Chapter 6 - The Truth Hidden Before My Birth
The door opened behind us: "Daniel..."
I turned around slowly.
The person standing there was someone I had spent years believing was gone.
Someone who was never supposed to appear again.
My first reaction wasn't fear.
It was confusion.
Because the woman standing in the doorway was older than the pictures I remembered.
Her hair had turned gray.
Her face carried years of pain.
But I knew her.
Not from my memories.
From the photographs.
From the old stories.
From the name my father had written in his documents.
"Linda."
Sarah whispered her name.
The woman looked at Sarah.
A sad smile appeared on her face.
"So you finally told him."
Sarah stepped back.
"I had to."
Linda looked at me.
"I knew this day would come."
My hands tightened.
"Who are you?"
She looked at the computer screen.
At the folder.
At my name.
Then back at me.
"I was your father's closest friend."
I waited.
But she didn't continue.
"That's all?"
Her eyes filled with sadness.
"No."
She took a slow breath.
"I was the person your father trusted with the truth."
I looked at Sarah.
Then at Linda.
"About what?"
Linda walked into the room.
Slowly.
Carefully.
Like she knew every step could change my entire life.
"About the night you were born."
My heart stopped.
The words from the document suddenly felt heavier.
The hospital record.
The unknown name.
The missing picture.
Everything.
"What happened when I was born?"
Linda looked at the floor.
"Your father wasn't celebrating that night."
I frowned.
"What do you mean?"
"He was terrified."
The room became silent.
My father.
The man I remembered as strong.
The man who always protected me.
Terrified.
Why?
Linda continued.
"Your mother told everyone that she had a difficult pregnancy and that your father was overwhelmed."
She looked at me.
"But that wasn't true."
My voice became cold.
"Then what was true?"
Linda looked at the computer.
"Your father discovered something about your mother before you were born."
"What?"
"She had been lying about your family for years."
I shook my head.
"You keep saying that."
I stepped closer.
"But nobody tells me what the lie was."
Linda looked directly at me.
"Because the truth involves you."
Those words made my chest tighten.
I turned back toward the screen.
The folder was still open.
The hospital record was waiting.
I clicked the first document.
A scanned birth certificate appeared.
My name.
My birthday.
My mother's name.
Everything looked normal.
Until I reached the bottom.
There was a section that had been covered.
A handwritten note appeared beside it.
My father's handwriting.
"Daniel must never know until he is ready."
I felt sick.
"What does this mean?"
Linda walked closer.
"It means your father was trying to protect you."
"From my mother?"
She didn't answer immediately.
That was answer enough.
I looked at Sarah.
She looked away.
Everyone knew something.
Everyone except me.
I closed the laptop.
"No more secrets."
My voice echoed through the room.
"I want the truth."
Linda nodded.
"You deserve it."
She sat down.
"Your mother was not the person everyone believed she was."
I almost laughed.
"That part I know."
Linda continued.
"When your father discovered her actions, he planned to leave."
I remembered Sarah saying the same thing.
"But he didn't."
"No."
Linda looked at me.
"Because of you."
I froze.
"Me?"
"Your father loved you more than anything."
She paused.
"But he realized something."
"What?"
"Your mother would never let him take you."
The room felt smaller.
"She threatened him?"
Linda nodded.
"She told him if he left, she would destroy his reputation. She would tell everyone he was unstable. She would make sure he never saw you again."
My jaw tightened.
"Did she?"
Linda looked away.
"Your father tried to fight back."
The silence afterward felt unbearable.
"What happened?"
Linda didn't speak for several seconds.
Then she said:
"He found proof."
"The second file?"
She nodded.
"Everything he discovered was inside that file."
I looked at the computer.
"But where is it?"
Linda's expression changed.
"Your mother has it."
My heart dropped.
"Then why was it hidden here?"
"Because your father made copies."
Sarah stepped forward.
"There was always a backup plan."
I looked at both women.
"And nobody told me?"
Linda lowered her head.
"We tried."
"When?"
"After your father's death."
I stared.
"You tried?"
Linda nodded.
"But your mother controlled everything."
My hands curled into fists.
"What does that mean?"
Linda looked at me.
"It means every person who tried to tell you the truth disappeared from your life."
I thought about it.
My father's friends.
Family members.
People who suddenly stopped visiting.
People my mother called "bad influences."
All those years.
All those warnings.
I had ignored them.
Because I trusted her.
Then my phone vibrated.
A message.
Unknown number.
I opened it.
A photo appeared.
My mother.
Standing outside this house.
Holding a folder.
The message below said:
"She knows you're here."
My blood ran cold.
I looked toward the window.
Linda immediately stood up.
"We have to leave."
"Why?"
Her expression changed.
"Because if she came here, she isn't coming to talk."
Sarah moved toward the door.
But before we could leave, another message appeared.
This time it wasn't from an unknown number.
It was from my mother.
Only six words.
"I know what your father found."
I stared at the screen.
Then another message arrived.
"You need to ask Sarah what she did."
I looked at Sarah.
Her face became pale.
"What is she talking about?"
Sarah didn't answer.
And that scared me more than my mother's message.
"Sarah."
She closed her eyes.
"I didn't want you to know this way."
My stomach tightened.
"Know what?"
She looked at Linda.
Then at me.
"The night your father died..."
She stopped.
The room became silent.
"What happened that night?"
Sarah's hands started shaking.
"I wasn't just a witness."
I took a step back.
"What are you saying?"
Sarah looked at me with tears in her eyes.
"I was the last person who saw your father alive."
Nobody moved.
Nobody spoke.
Then the lights flickered again.
The same darkness.
The same silence.
But this time, someone knocked on the front door.
Three slow knocks.
Everyone froze.
Linda whispered:
"She's here."
I looked toward the hallway.
The door handle moved.
Slowly.
Someone was trying to open it from the outside.
May you like
Then Sarah whispered one last thing:
"Daniel... your mother didn't come alone."
