Chapter 6 - The Name My Father Hid
I stared at the notebook.
I stared at the sentence my father had written.
"Emily, if you are reading this, trust nobody in this room."
The words felt impossible.
Because everyone in that room had a reason to lie.
Daniel.
Rachel.
Victoria.
Even Michael.
The only person I had trusted completely was the one person who wasn't there to explain.
My father.
I looked at Daniel.
His face had changed.
Not because Michael was there.
Because of the name written on the next page.
A name I hadn't seen before.
A name that made him step backward.
"Who is it?" I whispered.
Nobody answered.
Michael smiled slightly.
That smile made my skin crawl.
"You deserve to know the truth."
Daniel shook his head.
"Don't do this."
Michael looked at him.
"Why?"
His voice was calm.
"Because you think you are still protecting her?"
Daniel didn't respond.
Michael turned the notebook toward me.
"Your father discovered everything before he died."
I looked down.
The handwriting continued.
But this time, the words were not a warning.
They were a confession.
"Daniel Carter is not who he says he is."
My heart stopped.
I looked up.
Daniel looked away.
That was all I needed to see.
I felt something inside me collapse.
Not because I believed Michael.
Because some part of me had already known.
The way Daniel reacted.
The secrets.
The lies.
The way he always seemed one step ahead.
My hands moved over my belly.
My daughter kicked.
A reminder that I couldn't fall apart.
Not now.
Not yet.
"Explain."
My voice was quiet.
Daniel looked at me.
"Emily..."
"No."
I shook my head.
"You don't get to say my name like you still know me."
His expression changed.
Pain crossed his face.
But I couldn't let it affect me.
Not anymore.
Michael walked around the kitchen slowly.
Like he owned the place.
"Your father was investigating a financial network."
Rachel spoke quietly.
"Not just financial."
Everyone looked at her.
She swallowed.
"Something much bigger."
Michael nodded.
"Your father found evidence that powerful people were using companies, charities, and organizations to hide illegal operations."
I looked at him.
"And Daniel?"
Michael glanced at him.
"Daniel was sent to get close to your father."
My chest tightened.
"No."
Daniel finally spoke.
"That's not the whole truth."
Michael laughed.
"Of course not."
He looked at me.
"Because the whole truth would make him look worse."
Daniel stepped forward.
"Enough."
Michael didn't move.
"You were supposed to find the notebook."
Silence.
I looked at Daniel.
"You knew about it."
He closed his eyes.
For a moment, he looked exhausted.
Like he had been carrying a secret too heavy for too long.
"Yes."
The answer hurt.
More than I expected.
I whispered:
"How long?"
Daniel looked at me.
"Before I met you."
I felt like the room tilted.
All those memories.
Our first date.
Our wedding.
The night he told me he wanted a family.
Everything suddenly felt like a performance.
"You planned everything."
"No."
His voice broke.
"I started with a plan."
I looked at him.
"That's supposed to make it better?"
He had no answer.
Because it didn't.
Michael picked up the notebook.
"Your father discovered Daniel wasn't working alone."
Rachel looked at him.
"Michael."
He ignored her.
"He discovered there was someone inside his own investigation team."
I looked around.
My eyes stopped on Victoria.
She looked away.
And that was when I understood.
The people closest to me were always the ones hiding the most.
"Victoria."
She looked up.
"What?"
"You knew."
Her face changed.
Only for a second.
But I saw it.
"You knew about my father."
She said nothing.
I stepped closer.
"You knew Daniel wasn't who he said he was."
Victoria's expression hardened.
"You have no idea what you're talking about."
Michael smiled.
"Actually, she does."
He walked toward the table.
"Because she finally sees it."
Victoria looked angry.
"Michael, stop."
That was the first time I heard fear in her voice.
Not anger.
Fear.
Michael reached into his coat again.
This time he pulled out a small flash drive.
"Your father copied everything here."
Rachel stared.
"That's impossible."
Michael looked at her.
"You thought the original file was destroyed."
My heart raced.
"What's on it?"
Michael looked at me.
"Everything."
I stared at the flash drive.
"Then why didn't you give it to me?"
His expression changed.
For the first time, he looked almost human.
"Because your father didn't trust anyone."
He paused.
"Not even me."
A strange silence followed.
Then Daniel spoke.
"Where did you get it?"
Michael looked at him.
"From the person who killed your father."
Nobody moved.
The words hung in the air.
My father's death.
Not an accident.
Not a tragedy.
A murder.
And someone knew the truth.
"Who?"
Michael looked at Daniel.
"Ask your wife."
My blood went cold.
"What?"
Daniel looked confused.
Michael smiled.
"She knows."
Everyone turned toward me.
I shook my head.
"I don't know anything."
Michael opened the notebook again.
"Your father left another message."
He flipped through pages.
Then stopped.
"Emily was never supposed to know about the investigation."
I stared.
"Why?"
Michael looked at me.
"Because he believed the safest way to protect you was to keep you completely away from it."
That made sense.
Until he continued.
"But then something happened."
My breathing slowed.
"What?"
Michael looked directly at Daniel.
"He discovered Daniel had a connection to the person he was hunting."
Daniel's face went pale.
Rachel whispered:
"No."
Michael nodded.
"Yes."
I looked at Daniel.
"What connection?"
He didn't answer.
"Daniel."
His eyes met mine.
And I saw it.
The guilt.
The fear.
The regret.
"I knew the person your father was investigating."
"Who?"
Daniel remained silent.
Michael answered.
"His name was Jonathan Carter."
The name meant nothing to me.
But Daniel reacted instantly.
I noticed.
Rachel noticed.
Everyone noticed.
"Who is Jonathan Carter?"
Daniel looked down.
"My father."
The room became silent.
I couldn't move.
"You never told me you had a father connected to this."
Daniel swallowed.
"Because I didn't know the truth."
Michael stepped closer.
"That is where you are wrong."
Daniel looked at him.
Michael's voice became colder.
"Your father didn't just work for them."
He paused.
"He created them."
I felt sick.
Daniel's father.
My father's investigation.
The notebook.
The lies.
Everything connected.
Victoria suddenly moved toward the flash drive.
Fast.
Too fast.
Rachel grabbed her arm.
"Don't."
Victoria pushed her away.
The flash drive fell onto the floor.
Everyone looked down.
Then my phone buzzed.
A new message.
Unknown number.
I opened it.
One sentence.
"Your mother knew the truth before your father died."
I stopped breathing.
Because I never told anyone the truth about my mother.
My mother had been dead for ten years.
And nobody in that room should have known she was involved.
I slowly looked toward Michael.
Then Daniel.
Then Victoria.
But the person who reacted the strongest was Rachel.
She stepped backward.
Her face turned white.
Because she recognized the name appearing on my phone.
My mother's name.
May you like
And then she whispered:
"Emily... your mother is not dead."
