Chapter 6 - The Father Who Was Supposed To Be Dead
The man standing outside the hidden room looked exactly like the photograph.
Older.
Tired.
But alive.
For several seconds, nobody moved.
Nobody spoke.
I stared at him, waiting for my mind to reject what my eyes were seeing.
Because this was impossible.
My father had been dead for six years.
I had attended a funeral.
I had watched my mother cry.
I had watched people lower a coffin into the ground.
I had spent years accepting that a part of my family was gone forever.
But now...
He was standing in front of me.
"Maya."
My name came out of his mouth like he had been saying it every day.
Like he had never left.
My fingers tightened around my mother's hand.
She was crying.
Not from fear.
From seeing him.
Adrien stepped forward immediately.
His expression was unreadable.
But his hand moved slightly.
Protective.
Ready.
"Daniel."
My father looked at him.
For a moment, the two men said nothing.
They looked like two people who had been carrying the same secret from opposite sides.
Then my father spoke.
"You found her."
Adrien's jaw tightened.
"I was trying to protect her."
My father laughed quietly.
A sad sound.
"You spent six years trying to protect her by keeping her in the dark."
The words hit harder than I expected.
Because I knew there was truth in them.
I looked at Adrien.
Then at my father.
"I need someone to explain what is happening."
Nobody answered.
My voice became louder.
"Now."
The room went silent.
My father looked at me.
And for the first time, I saw the emotion in his eyes.
Regret.
"I never wanted you to see me like this."
I almost couldn't believe him.
"You never wanted me to see you?"
My voice shook.
"I spent half my life thinking you were dead."
He lowered his head.
"I know."
"No."
I stepped closer.
"You don't know."
The anger I had buried for years finally came out.
"You don't know what it was like growing up wondering why my father left."
His eyes filled with pain.
"I watched my mother fall apart."
"I thought she abandoned me because she couldn't handle losing you."
"I thought you were gone."
I pointed at him.
"But you were alive."
The room stayed silent.
Then my father whispered:
"I was trying to keep you alive too."
I froze.
"What does that mean?"
He looked at Adrien.
Adrien looked away.
That was enough.
There was another secret.
Another thing everyone knew except me.
My father walked into the room.
Slowly.
Carefully.
Like he was afraid I would disappear.
"Six years ago, I discovered Victor Hale wasn't just stealing information."
He looked at the board.
"He was building something."
"What?"
"A system."
He walked toward the files.
"A network inside powerful organizations. Government. Businesses. Criminal groups."
I frowned.
"And Adrien's organization was one of them?"
Adrien answered.
"Yes."
My father nodded.
"Victor wasn't loyal to anyone. He collected secrets. He controlled people by knowing what they feared."
I looked at the photographs.
"And you found evidence."
My father nodded.
"Enough evidence to destroy him."
"Then why didn't you expose him?"
His expression changed.
"Because before I could..."
He stopped.
The pause made my stomach tighten.
"What?"
He looked at my mother.
"Someone betrayed us."
My mother closed her eyes.
I looked at Adrien.
"You?"
He immediately shook his head.
"No."
My father stepped between us.
"Not Adrien."
That surprised me.
Because after everything, I expected him to accuse him.
Instead, he defended him.
"Adrien was the only person who helped me disappear."
I stared.
"What?"
My father looked at me.
"Your death was easier to fake than mine."
The words made no sense.
Then slowly...
they did.
"You faked your death."
He nodded.
"I had to."
I felt my chest tighten.
"Why didn't you take me?"
The question came out softer.
That was the one question that mattered.
Not Victor.
Not the files.
Not the secrets.
Why didn't you take me?
My father looked destroyed.
"Because Victor knew about you."
I said nothing.
"He knew your name. Your school. Where you lived."
My mother stepped closer.
"We tried to move you."
"But?"
My father looked down.
"He found us."
A cold feeling moved through me.
"What happened?"
My mother answered.
"He came to the house."
The room became silent.
"He told us if we disappeared together, he would come after you."
I looked at her.
"So you left me."
Her face broke.
"We left you alive."
That sentence hurt.
Because I understood.
But understanding didn't erase the pain.
Before anyone could speak, the mansion alarms suddenly activated.
A sharp sound filled the room.
Adrien immediately looked toward the security monitor.
The screen turned on.
Victor Hale was standing in the main hallway.
Not alone.
Several men stood behind him.
But that wasn't what made everyone freeze.
It was what Victor was holding.
A file.
The same type of file my mother had shown me.
Victor looked directly into the camera.
Then smiled.
"Adrien."
His voice echoed through the mansion.
"I think it's time Maya learns the final part."
Adrien moved toward the door.
My father stopped him.
"No."
Adrien looked at him.
"If he has the file—"
"He wants you angry."
Victor continued speaking through the speakers.
"Six years ago, Daniel Collins believed he could expose me."
My father stared at the monitor.
Victor smiled.
"He was almost right."
I looked at my father.
"Almost?"
Victor lifted the file.
"But he never found the last page."
Nobody spoke.
The room became completely silent.
Because everyone knew.
The last page mattered.
"What is on it?" I asked.
Nobody answered.
Victor laughed softly.
"Ask your father."
My father looked away.
And that scared me.
Because there was something he still hadn't told me.
Something worse than disappearing.
Something worse than lying.
I walked toward him.
"What is on the last page?"
He didn't answer.
"Maya..."
"No."
My voice cracked.
"Not again."
I looked at everyone.
"Not another secret."
My father closed his eyes.
Then slowly reached into his jacket.
He pulled out a folded piece of paper.
My heart stopped.
Because I recognized it.
It was old.
Damaged.
And on the corner was my mother's handwriting.
My father looked at me.
"I kept this because I was afraid you would hate me if you knew the truth."
I unfolded it.
There was only one sentence written inside.
One sentence that made my entire body go cold.
Because it wasn't a message from my mother.
It was a warning from someone else.
May you like
And it began with:
"Maya, if you are reading this, it means Adrien Moretti was the reason your father had to disappear..."
