Chapter 8: The Message She Deleted
Darius didn’t speak.
He couldn’t.
Ava’s words replayed in his mind.
“In Mommy’s phone.””
Three simple words.
But they created another crack in a story that was already falling apart.
Simone looked at Ava.
Not angry.
Not anymore.
Just scared.
“Ava…”
The little girl stepped closer to her father.
“I saw it by accident.””
Darius crouched.
“Tell me what you saw.””
Simone immediately interrupted.
“Darius, she’s a child.””
He looked up.
“And she’s the only person who has been honest tonight.””
The sentence hurt.
Everyone knew it.
Ava looked down.
“I wasn’t trying to look.””
Darius softened.
“I know.””
“I was playing a game on her phone.””
Simone closed her eyes.
Darius noticed.
“You gave her your phone?””
Simone nodded slowly.
“Yes.””
“When?””
“Last week.””
“Why?””
No answer.
Again.
No answer.
Darius stood.
“Why does every question lead to silence?””
Simone whispered.
“Because I was scared.””
“Of what?””
She looked toward Ava.
Then away.
“I didn’t want her involved.””
Darius looked at his daughter.
Neither did he.
But she already was.
Ava pointed toward the photograph.
“That person sent Mommy messages.””
Darius felt his chest tighten.
“What kind of messages?””
Ava hesitated.
“I don’t know.””
Then she added quietly:
“But Mommy cried after reading them.””
The room became still.
Darius looked at Simone.
“You cried?””
Simone didn’t deny it.
“Yes.””
“Why?””
She looked exhausted.
“Because I knew everything was going to come out eventually.””
Marcus stepped forward.
“Darius…”
“No.””
Darius held up his hand.
“I want her to answer.””
Marcus stopped.
Darius looked at Simone.
“Who was messaging you?””
Her face changed.
And Darius knew.
The answer was someone important.
Someone connected.
“Tell me.””
Simone swallowed.
“It was someone from before.””
“Before what?””
“Before us.””
Darius shook his head.
“That’s not enough.””
He walked toward the box.
“You kept a room full of secrets.””
He lifted the phone.
“You hid a fake pregnancy.””
He pointed toward Marcus.
“You had someone from your past appear at my house.””
Then he looked at Ava.
“And my daughter saw messages you didn’t want me to see.””
His voice lowered.
“What exactly am I missing?””
Simone sat down.
For the first time all night, she looked completely defeated.
“There was a reason I came into your life.””
The words made Darius stop.
“What does that mean?””
She looked up.
“I didn’t plan to fall in love with you.””
The room went quiet.
Darius stared.
The sentence hurt in a way he didn’t expect.
Because he had spent years believing their relationship was the one honest thing in his life.
Simone continued.
“At first, you were just part of a plan.””
A painful silence followed.
Darius looked away.
“Part of a plan.””
She nodded.
“Yes.””
Marcus looked down.
Even he looked uncomfortable hearing it.
Darius laughed softly.
A broken sound.
“Wow.””
Simone reached toward him.
He stepped back.
“No.””
Her hand stopped.
“I’m sorry.””
“Sorry for what?””
“For how it started.””
Darius looked at her.
“And how did it end up?””
She couldn’t answer.
That was the answer.
Ava watched her father carefully.
She didn’t understand everything.
But she understood pain.
Darius walked toward the desk inside the room.
He looked through the items.
Then he found something.
A small phone.
Old.
Hidden beneath the documents.
He picked it up.
Simone immediately stood.
“No.””
Darius looked at her.
“Why?””
She froze.
He turned it over.
“It’s yours.””
She didn’t respond.
“Isn’t it?””
Slowly, she nodded.
Darius pressed the power button.
The screen turned on.
No password.
It opened.
The last message was still there.
A conversation.
With the same person from the photograph.
Darius read the first line.
His face changed.
Because the message was not from years ago.
It was recent.
Sent only three days before the banquet.
The message said:
*“The pregnancy lie won’t protect you forever. Tell Darius the truth before I do.””*
Darius looked up.
“Who sent this?””
Simone’s eyes filled with fear.
She whispered one name.
And this time, Darius recognized it.
Because that person had been standing beside him tonight.
Not as a stranger.
Not as an enemy.
May you like
But as someone he trusted.
“Marcus.””
