Chapter 4 - The Truth Hidden Behind The Accident
The bedroom door moved slowly, and I whispered:
"Daniel?"
When Claire Bennett saw the shadow standing outside the room, she grabbed the laptop and prepared for the person who had been watching her.
But the door opened only slightly, revealing a familiar face holding an old photograph.
And written on the back of that photograph was a date Claire had never forgotten.
Claire suddenly realized the accident from eight years ago was never an accident.
I couldn't move.
The bedroom door stood half open.
The hallway light created a thin line across the dark floor.
Someone was standing there.
Someone who knew I was watching Daniel's hidden files.
Someone who knew exactly what I had discovered.
My first thought was Daniel.
My husband had always been good at controlling situations.
Maybe he had finally realized I knew.
Maybe he had been pretending to sleep.
Maybe this was the moment he stopped pretending.
I closed the laptop quietly.
My hand moved toward my phone.
I needed something.
A weapon.
A call.
Anything.
Then the person outside spoke.
"Claire?"
My body froze.
It wasn't Daniel.
It was a woman's voice.
An older woman's voice.
The door opened wider.
And standing there was Daniel's mother.
Eleanor Whitmore.
She was holding an old photograph in her hand.
For several seconds, neither of us spoke.
She looked at the laptop.
Then at me.
Then at the documents scattered across the bed.
Her expression wasn't anger.
It was sadness.
"I was hoping you would never find this."
Those words hurt more than if she had screamed.
Because they confirmed everything.
They knew.
They all knew.
I stood up slowly.
"You knew?"
Eleanor lowered her eyes.
"Yes."
My chest tightened.
"How long?"
She didn't answer immediately.
That silence was the answer.
"How long?" I repeated.
"Since before your wedding."
I felt like the room had shifted.
Before my wedding.
Before I promised forever to Daniel.
Before I believed I was starting a family.
They already had secrets.
"You let me marry him knowing he had another life?"
Eleanor looked at me.
"Claire, it wasn't what you think."
I almost laughed.
That sentence.
Everyone used that sentence when they were about to explain something impossible.
"I found records of a hidden apartment."
Silence.
"I found medical bills."
Silence.
"I found a video where Daniel said I deserved to know what happened."
Eleanor's face changed.
"You watched the video?"
I nodded.
She closed her eyes.
For the first time, she looked afraid.
Not guilty.
Afraid.
"What did Maria say?"
I stared at her.
"You know her name."
Eleanor sat down slowly.
Like she suddenly didn't have the strength to stand.
"Yes."
"Who is she?"
Eleanor looked at the photograph in her hand.
Then she gave it to me.
It was the same woman.
Maria Bellamy.
But this time, I noticed something else.
A little girl stood beside her.
Maybe four years old.
Dark hair.
Bright eyes.
Holding Maria's hand.
"Her daughter," Eleanor said quietly.
I looked at the child.
"Daniel's daughter?"
Eleanor hesitated.
Then she shook her head.
"No."
That answer confused me.
"What?"
"She isn't Daniel's daughter."
I stared at her.
"Then why did he pay for everything?"
Eleanor looked toward the window.
"Because Daniel caused the accident that changed Maria's life."
The room went silent.
I felt my heartbeat in my ears.
"What accident?"
Eleanor looked back at me.
"The night before your engagement."
I remembered.
Of course I remembered.
That night had always been strange.
Daniel came home after midnight.
His shirt was torn.
His hand was bleeding.
He told me he had been attacked while leaving a business meeting.
I believed him.
Because I loved him.
"What happened that night?"
Eleanor took a deep breath.
"Daniel was driving."
My stomach dropped.
"He was drunk?"
"No."
"Then what?"
She looked at the photograph.
"He was trying to help someone."
I frowned.
"That doesn't make sense."
"Maria was being followed."
I said nothing.
"She was carrying documents. Important documents. Documents connected to your husband's company."
I felt a chill.
"What documents?"
Eleanor didn't answer.
Instead, she reached into her bag and pulled out another envelope.
"I was hoping this day would never come."
I looked at it.
"What's inside?"
"The truth about Daniel's first secret."
I didn't open it.
Not yet.
Because suddenly I was afraid.
Not of what I would find.
But of how much of my life had been built on lies.
"Eleanor."
She looked at me.
"Why did Daniel hide this from me?"
Her eyes filled with tears.
"Because he was trying to protect you."
I shook my head.
"No."
I stepped back.
"People don't protect someone by lying for eight years."
Eleanor didn't argue.
Maybe because she knew I was right.
Then she said something I never expected.
"Claire, Daniel wasn't afraid you would discover his affair."
I looked at her.
"He was afraid you would discover what he did to save you."
My breathing stopped.
"What does that mean?"
Before she could answer, my phone rang.
Both of us looked at the screen.
Unknown number.
Again.
I answered immediately.
No one spoke at first.
Then a voice came through.
A woman's voice.
Weak.
Tired.
But familiar.
"Claire."
I froze.
I knew that voice.
I had heard it before.
In the video.
Maria.
"How did you get my number?"
She ignored my question.
"You found the files."
My eyes moved toward Eleanor.
"Yes."
A pause.
Then Maria whispered:
"Then you need to leave before Daniel comes home."
My heart started racing.
"Why?"
The line became quiet.
Then Maria said:
"Because Daniel doesn't know his mother found you."
I looked at Eleanor.
Her face changed.
Fear.
Real fear.
"What are you talking about?"
Maria lowered her voice.
"Claire, listen carefully."
I held the phone tighter.
"Daniel has been lying to you."
"I know."
"No."
Her voice cracked.
"You don't know the worst part."
The call suddenly cut off.
I stared at the phone.
Then I heard something downstairs.
The front door opening.
Eleanor turned pale.
"He's home."
I looked at the clock.
Daniel wasn't supposed to return for another three hours.
The footsteps moved slowly through the house.
Closer.
Closer.
Eleanor grabbed my arm.
"Claire, you have to hide."
I looked at her.
"Why?"
She didn't answer.
Because we both heard it.
Daniel's voice from the hallway.
"Mom?"
A pause.
Then:
"I know you're here."
I looked at Eleanor.
She was trembling.
Daniel walked closer.
And then he said the one thing that made me realize he knew everything.
May you like
"Claire, open the door."
The bedroom handle slowly turned.
