Chapter 6 - The Truth Behind My Father's Disappearance
The office door opened slowly.
Nobody moved.
Nobody spoke.
Every person inside that room was waiting to see who was standing behind it.
I already knew.
My heart knew before my eyes did.
Then the man stepped forward.
Older.
Tired.
Different.
But still the same.
My father.
Richard Marchetti.
For ten years, I imagined this moment.
I imagined running into his arms.
I imagined crying.
I imagined asking him why he left me.
But when he actually stood in front of me...
I couldn't move.
Because the man I spent half my life mourning was alive.
And he had been watching from the shadows.
"Isabelle."
His voice broke something inside me.
The same voice.
The same voice that used to read me bedtime stories.
The same voice that promised me he would never disappear.
My lips parted.
But no words came out.
Adrian immediately stepped between us.
"Richard."
My father looked at him.
There was no anger.
Only sadness.
"You should have told her."
Adrian looked away.
"I wanted to."
"No."
My father's voice became colder.
"You wanted to protect her."
A pause.
"But you forgot she had the right to choose."
Those words hit me.
Because they were exactly what I had been feeling all night.
Everyone had been protecting me.
But nobody trusted me.
My father looked at me.
And tears filled his eyes.
"I'm sorry."
That was the first thing he said.
Not an explanation.
Not an excuse.
Just two words.
I'm sorry.
And somehow...
That made it harder.
I wanted to be angry.
I needed to be angry.
But seeing him standing there made every emotion crash together.
"Why?"
My voice finally came out.
"Why did you let me believe you were dead?"
My father lowered his eyes.
"Because if I came back, they would come after you."
"Who?"
He didn't answer immediately.
That scared me.
Because after everything I had learned tonight, I knew every unanswered question hid something worse.
"Your father's partner."
I frowned.
"Damien's father?"
Richard nodded.
"And someone else."
The room became silent.
Someone else.
Another person involved.
Another secret.
"Who?"
My father looked at Adrian.
Then Nathan.
Then me.
"The person who helped them hide everything."
I waited.
But he didn't say the name.
"Why not?"
My father stepped closer.
"Because that person is still close to you."
A cold feeling moved through my body.
I looked around the room.
My brothers.
Nathan.
Everyone I trusted.
Everyone who had been part of my life.
"Who?"
My father looked at me.
"That's what I came here to tell you."
He reached inside his coat.
He removed a small envelope.
Different from my mother's.
Older.
Worn.
"My wife left this for me before she died."
I stared.
"My mother?"
He nodded.
"Your mother knew I might not survive."
My fingers tightened.
"What happened the night you disappeared?"
My father took a deep breath.
Then he finally told me.
"I discovered Damien's father was not stealing money."
I frowned.
"What was he doing?"
Richard looked at the documents on the table.
"He was buying control."
"Of what?"
"Everything."
He walked toward the desk.
"Your family company. My company. Even people inside the legal system."
Nathan nodded.
"He was building an empire."
My father continued.
"When I discovered it, I planned to expose him."
"But someone betrayed you."
Richard looked at Adrian.
"No."
Everyone became still.
"Someone betrayed your mother."
My heart stopped.
"My mother?"
My father nodded.
"Your mother found out before I did."
He looked at the letter.
"She discovered who was helping them."
I whispered:
"Who?"
My father looked at me.
"Your mother wrote the name down."
I stared at him.
"Then why didn't anyone tell me?"
His expression changed.
"Because the letter disappeared."
A pause.
"Until now."
Everyone looked at the envelope.
The same envelope that had been opened.
The same envelope that appeared at my anniversary gala.
I suddenly remembered something.
"The person who opened my mother's letter..."
My father nodded.
"Was trying to remove the evidence."
Adrian stepped forward.
"But why leave it for Isabelle?"
Richard looked at him.
"Because they didn't."
Everyone froze.
"What?"
My father looked at me.
"Someone else stole it first."
The room became silent.
A terrible realization entered my mind.
The letter wasn't found.
It was planted.
Someone wanted me to read it.
Someone wanted me to discover the truth.
But why?
My father opened the envelope.
Inside was another piece of paper.
He handed it to me.
I read the first line.
Isabelle,
If you are reading this, then someone has finally failed to stop the truth.
My hands shook.
I continued.
The person who destroyed our family is not the one you think.
My eyes moved down.
The next sentence made my breath disappear.
Damien Cole was never the mastermind.
I looked up.
Everyone was silent.
Even Damien's name wasn't enough anymore.
Because for the first time...
I realized something.
Maybe I had been looking at the wrong enemy.
My father continued.
"Your mother discovered someone was using Damien."
I looked at him.
"Using him?"
Richard nodded.
"Damien was greedy. Ambitious. Easy to manipulate."
A bitter expression crossed his face.
"But he wasn't the person who planned everything."
Nathan opened another file.
"Then who?"
My father looked at me.
"The person who convinced Damien to marry you."
My heart stopped.
Because that meant my entire marriage...
My entire life with Damien...
Had been part of someone else's plan.
"Who?"
My father didn't answer.
Instead, he turned toward the security monitor.
The screen suddenly turned on.
A camera feed appeared.
A person was standing outside the building.
Watching.
My father immediately became serious.
"No."
Adrian looked at him.
"What?"
Richard stepped closer to the screen.
"How did they find us?"
The person outside slowly lifted their head.
The camera captured the face.
And everyone in the room froze.
Because it wasn't Damien.
It wasn't Sophia.
It wasn't anyone we expected.
It was someone who had been helping us all night.
Nathan slowly stepped backward.
His face changed.
"Impossible..."
My father whispered:
"That's the person who killed my old life."
The screen zoomed in.
And beneath the camera image appeared a name.
A name that made my father go completely silent.
May you like
Because the person waiting outside was...
my mother's closest friend.
