Chapter 4: The Woman I Never Knew
The first thing Serena did was lock the basement door behind her.
The second thing she did was smile.
That was the moment I understood something terrifying.
The woman standing in front of me wasn’t afraid that I had discovered her secret.
She was afraid I had discovered only part of it.
I held the folder tighter.
“What did you do to Claire?””
Serena tilted her head slightly.
A gesture I had seen a thousand times before.
The same innocent expression she wore when she wanted people to underestimate her.
“Victor, you’re making assumptions.””
I laughed quietly.
“Assumptions?””
I lifted the file.
“You kept records about my son.””
Her eyes moved to the papers.
“You found my research.””
“Research?””
“Yes.””
She stepped closer.
“Do you know what rich families do when they want to protect their children?””
I stared at her.
“They learn everything.””
“Not like this.””
I opened another page.
There were dates.
Times.
Descriptions.
Noah’s habits.
His fears.
Even notes about the toys he played with.
A chill ran through me.
“You were watching him.””
“I was preparing for him.””
“For what?””
She didn’t answer.
That scared me more than if she had.
I walked toward the door.
“I’m calling the police.””
Serena didn’t move.
“You should hear the truth first.””
I stopped.
“You think I’ll believe anything you say?””
“No.””
Her voice became softer.
“But I think you’ll want to.””
I turned around.
She looked almost sad.
Almost human.
“I loved Claire.””
My jaw tightened.
“Don’t.””
“It’s true.””
“You destroyed her.””
Serena’s expression changed.
“Did Claire tell you that?””
The question hit me.
Because Claire couldn’t.
Claire was gone.
Serena saw my hesitation.
And she noticed.
“You never really knew what happened that night, did you?””
I said nothing.
She walked to the desk and touched one of the files.
“Claire was going to leave you.””
“No.””
“She was.””
“You’re lying.””
“Why would I lie?””
“Because you’re trying to save yourself.””
Serena looked at the floor.
Then she whispered:
“She found out what I was doing.””
“What were you doing?””
Her eyes lifted.
“Fixing problems.””
The words made my stomach turn.
“What does that mean?””
“It means Claire was emotional. She was unstable. She wanted to destroy everything because she was angry.””
“That’s not true.””
“You weren’t there.””
“No.””
I stepped closer.
“But I know my wife.””
Serena smiled sadly.
“No, Victor.””
She shook her head.
“You knew the woman she wanted you to know.””
The sentence stayed between us.
Because a small part of me feared she was right.
Claire had changed during the months before her death.
She became quieter.
More distant.
She stopped talking about the future.
I blamed grief.
Stress.
Life.
But maybe I had ignored the signs.
“What happened that night?”” I asked.
Serena looked toward the ceiling.
“She came here.””
“Why?””
“To confront me.””
“About what?””
“About the money.””
I froze.
“You admit it?””
“I admit nothing.””
“Then why mention it?””
“Because you need to understand something.””
She moved closer.
“Claire wasn’t investigating me because she hated me.””
“Then why?””
“Because she was afraid.””
“Of you?””
“No.””
She looked directly into my eyes.
“Of what I would do when I lost everything.””
The basement felt colder.
I reached for my phone.
Serena noticed.
“You already called someone?””
“No.””
“Good.””
“Why?””
“Because if you call the police, they’ll ask questions.””
“I want answers.””
“They’ll ask why Claire’s fingerprints are on documents she wasn’t supposed to have.””
My hand stopped.
“What?””
Serena walked to the desk and pulled out another folder.
She opened it.
Inside were copies of financial records.
And Claire’s signature.
My heart sank.
“No.””
“She knew.””
I stared.
“No.””
“She helped me.””
“You’re lying.””
“I’m not.””
She pushed the folder toward me.
“Your wife was not the innocent person you remember.””
I looked at the signature.
It looked like Claire’s.
But something felt wrong.
“Why show me this?””
“Because you need to understand.””
Her voice lowered.
“I didn’t hurt Claire.””
“Then who did?””
Serena looked away.
For the first time, fear appeared on her face.
Real fear.
“I don’t know.””
A sound came from upstairs.
A door closing.
We both froze.
Serena looked toward the basement stairs.
“Someone else is here.””
I immediately grabbed my phone.
But before I could call, the lights went out.
Darkness swallowed the room.
Then I heard footsteps.
Slow.
Heavy.
Coming down the stairs.
Serena whispered:
“Victor…”
I turned toward her voice.
“What?””
She sounded terrified.
“The person who killed Claire…”
A pause.
A shadow appeared at the bottom of the stairs.
May you like
Serena finished:
“They know you found the files.””
