Chapter 7: The Night Walter Died
The question hung between us like a storm cloud.
“Did Renata have anything to do with Dad’s final night?””
For a few seconds, I couldn’t answer.
Not because I didn’t know the truth.
Because I knew the truth had the power to destroy the last piece of innocence Marcus still carried.
I closed the front door behind him.
“Sit down.””
He followed me into the living room.
The room looked exactly the same as it had the night Walter died.
The same sofa.
The same lamp.
The same corner where his hospital bag sat before we left for the final appointment.
Marcus noticed my expression.
“Mom?””
I sat across from him.
“Your father knew he was running out of time.””
Marcus looked down.
“I know.””
“No,” I said softly.
“You know he was sick. You don’t know what happened after.””
He swallowed.
“Tell me.””
I looked at the photograph on the fireplace.
Walter was smiling in it.
A man who always believed he had more time.
“Three days before he passed away, Renata came to see him.””
Marcus immediately sat straighter.
“She visited Dad?””
I nodded.
“Why?””
“That’s what I asked.””
I remembered that day clearly.
Walter was in his study.
He was weaker than he wanted anyone to know.
When the doorbell rang, I expected a delivery.
I didn’t expect to see Renata standing there.
She wore a concerned expression.
The kind people wear when they want to appear innocent.
“Mrs. Hale,” she said.
I looked at her.
“What are you doing here?””
She glanced past me.
“I need to speak with Walter.””
“That’s not a good time.””
Her eyes softened.
“It’s important.””
Something about her tone bothered me.
Not fear.
Not urgency.
Calculation.
I let her in.
A decision I regretted immediately.
“I need to know what Walter plans to do with Marcus’s inheritance,” she said.
I stared at her.
“You came to my dying husband’s house to discuss money?””
She shook her head.
“Don’t make it sound ugly.””
“It is ugly.””
Her smile disappeared.
“You don’t understand. Marcus is my future husband.””
“He is your future husband, not your financial partner.””
She stepped closer.
“Families share things.””
I laughed quietly.
“Real families don’t arrive before the wedding asking for assets.””
She became cold.
“Maybe Walter sees things differently.””
That was when I knew she had already spoken to him.
I walked into Walter’s study.
He was sitting behind his desk.
His face changed when he saw Renata.
Not surprise.
Disappointment.
“Why are you here?”” he asked.
Renata forced a smile.
“Walter, I think we need to discuss Marcus’s future.””
Walter looked at me.
Then at her.
“No.””
The answer was immediate.
Renata blinked.
“No?””
“My son’s future is not a business negotiation.””
Her jaw tightened.
“You’re misunderstanding me.””
“No,” Walter said.
“I understand you perfectly.””
Marcus interrupted.
“What happened next?””
I looked back at him.
“Renata left.””
“Just like that?””
“No.””
I paused.
“She left after your father said something.””
Marcus leaned forward.
“What?””
I took a breath.
“He told her, ‘A person who loves my son would protect him from greed, not introduce him to it.’”
Marcus closed his eyes.
That sentence hurt him.
Because it sounded exactly like something Walter would say.
“What did she do?””
“She smiled.””
Marcus frowned.
“She smiled?””
“Yes.””
I remembered it.
That final look.
Not sadness.
Not embarrassment.
Anger.
“She said, ‘You’re making a mistake by underestimating me.’”
The room became silent.
Marcus stared at the floor.
“Why didn’t you tell me?””
“Because your father asked me not to.””
“Dad asked you?””
I nodded.
That night, after Renata left, Walter called me into the bedroom.
He looked exhausted.
But his mind was clear.
“Promise me something,” he said.
“What?””
“Don’t tell Marcus everything until he can hear it without defending the wrong person.””
I cried.
“Walter, he’s our son.””
“I know.””
“He deserves to know.””
“He does.””
He held my hand.
“But he deserves to know when the truth can save him, not when it can destroy him.””
Marcus wiped his face.
“I defended her.””
I didn’t respond.
Because he knew.
“I chose her over you.””
“Marcus—”
“No.””
He shook his head.
“I need to say it.””
His voice cracked.
“I humiliated you.””
I looked at him.
“Yes.””
He nodded slowly.
“And Dad knew.””
“Yes.””
“About her.””
“Yes.””
He stood and walked toward the window.
For several minutes, he said nothing.
Then his phone buzzed.
He looked at the screen.
His expression changed.
“What is it?””
He turned the phone toward me.
It was a message from an unknown number.
One sentence.
*If you want to know what your father really left behind, meet me tomorrow. Come alone.*
Marcus looked confused.
“Who sent this?””
I stared at the number.
May you like
Because I recognized the area code.
And I knew exactly who was behind it.
