Chapter 3 - The Letter My Mother Left Behind
The envelope in my hand felt heavier than it should have.
Not because of the paper inside.
Because of the name written on the back.
The name of the person who had opened my mother's final letter before I ever had the chance.
I stared at the handwriting.
My fingers trembled.
I knew that handwriting better than anyone.
My mother used to write me small notes when I was younger.
Notes hidden inside my lunch.
Notes left beside my bed when I was sick.
Notes telling me that no matter what happened, I would always have someone who believed in me.
But this note was different.
Because my mother had been dead for ten years.
And somehow...
Her last message had found me on the night my husband destroyed my marriage.
I slowly turned around.
The ballroom behind me was filled with hundreds of faces.
People who were no longer watching a celebration.
They were watching a confession.
But the person I expected to see wasn't there.
Nobody stood directly behind me.
I looked back at the envelope.
Then at Damien.
His face was pale.
"You knew about this."
My voice was barely above a whisper.
Damien immediately shook his head.
"No."
The answer came too quickly.
Too desperately.
Adrian noticed it.
"You didn't even ask what was inside."
Damien froze.
A silence fell between us.
Because my brother was right.
Damien didn't ask what my mother wrote.
He didn't ask why her letter was here.
He didn't ask who opened it.
He reacted like someone who already knew.
The stranger with the briefcase stepped closer.
"Damien Cole has been hiding information from you for years, Isabelle."
I looked at him.
"Who are you?"
He reached into his pocket and handed me a business card.
"Nathan Reed."
I read the name.
It meant nothing to me.
But Damien recognized it.
His jaw tightened.
"You're supposed to be retired."
Nathan looked at him calmly.
"And you're supposed to be honest with your wife."
The guests whispered again.
I hated that my entire life was becoming a performance in front of strangers.
But I couldn't leave.
Not anymore.
Too many secrets had been opened.
Adrian gently took the envelope from my hand.
"Let's go somewhere private."
I looked at him.
"No."
Everyone turned.
Including my brothers.
I held his gaze.
"No more hiding things from me."
The words surprised even me.
For years, I had been the person everyone wanted to protect.
The person they kept away from painful truths.
But tonight...
That protection had become another kind of lie.
"I want to know everything."
Adrian looked at Marcus and Julian.
Neither of them argued.
Because they knew I was right.
Nathan picked up the documents from the table.
"We should leave before Damien tries to control the situation again."
Damien laughed.
A cold, bitter sound.
"You think you can just walk away and ruin my reputation?"
Adrian looked at him.
"Your reputation was ruined the moment you forgot your wife was a person."
Damien's expression hardened.
"You have no idea what you're dealing with."
Julian stepped forward.
"Actually, we do."
He looked at Sophia.
"And so does she."
Everyone looked at her.
Sophia suddenly looked uncomfortable.
"What does that mean?"
Marcus opened another folder.
"You should ask Damien why he never told you about the first woman."
Sophia's face changed.
"What first woman?"
Damien immediately interrupted.
"Enough."
But it was too late.
The damage had already been done.
I looked at Sophia.
She looked at Damien.
And for the first time, I realized something.
She wasn't standing beside him because she knew everything.
She was standing beside him because she believed a version of him.
A version he created.
Just like he created one for me.
Nathan closed the folder.
"Isabelle needs to read the letter."
Damien stepped forward.
"No."
The room went silent.
I looked at him.
"No?"
He realized his mistake.
His expression changed.
"I mean... it's not the right time."
I almost smiled.
Not because it was funny.
Because it was unbelievable.
The man who had just publicly ended our marriage was suddenly worried about my feelings.
"Give me the letter."
Adrian handed it back.
I broke the seal.
The paper inside was old.
Carefully folded.
The first line made my breath stop.
My dearest Isabelle,
If you are reading this, then the truth has finally reached you.
I covered my mouth.
My mother's words.
Her voice in my head.
For a moment, I wasn't in the ballroom anymore.
I was a little girl sitting beside her.
Listening to her tell me that people were not always who they appeared to be.
I continued reading.
My daughter,
There is something I should have told you before I left this world.
Your father did not die because of an accident.
I stopped.
My eyes moved across the page again.
Slowly.
Carefully.
Because I couldn't believe what I was reading.
My father.
The man I believed I lost when I was young.
An accident.
That was the story I had been told.
That was the story everyone repeated.
But my mother knew it wasn't true.
I looked up.
Nobody spoke.
Everyone was watching me.
I continued.
The people around you will tell you they protected you.
They will say they did what was necessary.
But the truth is...
They protected themselves.
My hands shook.
Another line.
And Damien Cole knows more than he ever admitted.
My eyes lifted immediately.
Straight toward him.
Damien looked away.
That was enough.
He knew.
"You knew my father."
It wasn't a question.
It was an accusation.
Damien swallowed.
"Isabelle..."
"No."
My voice became stronger.
"Answer me."
He remained silent.
Nathan spoke.
"Damien was involved with your father's company before you met him."
My heart sank.
"What?"
Adrian looked at me.
"We didn't want you to find out this way."
I looked at my brothers.
"You knew too?"
Their silence hurt.
Again.
Everyone knew something.
Everyone except me.
I stepped back.
"How long?"
Adrian lowered his eyes.
"Two years."
Two years.
My entire marriage.
My husband.
My brothers.
My mother's secret.
All connected.
I felt like my entire life had been built on a foundation I never saw.
Sophia suddenly spoke.
"Damien, tell her."
Everyone looked at her.
She wasn't defending him anymore.
She looked scared.
"What is she talking about?"
Damien stared at her.
"Stay out of this."
Her face changed.
Because she realized something.
He had lied to her too.
"You told me Isabelle was the only secret."
Damien said nothing.
Sophia stepped back.
"What does that mean?"
Nathan looked at Damien.
"You never told her about the company transfer."
Damien's expression changed.
"Stop."
"You never told her about the money."
"Stop."
"You never told her that Isabelle's father's shares were transferred to you after her mother's death."
The room exploded with whispers.
I felt dizzy.
"My father's shares?"
Damien looked at me.
"It wasn't like that."
I laughed softly.
Again.
That same empty laugh.
"Everyone always says that."
I held the letter.
"You never answer the question."
He looked at me.
"Because there is no version of the truth that makes you look innocent."
For the first time...
Damien looked powerless.
The powerful businessman.
The man who controlled every room he entered.
The man who thought he could destroy me publicly and walk away.
Now he stood surrounded by people who knew his secrets.
But I still needed answers.
I looked down at the letter.
There was one final paragraph.
One sentence.
One warning.
My heart stopped when I read it.
Isabelle, if Damien ever finds out I left this message for you, do not trust him.
Because he will try to convince you that he loved you.
But the man you married was never the man you thought he was.
I slowly lowered the letter.
Damien stared at me.
And I knew.
My mother had been trying to warn me.
Before she died.
Before I married him.
Before I ever knew his name.
Then Nathan's phone suddenly rang.
He looked at the screen.
His expression changed.
"What is it?" Adrian asked.
Nathan didn't answer.
He simply turned the phone toward us.
A message had appeared.
One sentence.
A name.
May you like
My blood turned cold.
Because the person who had sent the message was someone who was supposed to be dead...
