Chapter 4 - The Woman Who Knew Roman's Secret
The voice came from the darkness.
"Roman."
He froze.
Not because someone had said his name.
But because he knew that voice.
A voice he had not heard in five years.
A voice that belonged to someone who was supposed to be gone forever.
Roman slowly turned toward the office.
The lights flickered once.
Then again.
A figure stood near the doorway.
A woman.
Her face was hidden by the shadows.
For a moment, Roman couldn't move.
His mind rejected what his eyes were seeing.
"No..."
The woman stepped forward.
The light revealed her face.
Roman's heart stopped.
It couldn't be possible.
"You're dead."
The woman looked at him with tired eyes.
"No, Roman."
She shook her head.
"I was hidden."
Roman stared at her.
Because standing in front of him was the person who had changed his entire life.
The person whose disappearance had started everything.
Adrian's sister.
Emma's father’s former assistant.
The woman everyone believed had died five years ago.
Claire Bennett.
Roman took one step back.
"How?"
Claire didn't answer immediately.
Instead, she looked at the box in his hand.
"You found it."
Roman tightened his grip.
"You knew I would."
Claire's expression changed.
Not fear.
Sadness.
"Emma knew you would."
That name hit him harder than anything else.
"Where is my wife?"
Claire looked away.
"She's alive."
Roman's breathing changed.
For the first time since entering the empty mansion, he felt something close to relief.
But it disappeared quickly.
"Then where is she?"
Claire walked closer.
"Before I tell you, you need to understand something."
Roman's eyes hardened.
"I don't need another secret."
"You do."
"No."
His voice became colder.
"I need answers."
Claire studied him.
Then she said quietly:
"Emma didn't leave because she stopped loving you."
Roman said nothing.
"She left because she found out someone was trying to destroy you."
Roman frowned.
"Destroy me?"
Claire nodded.
"The person who has been controlling everything around you for years."
Roman immediately thought of Adrian.
But Claire shook her head.
"No."
That surprised him.
"Then who?"
Claire looked toward the hallway.
As if she was afraid someone was listening.
"Not here."
Roman stepped forward.
"You're not leaving until you tell me."
Claire looked at him.
For a moment, Roman saw something he rarely saw in other people.
Pity.
Not fear.
Not respect.
Pity.
"You really don't remember."
Roman's expression changed.
"Remember what?"
Claire looked at the documents inside the box.
"The night your company started."
The same words again.
The same mystery.
The same missing piece.
Roman felt frustration building.
"Everyone keeps talking about that night. Nobody tells me what happened."
Claire's voice softened.
"Because you asked them not to."
Roman went still.
"What?"
"You were there."
"I know I was there."
"No."
Claire shook her head.
"You were there, but you don't remember everything."
Roman stared at her.
That was impossible.
He remembered that night.
The fire.
The accident.
The loss.
The decision that changed his life.
Or at least, he thought he did.
Claire reached into her coat.
She pulled out an old envelope.
"This belongs to you."
Roman didn't take it.
"What is it?"
"Something Emma found."
His expression changed.
"Where did she find it?"
Claire hesitated.
"From your father's private collection."
The room became silent.
Roman's father.
Another name he hated.
Another part of his past he tried to bury.
"My father died before Emma knew him."
"Yes."
"Then how did she find his files?"
Claire looked at him.
"Because your father didn't trust anyone."
Roman stared.
"And you expect me to believe he trusted Emma?"
Claire nodded.
"He did."
Roman opened the envelope.
Inside was a single piece of paper.
A handwritten note.
The handwriting was familiar.
His father's.
Roman read the first sentence.
If Roman ever finds this, it means someone failed to keep him safe.
His hands tightened.
He continued.
The person standing closest to him is not his protector.
Roman stopped.
His eyes moved down.
There was a name.
But the ink had been damaged.
Only the first letter remained.
A.
Roman looked up.
"Adrian."
Claire didn't respond.
That silence told him everything.
Roman closed the paper.
"Why would Adrian do this?"
Claire looked away.
"Because Adrian didn't become your friend by accident."
Roman felt a chill.
"What does that mean?"
"It means he was placed in your life."
Roman laughed quietly.
A cold laugh.
"No."
"Roman."
"No."
He stepped closer.
"Adrian saved my life."
Claire nodded.
"I know."
"He was the only person who stayed."
"I know."
"He built everything with me."
Claire looked directly at him.
"Exactly."
Roman became silent.
Because suddenly, the words sounded different.
Not like loyalty.
Like a plan.
His phone vibrated.
He looked down.
Another unknown message.
This time there was no text.
Only a video.
Roman pressed play.
The screen showed Emma.
Sitting in a dark room.
Her face was pale.
But she was calm.
Roman immediately recognized her.
"Emma..."
The video began.
Her voice filled the room.
"Roman, if you're watching this, then Claire found you."
Roman froze.
She knew Claire would come.
She had planned this.
Emma looked directly into the camera.
"I need you to listen carefully."
Her hand rested on her pregnant stomach.
"Because there is something I never told you."
Roman couldn't look away.
"I didn't discover the truth after we got married."
A pause.
"I discovered it before."
Roman's expression changed.
The same thing the medical report had revealed.
Emma knew.
She knew everything.
The video continued.
"I knew who you were before I became your wife."
Roman whispered:
"Why?"
Emma looked down.
Then back at the camera.
"Because I was investigating your father's death."
Roman stopped breathing.
The video glitched.
Then returned.
"And I found out the person responsible wasn't the enemy you thought it was."
The screen went black.
Roman stared.
"That's it?"
Claire looked at him.
"No."
The phone buzzed again.
A final message appeared.
This time from Emma.
"Roman, don't trust Claire."
His face changed.
He looked at Claire.
She looked shocked.
"That's impossible."
Roman held the phone tighter.
"What?"
Claire stepped back.
"Emma would never send that."
Roman stared at the message.
Because now there were two people telling him opposite things.
One person saying Claire was his only chance.
One person warning him not to trust her.
Then another message arrived.
Not from Emma.
Not from the unknown number.
From Adrian.
Only four words.
"She knows about the baby."
Roman's blood ran cold.
Because Adrian wasn't supposed to know.
Nobody knew.
Except him.
Emma.
And the doctor.
Roman slowly turned toward Claire.
The woman who had been hidden for five years.
The woman who claimed to protect Emma.
She looked terrified.
Then her phone began ringing.
Claire looked at the screen.
And the color disappeared from her face.
Roman saw the name.
The name of the person calling.
May you like
The person who had been watching them the entire time...
His own phone rang at the same moment.
