Chapter 4 - The Man Who Was Supposed To Be Dead
The photograph fell from Leandro's hand.
For several seconds, nobody moved.
Nobody spoke.
The room that had already been full of secrets suddenly felt smaller.
Leandro stared at the picture on the desk.
His father.
Standing beside Camila.
Smiling.
Alive.
But that was impossible.
His father, Alejandro, had died three years ago.
Leandro had stood beside his hospital bed.
He had watched doctors cover his body.
He had attended the funeral.
He had buried him.
Or at least...
he thought he had.
"Explain this."
Leandro's voice was low.
Dangerously calm.
Richard Vale looked at him without fear.
That made Leandro even more suspicious.
Because everyone else in the mansion had been afraid of him returning.
Richard was not.
He looked like he had been waiting for this moment.
Victoria stepped forward.
"Leandro, you need to listen before you react."
He turned toward his mother.
"Before I react?"
His eyes moved between Victoria and Richard.
"You lied to me about my father's death."
Victoria's face changed.
"We didn't have a choice."
Leandro laughed quietly.
A cold laugh.
"Everyone keeps saying that."
He picked up the photograph.
"Nobody ever explains what the choice was."
Richard walked slowly into the office.
"You deserve the truth."
Leandro looked at him.
"Then tell me."
Richard glanced at the USB drive on the desk.
"Not here."
Leandro immediately noticed.
The hesitation.
The fear.
Everyone wanted to control when and how he learned the truth.
But that time was over.
"No."
Richard stopped.
Leandro held the photograph tightly.
"I spent eight months away from home believing my wife was happy."
His voice became heavier.
"I came back and found her carrying garbage outside."
Silence.
"I found out she was being treated like a servant."
He looked at Victoria.
"And now I find out my dead father left secrets behind."
Nobody answered.
Leandro stepped closer.
"So I am done waiting for explanations."
Richard studied him.
Then slowly nodded.
"Your father knew this day would come."
Leandro froze.
"What does that mean?"
Richard looked at the photograph.
"He knew you would eventually discover what happened to Camila."
The mention of her name changed everything.
Leandro immediately thought of her.
Her tired eyes.
Her fear.
The way she begged him not to investigate.
Because she already knew.
She knew the truth was dangerous.
"What did Camila find?"
Richard remained silent.
Leandro's patience disappeared.
"What did she find?"
Victoria finally spoke.
"Documents."
He turned toward her.
"What documents?"
"About the company."
"My company?"
Victoria looked down.
"No."
That answer shocked him.
"No?"
She looked at him.
"The company was never only yours."
Leandro frowned.
"What are you talking about?"
Richard walked toward the desk.
"Your father built the company with someone else."
"Who?"
Richard looked at Victoria.
Then back at Leandro.
"Camila's father."
The room went silent.
Leandro felt like the ground moved beneath him.
"My wife's father?"
Richard nodded.
"They were partners."
Leandro shook his head.
"No."
He searched his memory.
Camila had never talked about her father.
Not much.
Whenever he asked, she changed the subject.
He thought it was because of sadness.
Now he wondered if it was because of fear.
"Why didn't she tell me?"
Richard answered quietly.
"Because she was trying to protect you."
Leandro looked at him.
"Protect me from what?"
Richard didn't respond immediately.
Instead, he opened a drawer.
Inside were several files.
He pulled out one.
Then placed it in front of Leandro.
"Read this."
Leandro opened it.
The first page contained financial records.
The second contained signatures.
The third contained something that made his blood run cold.
A transfer agreement.
His mother's name.
His uncle's name.
And a large amount of money.
Taken from the company.
Years ago.
Leandro turned the page.
More transactions.
More hidden accounts.
More missing money.
His family had been stealing.
For years.
"This can't be real."
Richard looked at him.
"It is."
Leandro looked up.
"Why didn't my father stop them?"
Richard's expression changed.
"Because he tried."
The answer came quickly.
Too quickly.
"What happened?"
Richard looked toward the window.
"Your father discovered everything."
"And?"
"He confronted them."
Leandro waited.
Richard continued.
"And three days later, he died."
The words hit harder than expected.
Leandro stepped back.
"You think they killed him?"
Nobody answered.
But nobody denied it.
His phone suddenly vibrated.
Everyone looked at it.
A message appeared.
From Camila.
Leandro opened it immediately.
Only one sentence.
"Please come to the old garden. Alone."
His heart tightened.
Camila never sent messages like that.
Not when he was in the house.
Not when she was afraid.
He looked at the others.
"I need to talk to my wife."
Victoria moved.
"Leandro, wait."
He stopped.
"Why?"
Her expression was nervous.
"Because if Camila told you everything..."
She paused.
"She might not survive what happens next."
The room became silent.
Leandro stared at his mother.
"What does that mean?"
Victoria looked away.
For the first time, she looked guilty.
Not angry.
Not arrogant.
Guilty.
Leandro left without another word.
The old garden was behind the mansion.
A place Camila loved.
A place where they had spent their first evening together after buying the house.
But tonight it felt different.
Dark.
Empty.
He found Camila standing near the fountain.
She was still wearing the same simple clothes.
The same clothes she had worn while carrying garbage.
When she saw him, her eyes filled with sadness.
"You shouldn't have found out this way."
Leandro walked toward her.
"Tell me the truth."
She looked down.
"I wanted to."
"Then why didn't you?"
Her hands shook.
"Because your family knows how to destroy people."
Leandro stepped closer.
"Who hurt you?"
She didn't answer.
"Camila."
She closed her eyes.
Then whispered:
"Your father wasn't the only person who tried to expose them."
Leandro waited.
"My father did too."
The pieces began connecting.
Slowly.
Painfully.
"Why didn't you tell me your father was my father's partner?"
"Because after my father died, your family took everything."
Leandro stared.
"What?"
Camila looked at him.
"My father left evidence."
"What evidence?"
"A recording."
The word changed the atmosphere.
"A recording of what?"
Camila looked toward the mansion.
"Everything."
Leandro followed her eyes.
"What happened to it?"
She swallowed.
"They searched my house after my father died."
"Did they find it?"
She shook her head.
"No."
"Where is it?"
Camila looked at him.
For the first time since he returned, he saw something different in her expression.
Not fear.
Determination.
"I hid it."
Leandro took a breath.
"Where?"
She reached into her pocket.
And pulled out a small key.
An old metal key.
"I kept it in the only place they would never look."
Leandro stared at it.
"Where?"
Camila looked toward the mansion.
Toward the locked room.
"The room your father told me never to open."
A sound came from behind them.
A branch breaking.
Both of them turned.
Someone was standing near the trees.
Watching.
Camila's face turned pale.
Because she recognized the person.
"Leandro..."
Her voice shook.
"That person was supposed to be dead."
The figure stepped forward from the darkness.
May you like
And spoke one name.
"Camila."
