Chapter 4 - The Truth Adrian Hid From Me
The first thing Adrian said after the video ended was:
"Your father didn't disappear."
I stared at him.
The room felt smaller.
The air felt heavier.
Because for years, I had carried one painful memory.
My father leaving.
My mother crying.
Everyone telling me there were things I was too young to understand.
But now...
Everything I believed was falling apart.
"You knew."
Adrian looked at me.
"I knew something."
"That's not an answer."
His jaw tightened.
"I knew your father was connected to mine."
I stepped back.
"And you never told me?"
"I didn't know how."
I laughed.
Not because it was funny.
Because I couldn't believe those words were coming from him.
"You always knew how to protect me."
My voice shook.
"You knew how to hide things from me."
Adrian looked hurt.
But he didn't argue.
Because he knew I was right.
Victor stood near the window, watching us.
For the first time since he entered my apartment, he looked less like a warning.
And more like someone carrying guilt.
"Adrian needs to tell you everything."
I looked at him.
"Then why isn't he?"
Victor didn't answer.
Because Adrian was the one who needed to.
Adrian walked toward the table.
He picked up the photograph of my younger self.
The one his father had kept.
"The night my father disappeared..."
He stopped.
Then looked at me.
"Your father was there."
My heart sank.
"What?"
"My father and Daniel Carter were working together."
"Working on what?"
Adrian hesitated.
That hesitation hurt more than the answer.
"An investigation."
"Into what?"
"The people who controlled certain businesses, political connections, and illegal operations."
I stared at him.
"You mean criminals."
Adrian didn't deny it.
"My father wanted to expose them."
"And my father helped him?"
"Yes."
I looked at the photograph again.
A younger version of myself.
A child who had no idea she was connected to any of this.
"Then why did my father leave?"
Adrian looked away.
"Because someone found out."
The words were quiet.
But they carried fear.
"Who?"
Nobody answered.
I looked between Adrian and Victor.
"Who found out?"
Victor finally spoke.
"The person who destroyed both our families."
The room went silent.
I wanted a name.
I wanted an explanation.
I wanted someone to tell me this was all a misunderstanding.
But deep down...
I already knew.
My life had never been as simple as I thought.
The divorce.
The marriage.
Julian.
The Moretti family.
My father's disappearance.
They weren't separate events.
They were connected.
"Why me?"
The question escaped before I could stop it.
Adrian looked at me.
"What?"
"Why did your father write my name?"
His expression changed.
Because he had asked himself the same thing.
"I don't know."
"But you have a theory."
He didn't answer.
That was the answer.
I walked away from him.
I needed space.
I needed air.
I needed to understand how the man I trusted most could hold pieces of my past that even I didn't know existed.
My phone was still in my hand.
The last call from my mother.
Fifteen years.
Fifteen years believing she abandoned me.
Fifteen years believing my father walked away.
But maybe...
Maybe they had both been running.
And maybe they had been running because of the same thing.
A knock came from the hallway.
Everyone froze.
Adrian immediately turned.
"Nobody move."
His hand went inside his jacket.
Victor whispered:
"They found us."
My stomach dropped.
Another knock.
Slow.
Calm.
Not someone trying to break in.
Someone who knew they would be invited.
Adrian looked at the door.
Then at me.
"Stay behind me."
The handle didn't move.
No one entered.
Then a voice came from outside.
"Adrian."
His face changed.
Not fear.
Recognition.
"Open the door."
Victor's expression became pale.
"No."
Adrian looked at him.
"Who is it?"
Victor didn't answer.
The voice came again.
This time louder.
"Adrian Moretti."
A pause.
"Your brother is dead because of what you did."
I felt Adrian freeze.
Brother?
I looked at him.
"You have a brother?"
He didn't respond.
Because the door opened.
Not forced.
Not broken.
Opened.
A man stood outside.
Early thirties.
Dark hair.
Cold eyes.
And the same Moretti features Adrian had.
He looked directly at Adrian.
Then at me.
"Finally."
His voice was calm.
"She knows."
Adrian stepped forward.
"What are you doing here?"
The man smiled.
"I came to tell Miranda the truth."
I felt my chest tighten.
"Who are you?"
The man looked at Adrian.
Then back at me.
"My name is Luca Moretti."
The room went silent.
Adrian's expression changed completely.
Because Luca wasn't supposed to exist.
"I thought you were dead."
Luca smiled.
"That's what everyone was supposed to believe."
Nobody moved.
Nobody spoke.
Then Luca looked at the envelope on the table.
The one with my name.
And his expression became serious.
"You opened it."
I shook my head.
"No."
"Good."
He stepped inside.
Because he knew something none of us knew.
"Your father left that message for one reason."
I stared at him.
"What reason?"
Luca looked at Adrian.
Then at me.
"To warn you about the person standing closest to you."
My heart stopped.
Slowly...
I turned toward Adrian.
And Luca placed a small black folder on the table.
A folder with my father's handwriting on the front.
May you like
One sentence.
"Evidence against Adrian Moretti."
