Chapter 6 - The Man Hidden Beneath The House
"Your father."
My mother's voice was barely a whisper.
But it was loud enough to destroy everything I thought I knew.
I stared at her.
"What did you say?"
Claire looked at the basement door.
Then at me.
"Your father is alive."
For a moment, nobody moved.
Nobody spoke.
Even Adrian looked shocked.
And that was the first time I realized something terrifying.
Adrian Vale didn't know everything.
He had secrets.
But he had also been searching for answers.
Just like me.
"You told me he died."
My voice sounded empty.
My mother looked like she wanted to explain.
"I thought he did."
I laughed.
Not because it was funny.
Because nothing made sense anymore.
"You thought?"
She stepped toward me.
"Selena, listen to me."
"No."
I backed away.
"You don't get to say that anymore."
The pain on her face was real.
But I didn't know if I could trust real emotions anymore.
Everyone had been real.
Everyone had still lied.
Adrian moved closer.
"Claire."
My mother looked at him.
"He cannot know she's here."
Adrian's expression hardened.
"Who?"
She looked at the basement door.
And for the first time since I met her, I saw my mother afraid.
"Daniel."
The name meant nothing to me.
But it meant something to Adrian.
His face changed.
"Daniel Hart?"
My mother's eyes filled with tears.
"Yes."
I looked between them.
"Who is Daniel Hart?"
Nobody answered immediately.
That silence was becoming unbearable.
Richard finally spoke.
"Your father."
I felt like the floor disappeared beneath me.
"My father was Daniel Hart?"
Claire nodded slowly.
"He wasn't supposed to be found."
I looked at the locked basement door.
"He's been here?"
My mother didn't answer.
She didn't have to.
The sound behind the door came again.
A soft movement.
Someone walking.
Someone waiting.
Adrian stepped in front of me.
"No matter what happens, stay behind me."
I almost laughed.
"You're still protecting me?"
His eyes met mine.
"Yes."
"Even after hiding things from me?"
His jaw tightened.
"Yes."
I hated that answer.
Because I believed him.
That was the problem.
The basement door slowly opened.
Not all the way.
Just enough for darkness to appear.
Then a voice came from inside.
"Claire."
My mother's entire body froze.
"Daniel."
The voice continued.
"Why did you bring her here?"
I felt my heart stop.
Her.
Me.
Not Adrian.
Not Richard.
Me.
Adrian raised his weapon.
"Show yourself."
A quiet laugh came from the basement.
A tired laugh.
Not evil.
Not threatening.
Just broken.
"Still protecting her after all these years, Adrian?"
Adrian went completely still.
The voice continued.
"You really never told her."
My hands clenched.
"Told me what?"
Silence.
Then:
"The truth about why your mother disappeared."
I looked at Claire.
She looked away.
That hurt more than anything.
Because it confirmed there was another secret.
Another piece of my life that everyone owned except me.
I pushed past Adrian.
"Selena."
His voice warned me.
But I didn't stop.
I stood near the basement door.
"Come out."
My father's voice became quieter.
"You shouldn't have come here."
"I spent my entire life believing you were dead."
A pause.
"Do you think I wanted that?"
The anger inside me exploded.
"Then why did you leave me?"
The basement became silent.
Then I heard footsteps.
Slow.
Heavy.
Someone was coming closer.
A man appeared in the darkness.
Older.
Tired.
But the eyes were familiar.
Too familiar.
Because I had seen them every day.
In the mirror.
My father.
Daniel Hart.
Alive.
Standing in front of me.
I couldn't speak.
Neither could he.
For twenty years, I had imagined this moment.
I imagined anger.
I imagined questions.
I imagined screaming.
But seeing him alive erased every plan I had ever made.
All I could say was:
"Why?"
His face broke.
Not dramatically.
Quietly.
Like someone who had carried pain for too long.
"Because if I stayed..."
He looked at Claire.
"They would have killed you."
I looked at Adrian.
Then Richard.
Then back at him.
"Who?"
Daniel didn't answer.
Instead, he looked toward Adrian.
"You never told her about the Vale connection."
Adrian's expression darkened.
"Don't."
My father smiled sadly.
"You still think you can protect her from everything."
The tension in the room changed.
Because this wasn't just a family secret.
This involved Adrian.
"What connection?"
Daniel looked at me.
"Your father and Adrian's father were partners."
I stared at Adrian.
His face remained still.
But his silence confirmed it.
"My father worked with your family?"
"Yes."
"And you knew?"
Adrian looked away.
"Yes."
The betrayal felt worse than before.
"How long?"
"Since the beginning."
My eyes burned.
"The beginning of what?"
Adrian finally answered.
"The beginning of why your mother disappeared."
I looked at him.
"Explain."
He took a breath.
"My father discovered that someone inside his organization was selling information."
Richard nodded.
"The same person who caused the attack twenty years ago."
Daniel continued.
"The attack that was supposed to kill me."
My voice became quieter.
"But didn't."
Daniel looked at me.
"No."
He looked toward the basement.
"Because someone saved me."
"Who?"
Nobody answered.
Then Daniel reached behind him.
He pulled out a small metal box.
Old.
Rusty.
The same type of box my father used to keep important things in.
He placed it on the floor.
"This is what they wanted."
Adrian stared at it.
"What is inside?"
Daniel looked at me.
"The reason everyone has been lying to you."
My fingers moved toward the box.
But before I touched it, Adrian stopped me.
"Wait."
I looked at him.
"Why?"
His face was serious.
"Because if we open this..."
A sound interrupted him.
A phone vibrating.
Not mine.
Not Adrian's.
My mother's.
Claire looked at the screen.
Her face turned white.
"What?"
I stepped closer.
"Who is it?"
She didn't answer.
She just handed me the phone.
An unknown number.
One message.
A photo.
My blood froze.
The picture showed us standing in the basement.
Taken from above.
Someone was watching us.
The message underneath said:
You found Daniel. Now find the person who ordered him to disappear.
I looked at Adrian.
He was staring at the photo.
Not the message.
The background.
"Adrian?"
His face changed.
Because he recognized something behind us.
A person reflected in the basement mirror.
A person who was not in the room.
Adrian whispered:
"No..."
May you like
I turned toward the mirror.
And the reflection moved before we did.
