Chapter 7 - The Signature That Changed Everything
The message stayed on my screen.
The person who signed was your mother.
I read it again.
Then again.
As if the words would rearrange themselves into something that made sense.
They didn’t.
I slowly looked up.
My mother wasn’t there.
And somehow, that hurt more.
Because my father was standing in front of me.
He had been caught.
He knew it.
But my mother had disappeared before I could ask her why.
“Dad.”
My voice was quiet.
Too quiet.
“Tell me she didn’t.”
My father looked at the floor.
That was enough.
I felt something inside me collapse.
Not because I was surprised.
Because I wasn’t.
Deep down, I think I had always known there were things my parents hid from me.
But I never imagined they were hiding my own life.
My own work.
My own future.
“Why would she sign it?”
My father didn’t answer.
Victoria did.
“Because she believed she was helping him.”
I looked at her.
“What does that mean?”
She sighed.
“Your mother was the one who handled the legal paperwork in your family.”
I nodded slowly.
That was true.
My mother always managed everything.
School forms.
Contracts.
Appointments.
She liked control just as much as my father did.
“She told herself it was temporary,” Victoria continued.
“Temporary?”
I almost laughed.
“Six years?”
Victoria looked down.
“She thought your father would eventually tell you.”
I stared at her.
“And he didn’t.”
No one corrected me.
My father sat back down.
The powerful businessman from earlier was gone.
The man sitting there looked defeated.
“I never planned for it to last this long.”
I looked at him.
“Then why did it?”
His silence answered.
Because admitting the truth would have meant admitting he was wrong.
And my father had spent his entire life avoiding those words.
I turned toward Connor.
“I need air.”
He nodded immediately.
We walked away from the table.
The restaurant doors opened.
Cold Chicago air hit my face.
For a moment, I just stood there.
The city moved around me.
Cars.
People.
Lights.
Everything normal.
Except my life wasn’t.
Connor stood nearby.
“You okay?”
I almost said yes.
It was automatic.
A habit.
But I stopped.
“No.”
He nodded.
“Fair answer.”
I looked at him.
“Why are you helping me?”
He was quiet for a moment.
Then smiled slightly.
“Because tonight you walked into this restaurant thinking you were a failure.”
He looked back inside.
“And I watched someone try to prove it.”
I lowered my eyes.
“My parents thought they were teaching me.”
“No.”
Connor shook his head.
“They were trying to convince you.”
“Of what?”
“That you were exactly what they said you were.”
The words stayed with me.
Because they were true.
My parents didn’t just criticize me.
They created a version of me.
A version I spent years trying to escape.
My phone buzzed.
Another message.
Evelyn.
I opened it.
Amber, I need you to see the original files before your parents destroy them.
Attached was a location.
A warehouse address.
My heart started racing.
Connor saw my expression.
“What happened?”
I showed him.
He read the message.
Then looked back inside the restaurant.
“Your father knows about this?”
“I think so.”
Connor looked concerned.
“You shouldn’t go alone.”
I nodded.
“I won’t.”
Because for the first time in my life, I wasn’t walking into something alone.
I went back inside.
My father stood when he saw me.
“Amber.”
I held up my phone.
“Did you know Evelyn found the warehouse?”
His face changed.
That was all I needed.
“You did.”
“Amber, listen.”
“No.”
My voice was stronger now.
“You don’t get to explain things after hiding them for years.”
My father looked hurt.
Good.
I hated that part of me thought that.
But I did.
Because I had spent years carrying pain he created.
Now he needed to feel a little of it.
“What’s inside?”
He didn’t answer.
Victoria stepped forward.
“Everything.”
I looked at her.
“Everything?”
She nodded.
“Every original drawing. Every contract. Every letter.”
My father whispered:
“Amber.”
I looked at him.
“Is there anything else?”
He didn’t answer.
And then I realized.
There was.
“There is something else.”
My father closed his eyes.
Victoria looked away.
That was when I knew.
“What?”
My father spoke slowly.
“Your mother didn’t just sign the contract.”
I waited.
“She changed one part.”
My stomach tightened.
“What part?”
He looked at me.
“The ownership clause.”
The room felt colder.
“What does that mean?”
My father swallowed.
“It means your artwork legally belonged to my company.”
I stared at him.
“But I created it.”
“Yes.”
“Then how?”
He looked away.
“Because the contract classified your work as family-supported assets.”
The words sounded disgusting.
Like my entire identity had been reduced to paperwork.
“My family-supported assets?”
I repeated it.
My father looked ashamed.
“I paid for your education.”
I laughed.
A painful laugh.
“So that means you owned me?”
“No.”
“But you owned what I created.”
He had no answer.
Again.
My phone buzzed.
Another message.
This time from Evelyn.
The message contained a photo.
A warehouse door.
And a warning.
They know you’re coming.
I showed Victoria.
Her face changed instantly.
“What?”
She looked at the photo.
Then at my father.
“Who else knows?”
My father didn’t answer.
But his phone rang.
The sound cut through the restaurant.
Everyone looked over.
He stared at the screen.
The name appearing there made Victoria step back.
“No…”
I looked at her.
“Who is it?”
She didn’t answer.
My father answered the call.
His face changed after only three seconds.
Then he whispered:
“You found her.”
My heart stopped.
Because he wasn’t talking about Evelyn.
He was looking directly at me.
The call ended.
My father slowly lowered the phone.
And then he said the one thing I never expected to hear.
“Amber, we need to leave before they get here.”
I froze.
“Who?”
My father looked toward the restaurant entrance.
May you like
The doors opened.
And the person standing there was someone I thought I would never see again.
