Chapter 10: The Voice I Waited For
I stood there with the phone pressed against my ear long after the call had ended.
Nobody spoke.
Nobody moved.
Because everyone in that room had heard it.
The child’s voice.
The voice that sounded so much like Lily.
Except it wasn’t Lily.
It was my sister.
My mother was alive.
My sister was alive.
And somehow, they had both been hidden from me.
I lowered the phone slowly.
Michael looked at me with regret in his eyes.
Robert looked furious.
Vanessa looked like she had been crying for years.
I looked at all of them.
“Where is she?””
Nobody answered.
My voice rose.
“Where is my mother?””
Michael took a step forward.
“Daniel—”
“No.””
I pointed at him.
“You don’t get to say my name like you’re family.””
His face fell.
“You need to understand.””
“I understand enough.””
I looked around the room.
“You all knew pieces of my life.””
My hand tightened around the phone.
“My mother was alive. My sister was alive. My father’s death wasn’t what I was told.””
I stared at Michael.
“And you all watched me live in the dark.””
Robert suddenly laughed.
A quiet, bitter laugh.
“You still don’t understand.””
I turned toward him.
“Then explain.””
He looked at Ethan.
“Tell him.””
Ethan didn’t respond.
Robert smiled.
“Of course. Everyone wants me to be the villain.””
He lowered the gun slightly.
“But your mother started this.””
My anger burned.
“Don’t talk about my mother.””
“She chose secrets over family.””
“She was protecting us.””
“No.””
Robert’s voice sharpened.
“She was protecting the truth.””
Before I could answer, Vanessa stepped between us.
“Stop.””
Everyone looked at her.
Her face was pale.
But her voice was steady.
“Daniel deserves the truth.””
Robert’s eyes narrowed.
“You really think you can fix this?””
Vanessa ignored him.
She looked at me.
“Your mother didn’t leave because she wanted to.””
I waited.
“She disappeared because she discovered who was behind everything.””
“Who?””
Vanessa looked at Michael.
Then at Robert.
“Your father’s company wasn’t destroyed by one person.””
My stomach tightened.
“There were several.””
Ethan nodded.
“A group.””
Robert’s expression changed.
“Careful.””
Vanessa continued anyway.
“Your mother called them The Circle.””
The name felt strange.
Dangerous.
“They controlled the company. They controlled the money. They controlled people.””
“And my father?””
Vanessa looked down.
“He found out.””
The room became silent.
“He tried to expose them.””
“And they killed him?””
Michael whispered:
“Yes.””
I looked at him.
My uncle.
The man who had lied to me for years.
“You knew.””
Michael’s eyes filled with regret.
“I knew they were dangerous.””
“That’s not what I asked.””
He swallowed.
“Yes.””
The answer shattered something inside me.
“You let me believe my father abandoned us.””
“I was trying to keep you alive.””
I laughed.
“By lying to me?””
Michael looked away.
“Your mother made me promise.””
“Stop using her name to justify what you did.””
For the first time, he looked hurt.
Then the building shook.
A loud explosion came from somewhere outside.
Everyone froze.
Robert immediately looked toward the ceiling.
“They’re here.””
Ethan moved toward the exit.
“Who?””
Robert’s face went pale.
“The Circle.””
The name no longer sounded like a rumor.
It sounded like a threat standing outside the door.
Vanessa grabbed Lily’s hand.
“We have to go.””
I looked at Robert.
“What happens now?””
He looked at me.
And for a moment, I saw something unexpected.
Fear.
“They don’t leave witnesses.””
The hallway lights went dark.
A second later, emergency alarms screamed.
Ethan opened the hidden passage again.
“Move.””
We rushed inside.
But before I entered, I looked back.
Robert was gone.
The room was empty.
Except for one thing.
On the table where the photograph had been…
There was a new note.
Written in my mother’s handwriting.
I picked it up.
May you like
Three words.
*Find your father.*
