Chapter 5: The Drive in the Dark
The storage unit was located on the oldest side of the city, in a place where the buildings looked forgotten and the streets became empty after sunset.
My father used to bring me here when I was a child.
Not to this exact unit.
But to this neighborhood.
He would point at the old warehouses and tell me stories about inventors who started with nothing but an idea and refused to give up.
Back then, I thought he was just teaching me about science.
Now I realized he was teaching me about himself.
About the kind of man he was.
A man who believed doing the right thing mattered even when nobody was watching.
The storage facility was quiet when Alexander, Ethan, and I arrived.
I still wasn’t completely comfortable having Alexander there.
Not because I didn’t trust him.
Because I didn’t know if I could.
His family name was connected to my father’s betrayal.
Even if Alexander was telling the truth, he was still a Cross.
And my family had learned the hard way that names carried weight.
“You don’t have to come inside,” I told him.
Alexander looked at me.
“Yes, I do.””
“Why?””
“Because if Robert knows about this place, you’re not the only person in danger.””
Ethan adjusted his wheelchair.
“Funny how everyone keeps saying we’re in danger after we spend years being kept in the dark.””
Alexander looked at him.
“You’re right.””
That surprised me.
Most wealthy people I had met didn’t admit mistakes easily.
Alexander did.
Maybe that was why I listened.
Maybe that was why I followed him inside.
The manager gave us the unit number after I showed him the key.
Unit 314.
My father’s number.
I almost smiled.
Of course it was.
He always hid meaning in everything.
The lock clicked open.
The door rolled upward.
Dust filled the air.
For a moment, nobody moved.
Inside was a piece of my father’s life.
Old research equipment.
Boxes of notebooks.
Photographs.
A broken chair from the first laboratory he ever rented.
Ethan looked around.
“He kept all this?””
I nodded.
“He never threw anything away.””
Alexander stepped inside slowly.
His expression changed when he saw a framed picture on the shelf.
It was my father standing beside a younger version of Alexander.
And another man.
Charles Cross.
“My father,” Alexander said quietly.
I watched him.
“You knew him.””
“Yes.””
“Was he always like this?””
Alexander looked at the picture.
“Like what?””
“Someone who would betray people for money.””
He was quiet.
Then he answered.
“No.””
That surprised me.
“My father wasn’t born cruel. He became obsessed with winning.””
He looked down.
“And sometimes people lose themselves chasing success.””
I didn’t know whether to believe him.
But I understood something.
Monsters rarely start out looking like monsters.
Ethan found the first clue.
“Claire.””
I turned.
He held a small metal box.
On the lid were my father’s initials.
T.B.
My hands trembled as I opened it.
Inside was a flash drive.
A single piece of paper.
And a note.
Claire,
The truth cannot be destroyed if someone is brave enough to carry it.
My eyes filled.
That was my father.
Even when he was afraid, he was still trying to inspire someone else.
Alexander picked up the flash drive.
“This is it.””
Before we could celebrate, the lights went out.
Everything became dark.
Then came the sound.
Footsteps.
Someone else was inside.
Ethan moved closer to me.
“Claire.””
“I know.””
A flashlight appeared near the doorway.
A man stepped inside.
Not security.
Not an employee.
Someone I recognized.
Robert.
My uncle.
For a second, my brain refused to accept what my eyes were seeing.
“Robert?””
He looked older.
Tired.
But there was no surprise on his face.
He knew we would be there.
“I was hoping you would never find this.””
My stomach dropped.
“You knew about the storage unit.””
“Yes.””
“Then why didn’t you take it?””
Robert looked at the flash drive.
“Because your father was smarter than me.””
The honesty almost made me angry.
“You admit it?””
His face hardened.
“Claire, you don’t understand.””
“No.””
I stepped forward.
“I understand perfectly.””
“You think this is about money?””
“Isn’t it?””
His jaw tightened.
“You have no idea what I sacrificed.””
I laughed bitterly.
“You sacrificed my father.””
Silence.
Robert looked away.
And that was when I knew.
Not because Alexander told me.
Not because my mother told me.
Because my uncle couldn’t look me in the eyes.
“You were there,” I whispered.
Robert’s expression changed.
“I tried to stop it.””
“Who?””
“Your father.””
My heart broke.
“You’re saying you tried to stop Dad?””
“Yes.””
“Then why did he die?””
Robert looked at the floor.
“Because Charles Cross wasn’t the only person willing to destroy lives.””
A cold feeling moved through me.
“Who else?””
Robert didn’t answer.
Instead, he looked at Alexander.
“You should ask your father’s son what he really knows.””
Alexander stepped forward.
“Don’t.””
Robert laughed sadly.
“You still protect him?””
“No.””
Alexander’s voice was calm.
“I protect the truth.””
Robert looked at the three of us.
Then he said something I would never forget.
“Your father didn’t die because he failed.””
He paused.
“He died because he succeeded.””
May you like
The lights suddenly flickered back on.
And Robert was gone.
