Hayes,” he instructed.
James nodded.
“Already working on it.””
“And contact the attorney again. I want an emergency custody consultation and advice about protective measures.””
“Yes, sir.””
James hesitated.
“There's something else.””
Darius turned.
“What?””
“Mrs. Carter called the office earlier.””
“Why?””
“She wanted to know whether you had access to the company's security records.””
Darius frowned.
“Why would she ask that?””
James lowered his voice.
“Because she was asking about the cameras at the warehouse.””
Darius stared at him.
“Which warehouse?””
“The old distribution building.””
Darius immediately understood.
Six months earlier, the company had installed additional security cameras after several valuable shipments disappeared.
The warehouse also stored archived financial records.
“Did she say why?””
“No, sir.””
Darius picked up his phone.
“Don't delete anything. Preserve every record, every email, every access log.””
James nodded and left.
Darius sat down again.
He had barely opened the next document when his phone rang.
The caller ID showed Vanessa.
He answered.
“What?””
Her voice was unusually soft.
“Darius, can we please talk?””
“About what?””
“About today.””
“There's nothing to discuss until the attorney arrives.””
She sighed.
“I know I made a mistake.””
“A mistake?””
“I was angry. Lily was being difficult. I shouldn't have used the clippers.””
Darius remained silent.
Vanessa continued.
“I want to apologize to her.””
“You can do that when it's appropriate and when her therapist and I agree it's safe.””
Her tone changed.
“So now I need permission to speak to a child who lives in my house?””
“You don't need to make this about yourself.””
“I'm your wife.””
“And she's my daughter.””
Vanessa was quiet.
Then she said something unexpected.
“Do you remember the promise you made me before our wedding?””
Darius leaned back.
“What promise?””
“You said we'd have a family together. You said I wouldn't always feel like an outsider.””
He closed his eyes.
“I never promised you that you could replace Lily's mother.””
“I never wanted to replace her!””
“Then why have you spent months trying to make my daughter disappear?””
Vanessa began crying.
“I didn't.””
“Lily told me everything.””
“She lies when she's frightened!””
Darius stood.
“Stop blaming a six-year-old for what you did.””
He ended the call.
A moment later, a message appeared.
*Vanessa: If you force me out of this house, don't expect me to stay quiet about what your family has done.*
Darius stared at it.
Then another message arrived.
This one was from Margaret.
*Lily woke up crying. She says she remembers something Vanessa told her about her mother. Please call me.*
Darius immediately dialed his mother.
“What happened?””
Margaret sounded upset.
“She was looking at an old photograph of her mother. Then she asked me whether her mother had really abandoned her.””
Darius felt his chest tighten.
“Who told her that?””
“Vanessa, apparently.””
He gripped the phone.
“What exactly did she say?””
Margaret took a breath.
“She told Lily that her mother hadn't wanted her. That she had left because she couldn't stand being a mother.””
Darius closed his eyes.
“That isn't true.””
“I know.””
“Lily knows her mother loved her.””
“I tried to explain that. But she said Vanessa showed her a message on a phone.””
Darius went completely still.
“What message?””
“Something supposedly written by her mother before she died.””
Darius remembered the old phone.
His late wife's phone had been stored in a locked drawer in his study.
It contained photographs, voice recordings, and messages from the final months of her life.
Only he and Vanessa knew where it was.
He walked toward the study cabinet.
The drawer was slightly open.
The small velvet pouch containing the phone was gone.
Darius stared at the empty space.
Then he heard a sound behind him.
A floorboard creaked.
He turned.
Vanessa was standing in the doorway.
She was holding the old phone.
“Looking for this?””
Darius's face hardened.
“Where did you get it?””
Vanessa smiled faintly.
“You should have kept better track of your belongings.””
“Give it to me.””
She held it behind her back.
“First, I want you to listen to something.””
She pressed the screen.
A recording began playing.
It was a woman's voice.
A voice Darius had not heard in years.
His late wife's voice.
“Darius, if anything ever happens to me, there's something I need you to know about Lily…”
The recording suddenly stopped.
Vanessa looked at him.
“Interesting, isn't it?””
Darius stared at the phone.
“Where did you get that recording?””
Vanessa's smile widened.
“Maybe your first wife wasn't the woman you thought she was.””
For the first time that evening, Darius felt genuine fear.
Not of losing money.
May you like
Not of losing his marriage.
But of what Vanessa might have done with the memories of the woman he had loved.
