Chapter 8: The Last Person Beside My Father
Nobody moved.
The message on my phone sat there like a countdown.
Ask her who she was with when your father took his last breath.
I didn’t need to ask who the question was meant for.
Everyone was looking at Vanessa.
Including Vanessa.
She stood perfectly still, but her eyes gave her away.
Fear.
Not guilt.
Not exactly.
Fear.
And somehow, that made it worse.
Because guilt meant I already knew the truth.
Fear meant there was something much bigger waiting behind it.
I lowered my phone.
“Answer me.””
Vanessa swallowed.
“Marcus…”
“No.””
My voice cut through the room.
“No more protecting me.””
She looked at me.
“I never wanted to hurt you.””
“That’s not an answer.””
Her lips trembled.
“I was there.””
The words were quiet.
But they destroyed whatever hope I had left.
The room seemed to shift.
I looked at Thomas.
Then Robert.
Then Vanessa.
“You were with my father when he died.””
She nodded.
“Yes.””
I took a step back.
“Twelve years.””
A bitter laugh escaped my mouth.
“Twelve years, and you watched me grieve someone while knowing you were there.””
“I was trying to tell you.””
“When?””
Her eyes filled.
“Many times.””
“Really?””
I pointed toward the papers.
“Because from where I’m standing, you spent years building a secret life.””
Vanessa closed her eyes.
“I was scared.””
“Of what?””
She opened her eyes.
“Of what would happen if I told you.””
I stared at her.
“My father was already dead.””
“No.””
Her voice became stronger.
“Your father’s enemies were still alive.””
The room went quiet.
That sentence changed something.
Because she wasn’t talking about the past.
She was talking about now.
I looked toward the door.
The person outside.
The unknown sender.
The person who knew exactly what was happening inside this house.
“What happened that night?””
Vanessa looked at the floor.
“I went to meet your father because he called me.””
“Why you?””
“Because he knew I had the documents.””
“The original ownership records.””
“Yes.””
“And what did he want?””
She hesitated.
“He wanted to return them.””
My eyebrows tightened.
“Return them?””
“He wanted you to have the truth.””
I looked at the letter in my hand.
“Then why write your name?””
Vanessa’s face changed.
“I don’t know.””
Nobody spoke.
That answer wasn’t enough.
I stepped closer.
“My father didn’t write random things.””
“I know.””
“Then why would he warn me about you?””
She looked broken.
“Because he thought I betrayed him.””
The words hung in the air.
“Did you?””
Vanessa looked at me.
“No.””
The answer came immediately.
But this time, I didn’t know whether to believe her.
Thomas walked toward us.
“Marcus, you need to understand something.””
I looked at him.
“What?””
“Your father died before he finished writing that letter.””
I frowned.
“What are you saying?””
Thomas pointed toward the paper.
“Look at the handwriting.””
I looked down.
The final lines were different.
The pressure of the pen changed.
The letters became uneven.
My father had been writing quickly.
Like he was running out of time.
Thomas continued.
“Your father wasn’t calmly documenting events.””
He looked toward Vanessa.
“He was trying to leave you a warning before someone stopped him.””
A cold feeling moved through me.
“Someone stopped him.””
Nobody answered.
Then the knock came again.
Louder.
Everyone looked toward the door.
Whoever was outside was no longer waiting.
Robert moved toward the entrance.
I grabbed his arm.
“No.””
He looked at me.
“We can’t just stand here.””
“We can.””
I stared at the door.
“Because whoever is out there wants us to open it.””
Robert looked surprised.
For years, he had been the man with the plans.
The advisor.
The protector.
But now I was seeing things differently.
Everyone had been moving pieces around me.
Not anymore.
My phone vibrated.
Another message.
*Smart choice.*
My blood ran cold.
They were watching.
I typed back.
*Who are you?*
The reply came.
*Someone who knows your father’s final mistake.*
I looked at Vanessa.
“What mistake?””
She looked confused.
“I don’t know.””
The response appeared.
*He trusted the wrong person.*
I stared at the screen.
Then another message.
*And you married her.*
My eyes moved to Vanessa.
She saw the message.
Her face changed.
“Marcus…”
“Who sent this?””
“I don’t know.””
I believed her.
And that scared me.
Because if Vanessa wasn’t behind it…
Who was?
Julian stepped forward.
“My mother.””
Everyone turned.
“What?””
He looked at Evelyn.
“She has been trying to find those records for years.””
Evelyn’s expression hardened.
“Watch yourself.””
Julian ignored her.
“You said this was about justice.””
His voice shook.
“But you never told me you were willing to destroy innocent people.””
Evelyn stared at her son.
“You’re becoming weak.””
Julian’s face tightened.
“No.””
He shook his head.
“I’m finally seeing clearly.””
I looked at him.
“You knew my father?””
Julian hesitated.
“My father worked for yours.””
Another connection.
Another secret.
“Doing what?””
Julian looked at the floor.
“Security.””
The room became silent.
My eyes narrowed.
“Security?””
“Yes.””
“And your father was there the night mine died?””
Julian didn’t answer.
He didn’t need to.
I looked at Evelyn.
“Your family has been connected to mine for years.””
“Yes.””
“And everyone has been lying to me.””
Her expression was cold.
“Because your father built his empire on lies.””
I shook my head.
“You still haven’t answered the question.””
“What question?””
“Who killed him?””
The room went silent.
Even Evelyn stopped.
Then Thomas spoke.
“I know who.””
Everyone turned.
Thomas reached into his coat again.
This time, he pulled out an old police report.
“I found this hidden in your father’s private records.””
He placed it on the table.
The report was dated the day my father died.
I picked it up.
At first, I saw nothing unusual.
Then I reached the witness section.
My fingers froze.
Because there was only one name.
One person who had reported seeing my father alive that night.
Vanessa.
I looked up.
“You were the witness.””
She nodded.
“Yes.””
“Then why did you never tell anyone?””
Her voice broke.
“Because I didn’t see everything.””
“What did you see?””
She looked at me.
And I knew.
Whatever came next would change everything.
“I saw your father arguing with someone.””
“Who?””
She looked toward Robert.
My chest tightened.
“No.””
Vanessa shook her head.
“Marcus…”
“No.””
I looked at Robert.
The man who had protected me.
The man who had hidden my father’s letter.
The man who had stood beside my family for decades.
“Was it you?””
Robert looked devastated.
“No.””
His answer came instantly.
But then Vanessa spoke.
“It wasn’t Robert.””
I exhaled.
Relief.
Then she continued.
“It was someone else.””
I waited.
“Someone who had access to everything.””
“Who?””
Vanessa looked at the door.
At the person waiting outside.
Then back at me.
“Someone who knew your father’s schedule.””
My heart started pounding.
“Someone inside the company.””
She nodded.
“Someone who knew where every document was kept.””
The room became silent.
Then my phone buzzed one final time.
A video file appeared.
No message.
Just a recording.
The timestamp was twelve years old.
The night my father died.
I pressed play.
The screen showed my father’s old office.
The image was blurry.
But clear enough.
My father was standing there.
Alive.
Arguing with someone off camera.
Then a voice spoke.
A voice I recognized immediately.
A voice that made every person in the room freeze.
Because it belonged to someone standing beside me.
My father said:
“I trusted you like family.””
The other person answered:
“You should have known better.””
Then the camera turned slightly.
Revealing the person my father was speaking to.
I dropped the phone.
Because the person in the video…
Was Robert.
And before the screen went black, my father said one final sentence:
“After everything I did for you…”
May you like
A pause.
“Why are you trying to take my son’s life away?””
