Chapter 4: The Man Behind the Sale
“Hello, Daniel. I was wondering when you would finally come home.””
The voice coming through the speaker made my entire body go still.
I knew that voice.
Not because I heard it often.
Because I had spent years trying to forget it.
My father watched my face carefully.
He was waiting for a reaction.
A crack.
A moment where I would lose control.
But I had learned something a long time ago.
The person who stays calm is usually the person who knows the truth.
“Who is that?”” I asked.
My father smiled.
“Someone who knows exactly how this house was sold.””
The voice on the phone chuckled.
“You sound surprised, Daniel.””
I stepped closer to the table.
“Victor.””
The room became silent.
My sister Lily looked between us.
She clearly knew the name.
Mark looked uncomfortable.
My father, however, looked satisfied.
Like he had just revealed his winning card.
Victor Hale.
My father’s old business partner.
The man who had disappeared from our lives eight years ago after a failed investment destroyed their company.
The man my father always blamed.
The man he once called a thief.
And now he was somehow involved in selling my house.
“How?”” I asked.
Victor laughed softly.
“Your father never told you?””
I looked at my father.
He looked away.
That told me enough.
“Tell me what?””
Victor sighed.
“Your father came to me months ago. He needed money.””
My father immediately grabbed the phone.
“Don’t listen to him.””
I moved the phone away from his hand.
“No. Let him talk.””
Victor continued.
“He told me the house was his family property. He said you were just the name on the paperwork because of your grandmother’s trust.””
I felt my jaw tighten.
“He knew.””
Victor paused.
“Yes.””
The word landed harder than I expected.
My mother covered her mouth.
Lily looked at my father.
“Dad?””
My father’s face turned red.
“Enough.””
But Victor wasn’t finished.
“He knew exactly what the agreement said.””
I stared at my father.
All those years.
All those conversations.
Every time he told me I was lucky.
Every time he reminded me that my grandmother’s money was a gift from the family.
He knew.
He knew the house was protected.
And he still sold it.
“Why?”” I asked.
My father looked at me.
For the first time that night, he didn’t have an immediate answer.
Then he said something I would never forget.
“Because I needed to fix a mistake you didn’t know you were responsible for.””
I frowned.
“What mistake?””
Nobody spoke.
My father’s eyes moved toward Lily.
She looked down.
That was when I realized this was bigger than a vacation.
Bigger than a house.
“What did you do?””
Lily whispered, “Dad…”
My father slammed his hand onto the table.
“Don’t start acting innocent.””
My sister’s face changed.
“Excuse me?””
“You know exactly what happened.””
I looked between them.
“What happened?””
Mark suddenly stood up.
“We should leave.””
I turned toward him.
“No.””
My voice was quiet.
But everyone stopped.
“You don’t get to walk out after selling my house.””
Mark swallowed.
“You’re making this worse.””
“Worse?””
I pointed toward the documents.
“You spent money from a property you had no right to sell.””
Victor’s voice came through the phone again.
“Daniel, there’s something else you need to know.””
I pressed the speaker closer.
“What?””
“The buyer wasn’t a stranger.””
My eyes narrowed.
“What do you mean?””
Victor hesitated.
“The person who purchased your house knew there was a problem with the title.””
The room went cold.
A normal buyer would have walked away.
A normal buyer would have asked questions.
But someone had purchased a $1.2 million property while knowing the ownership was complicated.
“Who bought it?””
Victor didn’t answer immediately.
Then he said:
“The company that bought your house is called Northbridge Holdings.””
I froze.
Because I knew that name.
Everyone in my industry knew that name.
Northbridge Holdings was not a family buyer.
It was an investment company that specialized in acquiring distressed properties.
And their CEO was someone I had met before.
Someone who had a reason to want my house.
My father watched my expression.
“You know who it is, don’t you?””
I looked at him.
“Yes.””
A strange fear appeared in my father’s eyes.
Not fear of losing money.
Fear that I had figured something out.
“Who?”” Lily asked.
I slowly answered.
“Ethan Cross.””
The name changed everything.
Because Ethan wasn’t just a businessman.
He was the one person my father had spent years warning me about.
The one person he said would destroy anyone standing in his way.
And now he owned the house my family had stolen from me.
But then my phone buzzed.
A new message appeared.
Unknown Number.
I opened it.
There was only one sentence.
*Daniel, your family thinks they sold your house. They’re wrong. They sold something much more valuable.*
And beneath the message was a photograph.
May you like
A photograph taken inside my house.
Yesterday.
