Chapter 2: The Secret Beneath the Old Man’s Hands
The stranger never finished his sentence.
Vincent crossed the room before anyone else could move.
One second he was beside his table.
The next, his hand was around the man’s wrist, forcing the photograph away from his fingers.
The diner gasped.
“Easy,” Vincent said.
His voice was quiet.
That made it worse.
People feared Vincent when he yelled.
They feared him more when he didn’t.
The stranger stared at him.
“You’re Vincent Maddox.””
Vincent tightened his grip.
“You came into my diner looking for him. You tell me why.””
The man looked toward Elias.
“My name is Raymond Cole.””
Elias went completely still.
Margaret noticed.
“Elias?””
The old man’s face changed.
Not fear.
Recognition.
A painful kind of recognition.
Vincent released Raymond’s wrist but didn’t step away.
“Who are you?””
Raymond rubbed his arm.
“I was there the night your father disappeared.””
The room went silent again.
Vincent’s jaw tightened.
“Everyone was there, apparently.””
Raymond ignored the sarcasm.
“Your father trusted the wrong people.””
Elias slowly stood.
“Raymond, you need to leave.””
Vincent turned toward him.
“No.””
Elias looked confused.
“Mr. Maddox…”
“You came into my life asking for my food, then someone walks in saying he knows why my father vanished. Nobody leaves until I get answers.””
Margaret looked between them.
“Elias, what is he talking about?””
The old man closed his eyes.
For a moment, he looked older than he had five minutes earlier.
“I wanted to tell you.””
Margaret’s expression hurt.
“Tell me what?””
Elias looked down.
“That I wasn’t always just an old man trying to survive.””
Raymond stepped closer.
“He was your father’s closest friend.””
Vincent stared at Elias.
“My father had friends?””
A bitter laugh escaped him.
“Interesting. I spent my childhood hearing he was a selfish coward who walked away. Now suddenly everyone knew him?””
Elias flinched.
Because Vincent’s anger wasn’t aimed at him.
It was aimed at twenty years of unanswered questions.
“I knew your father,” Elias said softly.
“Then why didn’t you find me?””
The question hung in the air.
Elias looked away.
And that silence was an answer.
Vincent’s face hardened.
“You knew where I was.””
“I knew where you lived.””
“And you did nothing?””
Margaret looked at her husband.
“Elias…”
He whispered.
“I was protecting you.””
Vincent laughed once.
There was no humor in it.
“People always say that after they disappear.””
The old man reached into his pocket and pulled out a small envelope.
It was worn and yellowed.
He placed it on the table.
“Your father gave me this.””
Vincent stared at it.
The handwriting on the front was unmistakable.
His father’s.
His hands suddenly felt heavier.
“Why do you have this?””
Elias looked at him.
“Because Daniel Maddox knew someone was trying to kill him.””
Nobody moved.
The words were too large for the small diner.
Vincent slowly picked up the envelope.
“My father was murdered?””
Raymond answered.
“Yes.””
Vincent looked at him.
“Who?””
Raymond’s eyes moved toward Elias.
The old man looked terrified.
“Don’t,” Elias whispered.
But Raymond continued.
“The same person who ruined both our lives.””
Vincent opened the envelope.
Inside was a single piece of paper.
Only one sentence was written.
I know who betrayed me.
And below it was a name.
Vincent read it.
Then read it again.
Because it made no sense.
The person responsible was someone Vincent had trusted for years.
Someone who had helped build the Iron Wolves.
Someone who had stood beside him through every battle.
His hands curled around the paper.
“What is this?””
Elias looked at the name.
His face drained of color.
“I was hoping you would never find out.””
Vincent looked up.
“Tell me.””
Elias shook his head.
“You don’t understand what you’re about to open.””
Vincent stepped closer.
“My whole life has been a locked door.””
His voice dropped.
“I’m done knocking.””
Elias stared at him.
Then he whispered:
“Your father didn’t disappear because someone wanted him gone.””
A pause.
“He disappeared because he found out what your family was hiding.””
Before Vincent could respond, every phone in the diner buzzed at the same time.
Everyone looked down.
A message had been sent to every customer inside.
Vincent’s phone lit up too.
One photo.
One sentence.
The photo showed Vincent’s father standing beside Elias Carter.
May you like
And the sentence underneath read:
*Ask the old man why he let Daniel Maddox die.*
