Chapter 4 - The Man Who Was Supposed To Be Dead
"Daniel."
The name left my mother's mouth like a confession.
Not a greeting.
Not a surprise.
A confession.
I stared at the open front door.
The shadow behind the glass did not move.
For several seconds, I wondered if I had heard correctly.
Daniel.
The name was familiar.
Too familiar.
Because it was the name my mother had whispered when she thought I was asleep.
The name she always stopped herself from saying.
The name connected to the part of my life she refused to explain.
"Who is Daniel?"
My voice was barely above a whisper.
Nobody answered.
I looked at my mother.
Her face had lost all color.
She looked older in that moment.
Not because of her age.
Because she was carrying years of secrets.
The chairman stepped beside me.
"Olivia, there is something you need to know."
I looked at him.
"Everyone keeps saying that."
My fingers tightened around my daughter's blanket.
"Everyone keeps telling me there is something I need to know, but nobody tells me anything until my entire life falls apart."
The chairman lowered his eyes.
He didn't argue.
Because he knew I was right.
Behind us, Ethan suddenly spoke.
"Daniel isn't supposed to be here."
Everyone turned.
The way he said it was strange.
Not confusion.
Fear.
I looked at him.
"You know him too?"
Ethan didn't answer.
That was enough.
My entire body went cold.
How many people had been living inside a truth I wasn't allowed to enter?
The chairman looked at Ethan.
"You knew he was alive?"
Ethan swallowed.
"I thought he was gone."
"Gone?"
The chairman's voice became sharper.
"That's the word you're using?"
Ethan stepped back.
"I didn't have anything to do with this."
Nobody believed him.
Not even Vanessa.
She slowly moved away from him.
I watched her face.
A few minutes ago, she had been standing beside him like she had already won.
Now she looked like she was realizing she had chosen the wrong side.
The front door finally opened.
A man stepped outside.
He looked older than I expected.
Around sixty.
His hair was gray.
His face carried years of exhaustion.
But his eyes...
His eyes were the same eyes I had seen in old photographs.
My breath stopped.
Because even though I had never met him...
I recognized him.
My mother covered her mouth.
"Daniel..."
The man looked at her.
Then at me.
Then at the baby in my arms.
His eyes filled with tears.
"Olivia."
I couldn't move.
I couldn't speak.
Because there was something terrifying about hearing your own name from someone who was never supposed to know you.
The chairman stepped forward.
"You disappeared."
Daniel looked at him.
"I had to."
"Three years ago, everyone believed you were dead."
"I needed them to believe that."
My heart started beating faster.
Them.
Who was them?
I looked at my mother.
She was crying silently.
"Mom."
She looked at me.
"Tell me the truth."
She closed her eyes.
"I wanted to."
"When?"
Her silence hurt.
"When I was a child?"
She shook her head.
"When you got married?"
Another shake.
"When Ethan started lying to me?"
My mother looked down.
"I was afraid."
I laughed softly.
Not because it was funny.
Because I didn't know what else to do.
Everyone was afraid.
My father.
My mother.
The chairman.
Even Daniel.
But nobody seemed afraid of losing me.
They were afraid of what would happen if I knew.
Daniel walked closer.
Slowly.
Carefully.
Like he was approaching someone who might disappear.
"I know you probably hate me."
I stared at him.
"I don't know you."
The words hurt him.
I saw it.
But I needed to say them.
"I spent my entire life wondering why my father didn't want me."
His eyes filled with pain.
"I never stopped wanting you."
"Then why weren't you there?"
He looked down.
"Because being near you would have put you in danger."
I shook my head.
"Everyone says they were protecting me."
I looked around.
"Everyone."
My voice cracked.
"But I was the one who had to live with the consequences."
Nobody spoke.
Daniel nodded slowly.
"You are right."
That surprised me.
He didn't defend himself.
He didn't make excuses.
"I failed you."
A tear rolled down his cheek.
"And I will spend the rest of my life accepting that."
The baby moved in my arms.
Daniel looked at her.
"What is her name?"
I hesitated.
"Emma."
He smiled sadly.
"Beautiful name."
Then his expression changed.
"You need to leave this house."
The sudden change shocked me.
"What?"
Daniel looked at Ethan.
"This was never just about money."
Ethan immediately became defensive.
"Don't involve me in your family problems."
Daniel looked at him.
"You were never a family problem."
The silence became heavy.
"You were a plan."
Ethan froze.
I felt my stomach drop.
"What does that mean?"
Daniel looked at me.
"He didn't meet you by accident."
I looked at Ethan.
"No."
Ethan shook his head.
"Don't listen to him."
Daniel continued.
"The first time Ethan saw your name, he knew exactly who you were."
My chest tightened.
"Ethan?"
He looked at me.
The answer was already on his face.
"Tell her."
Ethan stayed silent.
"Tell her why you searched for my family before we met."
His jaw clenched.
I remembered the message.
Once I gain her trust, everything will be easier.
But I still wanted to hear him say it.
"Why?"
My voice trembled.
"Why did you marry me?"
Ethan looked away.
And that hurt more than anything.
Because if he had denied it...
Maybe there would have been something left.
But he didn't.
Daniel stepped closer.
"He wasn't trying to build a life with you."
He looked at the mansion.
"He was trying to gain access."
"Access to what?"
Nobody answered.
The chairman slowly took out another document.
This time, his expression was different.
Serious.
"Olivia, your father left something else."
I looked at the paper.
"What?"
The chairman handed it to me.
It was a company document.
A transfer agreement.
My name was written at the top.
But below it was something that made my hands shake.
A percentage.
A controlling percentage.
I looked up.
"What is this?"
Daniel answered.
"Your father's company."
I stared at him.
"No."
He nodded.
"Half of it was always yours."
The world seemed to stop.
The man I married.
The house I lived in.
The life I thought I had.
Everything suddenly looked like a carefully arranged picture.
And I was the only person who didn't know the truth.
Ethan stepped forward.
"You don't understand."
I looked at him.
"No."
My voice was calm.
"I think I finally do."
His face changed.
For the first time, he looked like he was losing control.
The chairman's phone suddenly rang.
Everyone looked at him.
He answered.
His expression changed within seconds.
"What happened?"
A pause.
Then:
"Are you sure?"
He looked directly at me.
And I knew something was wrong.
"What is it?"
The chairman slowly lowered the phone.
"Someone broke into your father's private archive."
Daniel's face turned pale.
"No..."
The chairman looked at him.
"They found the original files."
I felt a chill.
"What files?"
Daniel looked at me.
The fear in his eyes returned.
"The files that prove who was behind everything."
Before anyone could say another word, Daniel's phone suddenly received a message.
He looked down.
May you like
Then his entire expression changed.
Because the message came from a number that was supposed to belong to someone who had been dead for years.
