Chapter 10: The Man Who Was Supposed to Be Dead
I stared at the photograph until the edges blurred.
It wasn’t possible.
It couldn’t be.
My father had been buried eight years ago.
I had stood beside his coffin.
I had watched them lower him into the ground.
Yet there he was.
Standing beside Marcus.
Alive.
Or at least looking alive.
“Daniel?””
Detective Reynolds’ voice pulled me back.
I looked at him.
“That’s my father.””
He nodded slowly.
“I know.””
“No.””
I stepped away.
“You don’t understand.””
“Then help me understand.””
I looked at the picture again.
My father, Richard Carter.
The man who raised me.
The man who taught me to ride a bike.
The man who used to tell me that family was the only thing worth protecting.
The same man standing next to the person who destroyed mine.
“This has to be fake.””
Reynolds studied the photo.
“We’re checking.””
“You need to check faster.””
My voice cracked.
“My son was kidnapped. My niece disappeared. My sister lied to me. Now you’re telling me my dead father might be alive?””
Nobody answered.
Because there was no answer.
That night, I couldn’t sleep.
Leo was finally resting in a private room with an officer outside the door.
Maya was asleep beside him in a chair, refusing to leave her brother.
I stood in the hallway, staring through the glass.
My children.
The only reason I was still standing.
Then my phone buzzed.
Unknown number.
I answered immediately.
“Hello?””
For several seconds, there was silence.
Then a voice whispered:
“Daniel.””
I froze.
I knew that voice.
I had heard it thousands of times.
“Dad?””
The hallway seemed to disappear.
A deep breath came through the phone.
“You shouldn’t have found him.””
My entire body went cold.
“You’re alive.””
“Yes.””
“How?””
“That doesn’t matter.””
“It matters to me.””
The voice stayed calm.
“You need to stop asking questions.””
A laugh escaped from me.
After everything, he was still giving orders.
“My son was under my sister’s floor.””
“I know.””
“You knew?””
“Yes.””
My hand tightened around the phone.
“You knew Leo was alive?””
“I knew where he was.””
The anger that filled me was almost impossible to control.
“You let me suffer.””
A pause.
Then:
“I protected you.””
I almost shouted.
“Protected me?””
“Yes.””
“From what?””
Silence.
That scared me more than anything.
“Dad?””
Finally, he spoke.
“From the same thing Marcus is running from.””
I looked down the hallway toward Leo.
“What thing?””
My father whispered:
“The truth about our family.””
The call ended.
I immediately called back.
Disconnected.
I ran to Detective Reynolds.
“He called.””
The detective stood.
“Who?””
“My father.””
His expression changed.
“What did he say?””
I told him everything.
When I finished, Reynolds was quiet.
Then he said:
“We need to find Richard Carter.””
I shook my head.
“How?””
The detective looked at the photo.
“We start with the past.””
The next morning, investigators searched through old records.
And they found something.
Something that made my entire childhood feel like a lie.
My father’s death certificate had been altered.
The date was real.
The hospital was real.
But the signature wasn’t.
Someone had forged the final paperwork.
“He wasn’t dead,” Reynolds said.
I stared at the document.
“Then whose body was buried?””
Nobody knew.
Or nobody wanted to say.
Later that afternoon, Elena asked to speak with me.
I almost refused.
But I needed answers.
She sat across from me.
“You talked to him.””
I froze.
“How do you know?””
Her face went pale.
“Because he called me too.””
My stomach dropped.
“When?””
“Before you arrived.””
“And you didn’t tell me?””
She looked ashamed.
“I was scared.””
I laughed bitterly.
“That’s your answer for everything.””
She looked down.
“What did he say?””
She swallowed.
“He said the family secret was about to come out.””
“What secret?””
She looked at me.
“The reason Marcus took Leo.””
I leaned forward.
“Tell me.””
She shook her head.
“I don’t know everything.””
“Then tell me what you do know.””
Her eyes filled with tears.
“Your father created the organization Marcus was working for.””
I felt numb.
“What organization?””
“A network.””
“For what?””
She whispered:
“Finding vulnerable families.””
I stared.
“No.””
“Daniel…”
“No.””
My voice broke.
“My father was a good man.””
Elena looked away.
“Maybe he was.””
The words hurt.
“Maybe?””
She took a deep breath.
“Maybe he was good before he became someone else.””
Before I could respond, every phone in the room received the same alert.
Detective Reynolds looked at his screen.
His face changed.
“What happened?””
He looked at me.
“Your father was found.””
My heart stopped.
“Where?””
The detective hesitated.
“At Elena’s old property.””
My blood ran cold.
“What?””
He continued.
“And Daniel…”
“What?””
“He wasn’t alone.””
I stood.
“Who was with him?””
May you like
Reynolds looked at the screen.
“Marcus.””
