Chapter 11: The Voice in the Video
Nobody spoke after Darius showed them the message.
The impossible name remained on the screen.
A name connected to the past.
A name connected to the one mystery Darius had never solved.
His sister.
But not just his sister.
The person everyone believed was responsible for her disappearance.
Marcus stared at the phone.
“This can’t be real.””
Darius looked at him.
“Why?””
Marcus hesitated.
“Because that person shouldn’t be able to send anything.””
Darius felt a chill.
“So you know who it is.””
Marcus looked away.
Again.
That answer was becoming unbearable.
Darius turned toward Elena.
“Play the video.””
Elena nodded.
They moved into the office.
The room was large and quiet.
The same room from the photograph.
The same room where secrets had been hidden.
Darius connected the flash drive to his computer.
Everyone waited.
The screen opened.
One video file.
No title.
No date.
Just a single recording.
Darius clicked.
The screen went black.
Then a familiar voice filled the room.
A voice he had not heard in years.
“Darius.””
He froze.
Nobody had to tell him.
He knew.
Immediately.
It was her.
His sister.
His hand moved toward the desk for support.
Ava looked up at him.
“Dad?””
He didn’t answer.
Because hearing her voice was worse than any secret.
It brought everything back.
The memories.
The questions.
The pain.
On the screen, his sister appeared.
Older than the last picture he had of her.
Tired.
Serious.
But alive.
“If you’re watching this, it means things have gone wrong.””
Darius stared.
Her voice continued.
“I wanted to tell you myself.””
She paused.
“I wanted to come home.””
Darius closed his eyes.
A tear escaped before he realized it.
Simone looked away.
His sister continued.
“But I couldn’t.””
The room stayed silent.
“She made a mistake.””
Darius opened his eyes.
The video showed a document on a table.
A signature.
A date.
“I discovered something that put people I loved in danger.””
Darius leaned closer.
“What?””
His sister continued.
“Darius, you always believed people were either good or bad.””
The words hurt because they were true.
“But life isn’t that simple.””
The video shifted.
A second person appeared.
A person Darius recognized.
Someone from his own family.
His face changed.
“No.””
Simone looked at him.
“Darius…”
He ignored her.
The video continued.
“Someone close to us was using our family.””
Darius stared.
His sister’s voice became softer.
“I tried to stop it.””
A document appeared.
A financial record.
Names.
Numbers.
Transactions.
Darius couldn’t understand everything.
But he understood one thing.
Someone had been moving money.
Someone had been hiding things.
Someone close.
The video continued.
“I asked Simone to help me.””
Everyone looked at Simone.
Darius turned slowly.
“You helped her?””
Simone nodded.
“Yes.””
“Why didn’t you tell me?””
“Because your sister asked me not to.””
His anger returned.
“She disappeared.””
“I know.””
“And you stayed quiet?””
Simone’s eyes filled.
“She made me promise.””
Darius looked back at the screen.
His sister continued.
“If Simone is with you when you see this, it means she kept her promise.””
Darius stared.
The words felt impossible.
Because they changed everything.
Simone wasn’t only hiding something.
She had been protecting something.
His sister.
The video continued.
“But there is something else you need to know.””
The screen flickered.
His sister looked directly into the camera.
“Darius, the pregnancy story was never about a baby.””
Everyone went still.
Darius looked at Simone.
His sister continued.
“It was about getting someone to reveal themselves.””
Darius’s heartbeat increased.
“What?””
The video froze.
Then suddenly went black.
The room erupted.
“What happened?””
“Is that it?””
Darius checked the computer.
The file was corrupted.
Gone.
He looked at Elena.
“What did you do?””
“Nothing.””
Marcus moved toward the computer.
“Someone interrupted the file.””
Darius looked at him.
“How?””
Marcus pointed toward the screen.
A small notification appeared.
*Remote access detected.*
Someone had just connected to the computer.
Someone was watching them.
Darius grabbed his phone.
Another message appeared.
This time, no hidden number.
No mystery.
Just four words.
*“You’re too late, Darius.””*
Then a second message arrived.
A photo.
Darius opened it.
His face turned pale.
Because the picture showed Ava.
May you like
Standing outside the mansion.
Alone.
