Chapter 7 - The Father Who Never Died
The door unlocked itself.
Nobody moved.
For several seconds, we only stared at it.
Because the entire night had been built on impossible things.
A dead man appearing on a screen.
A mother who was never gone.
A family secret hidden for decades.
And now a door opening without anyone touching it.
Renzo was the first to react.
He stepped in front of me.
Not dramatically.
Not to show power.
Automatically.
Like protecting people was something he had done his entire life.
My mother noticed.
And for a moment, her expression softened.
"You still do that."
Renzo looked at her.
"Do what?"
"Protect people before protecting yourself."
He didn't answer.
Because he knew she was right.
The door opened slowly.
Beyond it was a dark hallway.
The building should have been empty.
But a light was turning on.
One by one.
Leading somewhere.
A path.
Almost like someone wanted us to follow.
Renzo looked at his security team through his phone.
Still no signal.
"This building is compromised."
I looked at the screens behind us.
The files were still open.
The photograph of my father remained visible.
Victor Vance.
The man I was told had died before I knew him.
The man who was apparently alive.
"Who is he?"
I whispered.
My mother looked at the picture.
For the first time since she returned, she looked afraid.
Not of Conrad.
Not of the people chasing her.
Of the memory itself.
"Your father was the reason everything started."
I turned toward her.
"What does that mean?"
She looked at Renzo.
"I think it's time he knows everything."
Renzo's expression changed.
"You mean there is more?"
My mother nodded.
"There is always more when Conrad is involved."
We walked down the hallway.
Every step felt heavier.
The building was silent.
Too silent.
No employees.
No security.
No sound except our footsteps.
The further we went, the more uncomfortable I became.
Because I recognized the place.
Not the building.
The feeling.
The same feeling I had when I was young.
The feeling that adults knew something terrible but refused to tell me.
At the end of the hallway was another room.
My mother stopped.
She didn't open the door.
She just stood there.
"What's inside?"
I asked.
She looked at me.
"Your past."
That answer should not have frightened me.
But it did.
Renzo opened the door.
Inside was a private office.
Old.
Dusty.
Untouched.
On the desk were photographs.
Documents.
And one object that immediately caught my attention.
A small silver necklace.
My necklace.
The one my mother gave me before she disappeared.
I walked toward it slowly.
I touched it.
And suddenly I remembered something.
Not a memory.
A feeling.
A night.
A car.
My mother crying.
Someone shouting.
My father holding my hand.
I pulled away.
"What is happening?"
My mother rushed toward me.
"Leora."
"I remember something."
Her face changed.
"What?"
"I remember him."
The room went silent.
"Your father?"
I nodded.
The memories were broken.
Pieces.
A man's voice.
A hand holding mine.
A promise.
"I remember him saying he would come back."
My mother covered her mouth.
Because she knew.
She knew I wasn't supposed to remember.
Renzo looked between us.
"What did Conrad do?"
My mother walked to the desk.
She opened a drawer.
Inside was another folder.
She handed it to Renzo.
"This is what Victor discovered."
Renzo opened it.
The first page was a photograph.
A group of businessmen.
Conrad.
Several executives.
And Victor.
Standing beside them.
But the date was wrong.
Because Victor was supposed to have disappeared before this picture was taken.
Renzo looked confused.
"Why was my father here?"
My mother answered quietly.
"Because your father and mine were working together."
I stared.
"Our fathers knew each other?"
"Yes."
She looked at me.
"They were trying to expose Conrad."
Renzo turned the page.
Then another.
Then another.
His expression became darker.
"What is this?"
"Evidence."
"Of what?"
My mother looked at him.
"That Conrad didn't just steal money."
A pause.
"He stole identities."
I felt cold.
"What does that mean?"
She looked at me.
"It means people weren't only removed from businesses."
She pointed at the documents.
"They were removed from records."
Renzo looked at me.
Understanding appeared on his face.
"Leora."
I knew what he was thinking.
The same thing I was.
My identity.
My records.
My entire life.
My mother continued.
"Your father discovered Conrad was using people who didn't exist."
"Fake companies."
"Fake names."
"Fake owners."
"And when Victor found out..."
She stopped.
Renzo finished the sentence.
"He disappeared."
My mother nodded.
The room became quiet.
Then something happened.
The old office phone rang.
Everyone froze.
Because the building had no power.
The phone should not have worked.
Renzo slowly picked it up.
Nobody breathed.
"Hello?"
Silence.
Then his face changed.
I had never seen that expression before.
Not anger.
Not fear.
Recognition.
"Who is this?"
A pause.
Then Renzo's hand tightened around the phone.
"My father?"
My heart stopped.
Everyone looked at him.
Renzo listened.
Then slowly handed the phone to me.
I looked at him.
"Why?"
His voice was quiet.
"Because he asked for you."
I stared at the phone.
My entire body refused to move.
My father.
The man who was dead.
The man whose face I barely remembered.
Was waiting on the other end.
I took the phone.
"Hello?"
For several seconds, there was only silence.
Then a man's voice answered.
Older.
Tired.
But familiar.
"Leora."
I closed my eyes.
Because somehow, I knew.
Even before he spoke again.
"You're finally old enough to know why I left."
Tears filled my eyes.
"Why did you abandon us?"
The silence afterward hurt.
Then he answered.
"I didn't abandon you."
A pause.
"I was running from the person who wanted you to inherit nothing."
I looked at my mother.
Then at Renzo.
"Who?"
My father's voice became quieter.
"The same person who has been watching you tonight."
I froze.
"What?"
A sound came from the other side.
A door opening.
Then my father whispered:
"Leora, don't turn around."
My blood went cold.
May you like
Because behind me...
someone had just entered the office.
