Chapter 5: The Voice of a Dead Man
The storage unit door opened slowly.
Nobody moved.
Not Daniel.
Not Lauren.
Not Mr. Henry.
Not me.
The metal handle lowered another inch.
My heart slammed against my ribs.
My father’s voice was still echoing in my mind.
Don’t trust Daniel.
Do not let Lauren find the original will.
The problem was, I didn’t know who to trust anymore.
The man who raised me had lied to me.
The sister who shared my childhood had attacked me.
The brother I never knew existed had walked into my life carrying twenty-eight years of anger.
And now someone was standing outside the door.
Someone who had been listening.
Daniel moved first.
He grabbed my arm and pulled me behind him.
“Stay back.””
I almost laughed.
“Why should I trust you?””
His eyes met mine.
For a second, I saw hurt.
Then it disappeared.
“You shouldn’t.””
The honesty surprised me.
“But right now, whoever is outside is more dangerous than me.””
The door opened wider.
A figure appeared in the entrance.
A man in a dark raincoat.
Older.
Tall.
Holding an umbrella.
I recognized him immediately.
My father’s attorney.
Richard Hale.
I had seen him at family gatherings for years.
He was the man Dad trusted with every legal document.
The man who had helped him buy the estate.
The man who had stood beside Lauren at business dinners.
“What are you doing here?”” I asked.
Richard looked around the storage unit.
Then his eyes landed on the boxes.
His expression changed.
Only for a second.
But I saw it.
Fear.
“Emma.””
His voice was calm.
Too calm.
“You need to leave.””
I stepped out from behind Daniel.
“Why?””
“Because you have no idea what you’re involved in.””
I stared at him.
“That’s becoming a common phrase today.””
Richard ignored the comment.
“Where is the letter?””
My body went still.
“What letter?””
The smallest hesitation crossed his face.
Enough.
He knew.
He knew exactly what was here.
Daniel noticed too.
“You’re not here to help her.””
Richard looked at Daniel.
“No one asked for your opinion.””
Daniel’s expression hardened.
“You always did like pretending you were protecting Charles.””
Richard stepped inside.
“You have no idea what I protected.””
The words sounded like a warning.
Not a defense.
I looked between them.
“You all know something I don’t.””
Nobody answered.
That was the problem with secrets.
The people keeping them always seemed to forget what it felt like to be outside.
I walked toward Richard.
“My father called me.””
The room went silent.
Richard’s face changed.
“What?””
“He told me not to trust Daniel.””
Daniel looked at me sharply.
“And?””
“And he told me not to let Lauren find the original will.””
Richard’s expression became unreadable.
Then he whispered:
“He’s alive.””
It wasn’t a question.
It was confirmation.
My stomach dropped.
“You knew?””
Richard looked away.
“Not exactly.””
“Don’t lie to me.””
“I suspected.””
“Everyone suspected everything except me.””
My voice cracked.
“My whole life, everyone made decisions around me because apparently I couldn’t handle the truth.””
Richard looked at me.
“Emma—”
“No.””
I shook my head.
“I want answers.””
The rain outside grew louder.
Richard sighed.
Then he closed the storage unit door behind him.
“We don’t have much time.””
Daniel stepped forward.
“What does that mean?””
“It means if Charles called her, then he knows we found this place.””
Daniel’s eyes narrowed.
“We?””
Richard didn’t answer.
That answer bothered me.
I looked at Lauren.
She had been silent the entire time.
Too silent.
“Lauren.””
She looked at me.
“What?””
“Why is he here?””
Her face tightened.
“I don’t know.””
Richard looked at her.
And the look between them lasted less than a second.
But it told me everything.
They knew each other’s secrets.
“You do know,” I said.
Lauren looked away.
“Emma.””
“No.””
I pointed at both of them.
“I am done being the only person in the room who doesn’t understand what’s happening.””
Nobody spoke.
Then Daniel walked toward one of the boxes.
He picked it up.
“This.””
Inside was another envelope.
My father’s handwriting.
But this one wasn’t addressed to me.
It said:
*Daniel.*
Daniel froze.
For the first time since I met him, his confidence disappeared.
He slowly opened it.
I watched his eyes move across the page.
Then his face changed.
“What?””
He didn’t answer.
“Daniel?””
He folded the letter.
“You shouldn’t read this.””
That made me angry.
“Are you serious?””
He looked at me.
“This is between me and my father.””
I laughed bitterly.
“Your father?””
The words came out sharper than I intended.
But I couldn’t stop.
“You just found out I exist as your sister. I just found out you exist as my brother. And somehow everyone still has a secret document except me.””
Daniel looked away.
For a moment, I thought he might apologize.
Instead, he handed me the letter.
I opened it.
Daniel,
If you are reading this, then I failed to tell you the truth myself.
My hands shook.
I spent twenty-eight years believing I could fix what I broke.
I looked at Daniel.
He was staring at the floor.
When I left your mother, I convinced myself it was temporary. I told myself I would return when I was ready.
A painful expression crossed Daniel’s face.
But fear became distance. Distance became years.
I kept reading.
I was wrong.
The next line made me stop.
I was not the father you deserved.
Nobody spoke.
The letter continued.
But I need you to understand something. I never abandoned you because I didn’t love you.
Daniel closed his eyes.
I abandoned you because someone convinced me that staying would destroy your life.
I looked up.
“Someone?””
Daniel took the letter from my hand.
He read the sentence again.
Then he looked at Lauren.
Her face went pale.
“No.””
Daniel stepped toward her.
“Who convinced him?””
Lauren shook her head.
“I don’t know.””
“You do.””
“I don’t!””
Her voice broke.
For the first time, she looked genuinely terrified.
Richard stepped between them.
“That’s enough.””
Daniel stared at him.
“You.””
The word was quiet.
But everyone heard it.
Richard’s face changed.
Daniel pointed at him.
“You were there.””
Richard didn’t respond.
“You were the lawyer.””
Still nothing.
“You were the one who told my father leaving was the only option.””
Richard’s silence became an answer.
My chest tightened.
I looked at him.
“Is that true?””
Richard looked exhausted.
“I did what I thought was necessary.””
Nobody moved.
“What does that mean?””
He looked at me.
“Your father was being threatened.””
“By who?””
Richard hesitated.
Then:
“By someone close to him.””
My eyes moved toward Lauren.
She looked away.
“No.””
The word escaped before I could stop it.
Because I didn’t want it to be true.
Not because I trusted her.
Because I couldn’t accept that my entire family had been built on lies.
Richard reached into his briefcase.
He pulled out a file.
“I came here because Charles left instructions.””
“For what?””
“To reveal the truth if anything happened to him.””
Daniel looked at the file.
“What’s inside?””
Richard opened it.
Photographs.
Bank records.
Messages.
And one document on top.
A copy of a police report.
My blood went cold.
The name at the top wasn’t Lauren.
It wasn’t Daniel.
It was mine.
I grabbed it.
“What is this?””
Richard looked at me.
“Your father discovered someone had been using your identity.””
I stared at the page.
Impossible.
“What?””
“Someone opened accounts in your name.””
The room blurred.
“Why?””
Richard didn’t answer.
Because he knew the answer.
I looked at Lauren.
She looked horrified.
Not guilty.
Horrified.
Then my phone buzzed.
A message appeared.
Unknown number.
One sentence.
My hands began shaking.
Because whoever sent it knew where I was.
*Stop searching for the truth, Emma. Your father died trying to protect you. You will die doing the same thing.*
I looked up.
Everyone saw my face.
Daniel took the phone from my hand.
Mr. Henry whispered:
“Someone is here.””
A sound came from outside.
A car door closing.
Then another.
Richard looked toward the storage unit entrance.
And for the first time all day…
He looked afraid.
“Everyone leave.””
Daniel frowned.
“Why?””
Richard grabbed the file.
“Because the people who killed Charles are not coming for the will anymore.””
A pause.
“They’re coming for the last person who knows where it is.””
I swallowed.
“Who?””
May you like
Richard looked directly at me.
“You.””
