Chapter 5: The Woman Who Knew Daniel
I didn’t speak for several seconds.
The woman’s breathing came through the phone.
Heavy.
Afraid.
“Who are you?””
“My name is Rachel.””
“Rachel what?””
She hesitated.
“I can’t say that over the phone.””
I looked at my father.
He immediately understood something was wrong.
“Put it on speaker.””
I did.
Rachel continued.
“Emily, you need to listen carefully.””
My hands tightened around the phone.
“Tell me what you know.””
“I worked at Daniel’s old company.””
My father stepped closer.
“What company?””
Rachel went quiet.
Then answered.
“Carter Financial Solutions.””
My blood froze.
My father’s face changed.
“That company was mine.””
Rachel continued.
“Daniel wasn’t just an employee.””
I swallowed.
“What was he?””
A long pause.
Then:
“He was stealing.””
The kitchen became silent.
My first instinct was disbelief.
“No.””
Rachel’s voice softened.
“I know it’s hard to believe.””
“You’re lying.””
“I wish I was.””
My father grabbed the documents from the table.
“What did he steal?””
“Money.””
“How much?””
Rachel gave a number.
My knees almost gave out.
“Hundreds of thousands.””
I looked at my father.
Four years ago.
The same time we stopped speaking.
The same time Daniel entered my life.
Suddenly, everything felt connected.
My father noticed my expression.
“Emily.””
I shook my head.
“No.””
Because I remembered.
The day I met Daniel.
He knew my last name.
He knew my father was a colonel.
He knew things he shouldn’t have known.
I had thought it was coincidence.
Maybe it wasn’t.
Rachel spoke again.
“Daniel found out you were Colonel Carter’s daughter.””
I felt sick.
“What?””
“He changed after that.””
My voice became quiet.
“He changed how?””
“He started asking questions about your family. About your father’s finances. About your inheritance.””
My father closed his eyes.
Pain crossed his face.
“Why didn’t you tell me?””
I whispered.
My father looked at me.
“I tried.””
The memories came rushing back.
The warnings.
The arguments.
The day I told him I didn’t want to hear another word about Daniel.
I had thought he was judging me.
But maybe he had been trying to protect me.
Rachel continued.
“Emily, Daniel didn’t marry you because he loved you.””
The words hit harder than the belt.
“He married you because he thought you were the easiest way to get close to your father again.””
I felt tears in my eyes.
“No…”
My father placed a hand on my shoulder.
Not the injured one.
The safe one.
“Sweetheart.””
I looked at him.
“I defended him.””
My voice cracked.
“I defended him against you.””
My father shook his head.
“You were in love.””
“I called you controlling.””
“You were hurt.””
“I stopped speaking to you.””
His eyes filled.
“And I waited.””
That broke me.
Because he had waited.
Even when I pushed him away.
Even when I refused to listen.
He waited.
The front door suddenly slammed.
Everyone turned.
Daniel stood there.
My heart stopped.
He looked different.
Not angry.
Desperate.
“What are you doing here?”” my father asked.
Daniel ignored him.
His eyes went straight to me.
“Emily.””
I stepped back.
“What do you want?””
His face softened.
“I want to talk.””
“No.””
“Please.””
I almost laughed.
“Please?””
The same man who hurt me was asking me for kindness.
Daniel looked at my father.
“You don’t understand what’s happening.””
My father’s voice was cold.
“I understand enough.””
Daniel stepped closer.
“Emily, your father is manipulating you.””
I stared at him.
“You broke my phone.””
His face changed.
“You’re twisting things.””
“You hit me.””
“I lost control.””
“You hurt me.””
He looked away.
And that one second told me everything.
There was no apology.
Only regret that he had been caught.
Then Daniel said something unexpected.
“You think I’m the only one who lied?””
My body went still.
“What does that mean?””
He looked at my father.
“Ask him about the night your mother died.””
My father froze.
The room became silent.
I looked between them.
“My mother?””
Daniel smiled faintly.
“You deserve to know the truth, Emily.””
My father’s face turned pale.
“Don’t.””
But Daniel continued.
“Your father didn’t tell you everything.””
May you like
And suddenly, the man I had called for rescue…
was hiding something too.
