Chapter 5 - The Person Behind The Mask
The picture on my phone made no sense.
A person standing behind us.
Inside the basement.
Holding a knife.
I looked up immediately.
The darkness surrounded us.
But nobody was there.
"Daniel."
Marcus grabbed my shoulder.
"Don't move."
I stared at the screen again.
The picture wasn't old.
It wasn't edited.
The timestamp showed it was taken less than a minute ago.
Someone had been watching us.
Someone was still watching us.
I slowly turned the flashlight toward the corner of the basement.
Nothing.
Only shelves.
Boxes.
And years of secrets hidden in the dark.
"Who is it?"
Marcus didn't answer.
That scared me more than anything.
Because Marcus always had answers.
For twenty-five years, he had carried secrets.
But now...
He looked completely lost.
I lowered my phone.
"You know who this is."
Marcus looked at me.
"No."
I stepped closer.
"You're lying."
His face changed.
Not anger.
Fear.
"Daniel, listen to me."
"Everyone keeps telling me to listen."
My voice became colder.
"My father told me to listen."
"My family told me to listen."
"Now you tell me to listen."
I pointed at the picture.
"But nobody tells me the truth."
Marcus looked down.
Then he whispered:
"Because the truth is worse than you think."
Before I could answer, a sound came from upstairs.
A door opening.
Then footsteps.
Slow.
Careful.
Someone knew we were here.
I turned off the flashlight.
The basement became completely dark.
Marcus moved closer.
"Stay behind me."
I almost laughed.
But I didn't.
Because for the first time...
I wasn't sure I was the strongest person in the room.
We waited.
The footsteps stopped.
Right above us.
Then silence.
A few seconds passed.
Then my phone vibrated.
Another message.
Unknown number.
I opened it.
"Your father is not the enemy you should fear."
My heartbeat increased.
A second message appeared.
"The person standing beside you is."
I looked at Marcus.
He saw the message.
And his face changed.
"Daniel..."
I stepped back.
"No."
"Listen."
"No."
Because suddenly...
I didn't know who to trust anymore.
The basement door suddenly opened.
Light from upstairs entered the room.
A shadow stood there.
Neither of us moved.
Then a familiar voice spoke.
"Daniel."
My father's voice.
I immediately reached for the folder.
My father stepped down the stairs.
Slowly.
His expensive suit looked completely out of place in the old basement.
He looked at Marcus.
Then at me.
"You found it."
I stared at him.
"You knew this room existed."
He didn't deny it.
"Yes."
"You knew about the files."
"Yes."
"You knew about my mother."
A pause.
"Yes."
Every answer made my anger grow.
"Then why?"
My father looked at the floor.
"Because I was trying to protect you."
I shook my head.
"No."
I held up the documents.
"You were protecting yourself."
My father looked at the papers.
"Daniel."
"Tell me the truth."
He stayed silent.
"Who am I?"
That question finally broke something in him.
His expression changed.
Like he had been waiting for this moment.
But hoping it would never come.
"You are my son."
I laughed.
"That's not what I asked."
He looked away.
And that was when I knew.
There was another truth.
Something bigger.
My father walked closer.
"Your mother made choices that put you in danger."
"Don't blame her."
His eyes met mine.
"You don't know what happened."
"Then tell me."
He didn't.
Again.
Always silence.
Always secrets.
I turned toward Marcus.
"Did you know?"
Marcus didn't answer.
I felt something break inside me.
"You knew too."
Marcus looked ashamed.
"Yes."
I looked at both men.
The two people who had controlled my entire life.
Both lying.
Both hiding something.
Then my father said something unexpected.
"Isabella wasn't supposed to find that file."
I froze.
"Why?"
"Because it wasn't complete."
"What wasn't complete?"
"The truth."
He looked at me.
"Your mother left something behind."
I stepped closer.
"What?"
"A recording."
My heart stopped.
"Where?"
My father looked toward the ceiling.
Then toward the old hidden room.
"Somewhere Isabella already found."
I immediately grabbed my phone.
"Where is my wife?"
My father hesitated.
That hesitation was enough.
I grabbed his jacket.
"Where is she?"
He looked at me.
"Daniel, you need to understand something."
"What?"
"Isabella didn't disappear because someone took her."
My grip loosened.
"What?"
My father continued.
"She left because she discovered who was helping your mother."
I stared at him.
"No."
"Yes."
"Who?"
My father looked at Marcus.
And Marcus looked away.
My stomach tightened.
"Marcus?"
Nobody spoke.
Then my father said:
"The man who helped your mother escape twenty-five years ago..."
He paused.
"...is the same man who helped Isabella uncover everything."
I looked at Marcus.
"No."
Marcus closed his eyes.
"Daniel..."
"Tell me he's lying."
Marcus said nothing.
That silence destroyed the last bit of trust I had.
I stepped away.
"You helped her."
Marcus nodded slowly.
"Yes."
"Why?"
"Because Isabella deserved the truth."
"And you didn't think I did?"
His eyes filled with regret.
"I was trying to protect you."
I shook my head.
"Everyone says that."
I turned away.
I couldn't look at them anymore.
Then I noticed something on the basement wall.
A small red light.
A camera.
Recording everything.
I walked toward it.
"What is that?"
My father immediately reacted.
"Don't touch it."
Too late.
I pulled the camera from the wall.
Behind it was a hidden compartment.
Inside was a small memory card.
Another one.
Just like the one Isabella had hidden.
I picked it up.
Marcus went pale.
"No."
"What?"
He stared at the memory card.
"That was the one thing your father couldn't find."
I looked at him.
"What is on it?"
Nobody answered.
I put it into the old computer on the table.
The screen turned on.
One video file appeared.
The name made my hands shake.
"Daniel_Birth_Truth."
I pressed play.
The screen showed a hospital room.
A younger version of my mother was sitting on a bed.
Holding a newborn baby.
Me.
She looked directly into the camera.
And then she spoke.
"If my son is watching this..."
She started crying.
"...then they failed to keep him away from the truth."
I couldn't breathe.
My mother continued.
"Daniel, there is something you must know."
The video suddenly glitched.
The screen went black.
Then one final frame appeared.
A man's face.
Someone standing beside my mother.
Someone I recognized.
My blood turned cold.
Because the man in the video...
Was not my father.
It was someone who had been in my life for years.
Someone I trusted.
The video recovered.
And my mother's voice whispered:
"Your real father is..."
May you like
The screen went dark.
Then the basement door locked from the outside.
