Chapter 6: The Last Employee of James Sterling
The man standing at the restaurant entrance looked nothing like someone who had spent twenty years hiding a secret.
He wasn’t intimidating.
He wasn’t wealthy.
He didn’t carry himself like the powerful people Richard Sterling knew.
He looked tired.
Like a person who had carried a heavy truth for too long.
The cameras outside continued flashing through the glass windows.
Reporters shouted Richard’s name.
But inside the restaurant, nobody moved.
Richard stared at the envelope in the stranger’s hand.
“Who are you?””
The man took a slow breath.
“My name is Marcus Bell.””
Richard waited.
“I worked for your father.””
The words immediately changed the atmosphere.
Richard’s eyes narrowed.
“My father had hundreds of employees.””
Marcus nodded.
“I wasn’t one of the important ones.””
He looked down.
“I was the one who cleaned up the things nobody wanted to see.””
Victoria’s face turned pale.
Richard noticed.
“You know him.””
Victoria didn’t answer.
That was enough.
Richard turned back to Marcus.
“What’s in the envelope?””
Marcus looked at Maya.
Then at Amara.
Then finally at Richard.
“The truth.””
Richard almost laughed.
Everyone had been offering him the truth all night.
And every truth came with another lie attached.
“I’m tired of people telling me that.””
Marcus nodded.
“You should be.””
He placed the envelope on the table.
“Because the truth your father left behind will hurt more than anything you’ve learned tonight.””
Richard didn’t touch it.
“Why now?””
Marcus looked toward the reporters outside.
“Because Maya is no longer hidden.””
The sentence made Richard uncomfortable.
“Explain.””
“Your father spent years making sure certain information never reached you.””
Marcus looked at Victoria.
“She helped him.””
Victoria’s expression hardened.
“Don’t pretend you know everything.””
Marcus looked at her.
“I know enough.””
Amara stepped forward.
“You were there.””
Marcus nodded.
“The night I left the Sterling company.””
Richard looked at him.
“Why?””
Marcus hesitated.
“Because I found out what James was planning.””
Richard’s eyes narrowed.
“What was he planning?””
Marcus looked at the envelope.
“Your father wanted control.””
Richard shook his head.
“My father was dead.””
Marcus nodded.
“But his plan wasn’t.””
The restaurant suddenly felt colder.
Richard finally picked up the envelope.
Inside was a stack of documents.
The first page had a date.
Twenty years earlier.
The second page had a name.
*Amara Hayes.*
The third page had something that made Richard stop.
*Termination Agreement.*
His hands tightened.
“What is this?””
Marcus answered quietly.
“Your father paid someone to make Amara disappear.””
Amara closed her eyes.
Richard looked at Victoria.
“You knew.””
Victoria whispered:
“I knew he was involved.””
Richard’s expression hardened.
“And you still helped him.””
Victoria looked at him.
“I thought he was protecting you.””
“No.””
Richard shook his head.
“You thought he was protecting your future.””
Victoria’s eyes filled with anger.
“You don’t understand what it was like.””
“What?””
She stepped closer.
“Watching you become someone everyone wanted something from.””
Richard stared.
“You’re talking about me like I was a child.””
“You were.””
The answer surprised him.
Victoria continued.
“Your father controlled everything. The company. The money. The people around you.””
She looked at the floor.
“I thought if I followed him, I could eventually free you.””
Amara gave a bitter smile.
“And how did that work out?””
Victoria didn’t answer.
Richard looked back at Marcus.
“What exactly did my father do?””
Marcus slowly sat down.
“The night Amara disappeared, James arranged for someone to follow her.””
Richard felt his stomach tighten.
“Who?””
Marcus looked at him.
“A private security contractor.””
Amara’s face changed.
“The man who came to my apartment…”
Marcus nodded.
“He was hired by your father.””
Richard looked at Amara.
“You thought I sent him.””
She looked away.
“For years.””
The pain in her voice was worse than anger.
Richard lowered his head.
“I’m sorry.””
Amara looked at him.
“You didn’t know.””
“But I should have.””
“No.””
She shook her head.
“You were trapped too.””
Richard didn’t know if he believed that.
Because a part of him wondered how he could have missed so much.
How could he build a company that reached across the world but fail to see what happened inside his own home?
Marcus opened another document.
“There’s more.””
Richard looked up.
“What?””
Marcus hesitated.
“Your father didn’t just want Amara gone.””
A pause.
“He wanted Maya gone too.””
The words made Richard stand instantly.
“What?””
Maya immediately grabbed Amara’s hand.
Richard looked at Marcus.
“Say that again.””
Marcus swallowed.
“James Sterling believed Maya was a threat.””
Richard’s voice dropped.
“She was a baby.””
Marcus nodded.
“I know.””
Richard stepped closer.
“Where is the man who made that decision?””
Marcus looked away.
“Dead.””
“Convenient.””
Marcus didn’t respond.
Richard noticed.
“You don’t believe that.””
“No.””
Marcus looked at him.
“I don’t.””
Silence filled the room.
Then Marcus reached into his coat.
He pulled out a small key.
“I found this after your father died.””
Richard looked at it.
“What does it open?””
“A safety deposit box.””
“Where?””
Marcus looked directly at him.
“Your father’s private bank.””
Richard frowned.
“My father kept secrets from me.””
“Yes.””
“Why would he leave me a key?””
Marcus answered:
“Because he knew one day you would discover everything.””
Richard stared.
That didn’t make sense.
“My father wanted control. Not confession.””
Marcus nodded.
“Maybe.””
Then he added:
“Or maybe he knew someone else was more dangerous than him.””
Everyone went quiet.
Richard looked at him.
“Who?””
Marcus glanced toward Victoria.
Nobody missed it.
Richard turned.
“Victoria?””
Victoria immediately shook her head.
“No.””
Marcus said nothing.
Richard’s voice became sharper.
“Why are you looking at her?””
Marcus looked down.
“Because James wasn’t the only person who wanted Amara gone.””
Amara’s face changed.
“No.””
Richard looked at her.
“You know something?””
She hesitated.
Then whispered:
“After I escaped, someone kept finding me.””
Richard felt anger rising.
“Who?””
“I never saw their face.””
Marcus looked at the envelope.
“But I know who gave the orders.””
Richard turned.
“Who?””
Marcus slowly said:
“Victoria Sterling.””
The silence afterward was unbearable.
Richard looked at Victoria.
The woman he had trusted.
The woman who had shared his bed.
The woman who had raised his public image.
She looked completely defeated.
“No.””
Her voice was quiet.
“No, that’s not what happened.””
Richard stared.
“Then tell me.””
Victoria’s eyes filled.
“I didn’t want her dead.””
Amara stepped back.
Richard felt a chill.
“What did you want?””
Victoria looked at him.
“I wanted her to leave.””
Nobody spoke.
Victoria continued.
“I paid someone to scare her.””
Richard’s face changed.
“Scare her?””
“Yes.””
“That’s your explanation?””
Victoria cried silently.
“I didn’t know they would hurt her.””
Amara laughed bitterly.
“You sent someone after a pregnant woman and you didn’t know?””
Victoria looked at her.
“I was desperate.””
Richard stared at the person he thought he knew.
“Why?””
Victoria’s voice broke.
“Because I loved you.””
Richard shook his head.
“No.””
She looked at him.
“I did.””
“No.””
His voice was quiet.
“Love doesn’t look like this.””
The words destroyed her.
Before anyone could respond, Richard’s phone rang.
Unknown number.
Everyone froze.
He answered.
“Hello?””
For several seconds, nobody spoke.
Then Richard’s face changed.
Because the voice on the other end was old.
Weak.
But familiar.
A voice he had not heard in fifteen years.
A voice that belonged to someone who was supposed to be buried.
“Richard.””
His hand tightened around the phone.
“Who is this?””
The voice whispered:
“You finally found your daughter.””
Richard couldn’t breathe.
“No.””
The voice continued.
“And now you need to find the woman who helped me hide her.””
Richard looked around.
At Amara.
At Maya.
At Victoria.
Then the voice said the words that changed everything:
“Richard… Victoria was never my partner.””
May you like
A pause.
“She was my daughter.””
