Chapter 5: The Last Appointment
I didn't leave the coffee shop with Julian.
I stood in the doorway, my phone pressed against my ear, trying to understand what my father had just told me.
"Explain that," I said.
Richard's breathing was uneven.
"Julian visited your mother the night she died.""
Julian looked at me.
His expression was unreadable.
"Why didn't you tell me?""
"I didn't want you involved in something you couldn't understand.""
"Something involving my mother?""
"Maya, please come home.""
I looked at Julian.
"Did you visit my mother that night?""
He lowered his eyes.
"Yes.""
The answer hit me harder than I expected.
"Why?""
"Because she called me.""
"About what?""
Julian stepped closer.
"She said she had found the original ownership agreement. She wanted me to collect it before Vanessa could get to it.""
I turned back to my phone.
"Dad says you're responsible for what happened.""
Richard's voice became sharp.
"Because he is!""
Julian reached for his coat.
I stepped away.
"Don't.""
He stopped.
I looked at him.
"If you knew my mother was in danger, why didn't you protect her?""
His jaw tightened.
"I arrived too late.""
"Too late for what?""
He didn't answer.
Then he said quietly, "I found her unconscious.""
The coffee shop suddenly felt cold.
"What?""
"I called emergency services. I stayed until the ambulance arrived. But by then...""
He stopped.
I couldn't finish the sentence for him.
My mother had died in a hospital three days later.
I had always been told it was a sudden medical emergency.
My father said there had been complications.
Vanessa said my mother had been under enormous stress.
Nobody ever gave me a complete explanation.
"Why didn't anyone tell me you were there?"" I asked.
Julian looked down.
"Because your father asked me not to.""
I felt the floor shift beneath me.
"Why?""
"Ask him.""
My phone was still connected.
"Dad, why did you hide this?""
There was a long silence.
Then Richard said, "Come home. I'll explain everything.""
I ended the call.
Julian handed me the velvet box.
"Take the necklace. Don't let anyone else have it.""
I looked at him.
"Can I trust you?""
He considered the question.
"I don't know if you can trust me completely. But I can tell you this: your mother was trying to protect you, and she believed the original contract was the key.""
I slipped the necklace into my bag.
Then I left.
When I arrived home, Vanessa was waiting in the living room.
She sat on the cream sofa with a cup of tea and a tablet resting on her lap.
Brielle was beside her, wearing an expensive white sweater.
My father stood near the fireplace.
"Where have you been?"" Vanessa asked.
"Meeting someone.""
"Julian Cross?""
I looked at her.
"How did you know?""
She smiled.
"Richard told me.""
My father looked uncomfortable.
Vanessa placed her cup on the table.
"That man has caused enough damage to this family.""
"Then why were you meeting him eight years ago?""
Her smile disappeared.
"Excuse me?""
"I saw the photograph in Mom's notebook.""
Richard moved toward us.
"Maya, let's not do this.""
I turned to him.
"Why did Julian visit Mom the night she died?""
Vanessa stood.
"Because he was obsessed with the company.""
"That's not what I asked.""
She crossed her arms.
"Your mother was under pressure. Julian kept pushing her to fight Richard over money. It made her sick.""
"Mom was sick before she met him?""
Vanessa looked toward Richard.
He said nothing.
Brielle put down her phone.
"Can we please stop talking about dead people? This is getting depressing.""
I stared at her.
"My mother isn't a topic you get to dismiss.""
Brielle rolled her eyes.
"She's been gone for years, Maya. We have our own lives.""
I took a step toward her.
"And you've been wearing my mother's money.""
Brielle stood abruptly.
"Excuse me?""
"Your workshops. Your collections. Your fashion trips. All paid for while I was told there wasn't enough money for my designs.""
Vanessa's voice cut through the room.
"That's enough!""
I pulled the ownership agreement from my bag.
"Then explain this.""
I placed it on the coffee table.
Richard picked it up.
His face changed as he read.
Vanessa immediately reached for the paper.
He pulled it away.
"Richard, that's an old document.""
He looked at her.
"You told me the trust was dissolved.""
"It was supposed to be.""
"Supposed to be?""
Vanessa's lips tightened.
I looked at my father.
"Mom left me sixty percent of Silverwing. You knew that.""
He sank into the armchair.
"I knew she intended to leave you something.""
"Something? It's controlling ownership.""
Vanessa walked toward him.
"Richard, don't let her manipulate you. That agreement was never properly executed.""
I pointed to the notary seal.
"Then why is it here?""
She ignored me.
"Your mother was emotional. She made decisions without considering the consequences.""
Richard stared at the document.
Then he looked at Vanessa.
"Did you tell me the trust had been dissolved?""
She hesitated.
"I told you the business had been restructured.""
"That's not the same thing.""
For the first time, I saw genuine uncertainty in my father's eyes.
Then Vanessa did something unexpected.
She began crying.
Not loudly.
Just enough for her voice to tremble.
"Richard, after everything I've sacrificed for this family, are you really going to question me because Maya found some old papers?""
My father looked at her.
I almost wanted to scream.
Eight years of manipulation, and she could still turn every accusation into a performance.
I took out my phone and opened the photograph of my mother's notebook.
"There's more.""
Vanessa stopped crying.
I showed them the picture of her outside the medical building.
Her face went completely still.
Richard looked over her shoulder.
"Where did you get that?""
"Mom kept it.""
Vanessa placed a hand against her chest.
"That photograph proves nothing.""
"Then explain why you met Dr. Reed two days before Mom died.""
My father stood.
"Vanessa?""
She looked at him.
"Richard, I was helping arrange her medical care.""
"Why didn't you tell me?""
"Because you were working!""
Her voice cracked.
Then she turned toward me.
"You have no idea what it was like taking care of your mother.""
I felt my throat tighten.
"Don't pretend you cared about her.""
Vanessa stepped closer.
"You think she was perfect? You think she didn't make mistakes? She was going to destroy this family over a business.""
I stared at her.
"She was protecting what she built.""
"She was protecting you from nothing!""
The room went silent.
I slowly lowered my phone.
Vanessa realized what she had said.
Richard turned toward her.
"What do you mean?""
She opened her mouth.
Then closed it.
I took a step forward.
"What was Mom protecting me from?""
Vanessa grabbed her purse.
"This conversation is over.""
She walked toward the staircase.
Richard followed her.
"Vanessa, come back!""
She kept walking.
Then my phone vibrated.
A message from Julian.
*I found the original medical records. The hospital has retained a copy of the admission report.*
Another message appeared.
*Your mother didn't have a sudden medical emergency. She was brought in with signs of chemical exposure.*
I stared at the screen.
Chemical exposure.
My mind immediately returned to the silver dye dripping down my face.
I typed with trembling fingers.
*What chemical?*
The reply came.
*A substance found in an industrial solvent. The same chemical used in one of Silverwing's old textile treatments.*
I felt sick.
Then another message arrived.
*Maya, I need you to understand something. Your mother may not have died from an illness.*
I looked toward the staircase where Vanessa had disappeared.
For eight years, I had believed my mother had died unexpectedly.
Now I wondered whether someone had made sure she never got the chance to tell the truth.
That evening, I sat in my mother's sewing room, examining the old files.
The necklace lay beside the laptop.
I opened the small compartment again.
The paper inside had a second line I hadn't noticed before.
The original is where the first wings were made.
I stared at the words.
Where the first wings were made.
My mother had owned a tiny studio before Silverwing became a company.
It was located above an old fabric warehouse near the river.
The building had been sold years ago.
But the workshop itself had never appeared in any of the property records.
I searched through the documents until I found a photograph of the old studio.
On the wall behind my mother was a large wooden sign.
*THE SILVERWING ROOM.*
And beneath it, hanging from a nail, was a small brass key.
I zoomed in.
The key had a distinctive black ribbon tied around its handle.
I had seen that key before.
It was in the old sewing basket.
I rushed to the attic.
The basket was still open.
I turned it upside down and examined the damaged lining.
There was a second compartment beneath the first.
Inside was a folded piece of paper.
A location.
A storage unit number.
And a handwritten warning.
*If Vanessa finds this, the original contract is no longer safe.*
I looked at the clock.
Then at my phone.
I was about to call Julian when a new message appeared.
It was from Brielle.
*You need to come downstairs. Mom found something in your mother's room.*
May you like
A second message followed.
*And Dad is furious.*
