Chapter 18: The Truth My Father Buried

My father looked at me like he was waiting for me to accuse him.

Maybe because he knew I should.

The call had destroyed the last piece of trust I had left.

“Dad…”

His face was pale.

“Nia, listen to me.””

I stepped back.

“Did you hurt Mom?””

“No.””

The answer came instantly.

Too instantly.

I looked at Evelyn.

She was studying him.

“Richard.””

He closed his eyes.

“I didn’t kill her.””

The room stayed silent.

“Then tell me what happened.””

He sat down.

“I was there.””

My heart stopped.

“You said you left.””

“I did.””

He swallowed.

“But I came back.””

Everyone froze.

“Why?””

“Because I realized I was wrong.””

I almost laughed.

“After everything?””

He nodded.

“I went back to apologize.””

My father looked at the floor.

“When I returned, your mother was unconscious.””

My breath caught.

“What did you do?””

“I called emergency services.””

“And?””

“They came.””

“Then why didn’t you tell me?””

His face broke.

“Because I was afraid.””

“Afraid of what?””

He looked at me.

“That they would ask questions.””

Evelyn became still.

“What questions?””

My father whispered:

“About the argument.””

The room went quiet.

“You fought with her.””

“Yes.””

“And you left her.””

“Yes.””

“But you didn’t kill her.””

“No.””

I wanted to believe him.

I really did.

But after years of lies, belief was difficult.

Diane stepped forward.

“There’s something else.””

Everyone looked at her.

She held an old envelope.

“I found this years ago.””

My father looked shocked.

“Where?””

“In Evelyn’s room.””

Evelyn frowned.

“My room?””

Diane nodded.

“I was looking for documents.””

She handed it to me.

Inside was a medical report.

My hands shook.

“What is this?””

Evelyn looked at it.

Then went pale.

“This is not part of the original file.””

“What does that mean?””

She read the page carefully.

Then looked at my father.

“Richard…”

“What?””

“This says Evelyn’s condition worsened because of medication interference.””

The room went silent.

My mother’s illness.

The hospital.

The night she died.

Everything changed.

My father looked horrified.

“I didn’t know.””

Evelyn looked at the report.

“Someone altered her medication.””

I felt sick.

Someone had been trying to kill my mother.

Not steal the house.

Not take money.

Kill her.

I looked at everyone.

“Who had access?””

Nobody answered.

Then the front door opened.

Everyone turned.

A police officer stood there.

“We need to speak with Nia Carter.””

My heart dropped.

“Why?””

The officer looked uncomfortable.

“We found new evidence.””

“What evidence?””

He held out a photograph.

“This was recovered from Marcus Vale’s records.””

I took it.

My hands froze.

The picture showed my mother.

In the hospital.

But standing beside her bed was someone.

Someone holding a bottle of medication.

Someone whose face was partly visible.

Someone I recognized.

The officer spoke quietly.

“The person in this photograph was seen entering your mother’s room the night she died.””

I stared at the image.

My vision blurred.

Because the person standing beside my mother’s hospital bed…

was my father.

Richard Carter.

My father looked at the photograph.

Then at me.

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