Chapter 8: The Truth Everyone Tried to Bury
We didn’t go home.
None of us trusted the house anymore.
Not after learning Vanessa had been hiding secrets inside it for years.
Dad took us to a hotel outside the city.
Somewhere anonymous.
Somewhere Vanessa wouldn’t expect.
But even there, I couldn’t sleep.
I sat by the window, holding my mother’s notebook.
Every page felt like a conversation I had missed.
Every sentence felt like my mother was reaching through time, trying to warn me.
I had spent years wondering if she left me.
Now I knew she had fought to stay.
And someone had taken that from her.
Around 3 a.m., I heard a knock.
I immediately grabbed my phone.
“Emma?””
It was Dad.
I opened the door.
He looked exhausted.
“I need to talk to you.””
I let him in.
For a while, neither of us spoke.
Then he sat down.
“I failed her.””
I knew who he meant.
“Mom?””
He nodded.
“You were a child. You lost your mother. I lost my wife.””
His voice cracked.
“But I should have fought harder.””
I sat beside him.
“Why didn’t you believe her?””
He looked at the floor.
“I did.””
“Then why?””
“Because Vanessa made everything look normal.””
That sentence stayed with me.
Because that was how manipulation worked.
It didn’t always look like cruelty.
Sometimes it looked like a person bringing dinner.
Sometimes it looked like someone saying, “Calm down.””
Sometimes it looked like someone convincing you that your pain wasn’t important.
Dad continued.
“After your mother died, Vanessa helped me manage the company. She said she was trying to fix the problems your mother found.””
I looked at him.
“You trusted her.””
“Yes.””
“Why?””
He looked ashamed.
“Because I wanted someone to tell me everything was okay.””
The honesty hurt.
Because I understood.
Sometimes people believe lies because the truth is too painful.
The next morning, Michael returned with information.
He had spent the night searching old records.
“There’s something you need to see.””
He placed a folder on the table.
Inside were bank transfers.
Company records.
And one name appearing again and again.
Vanessa’s.
But there was something else.
Another name.
One I didn’t recognize.
“Who is Thomas Vale?”” I asked.
Michael’s expression darkened.
“That’s the person your mother was investigating.””
Dad looked shocked.
“Thomas?””
“You know him?””
Dad nodded slowly.
“He was my business partner.””
The room went quiet.
“How close?””
Dad stared at the documents.
“Like a brother.””
Michael shook his head.
“He wasn’t.””
I looked at the papers.
The truth was becoming clearer.
Vanessa hadn’t acted alone.
She had someone helping her.
Someone who had been close enough to destroy my mother’s life.
Someone my father trusted.
Then Dad’s phone rang.
Unknown number.
Everyone stared.
He answered.
“Hello?””
Nobody spoke.
Then Dad’s face changed.
“Where did you get this number?””
A pause.
Then he stood.
“What?””
I watched fear spread across his face.
“What happened?””
He looked at me.
Then at Michael.
Then whispered:
“They found Thomas.””
“Where?””
Dad swallowed.
“In the hospital.””
Michael frowned.
“Why?””
Dad’s hand tightened around the phone.
“Because someone tried to kill him.””
The room went silent.
Someone was eliminating the people who knew the truth.
My mother.
Thomas.
Who was next?
Then another message appeared on my phone.
Unknown number.
Again.
I opened it.
One sentence.
*You should have left the bag alone.*
I showed Dad.
His face went pale.
“Emma.””
“What?””
He looked at me.
“Your mother wasn’t hiding evidence from Vanessa.””
My stomach dropped.
“Then who?””
May you like
He stared at the message.
“She was hiding it from the person who killed her.””
