Chapter 14: The Final Battle for My Family
I didn’t take the envelope from Victoria.
Not immediately.
Because I had learned something over the past few days.
People who offered the truth often wanted something in return.
“What do you want?””
Victoria smiled.
“Smart.””
“Answer me.””
She looked around the workshop.
“I want Teresa gone.””
I frowned.
“You’re helping me destroy your own partner?””
“She stopped being useful.””
That answer told me everything.
Victoria wasn’t sorry.
She was calculating.
“You don’t care about justice.””
“No.””
She smiled.
“I care about winning.””
I hated that she admitted it so easily.
“What’s in the envelope?””
“Evidence.””
“Against my mother?””
“Yes.””
“And against you?””
Her smile disappeared slightly.
A small crack.
But I noticed.
“I suggest you focus on Teresa first.””
I took the envelope.
But I didn’t trust her.
Not for a second.
When I returned home, Amy was waiting by the door.
She looked relieved.
Then she saw my face.
“What happened?””
I handed her the envelope.
She opened it carefully.
Inside were photographs.
Documents.
Messages.
And one recording transcript.
The first page showed communication between Teresa and Victoria.
Years of planning.
Years of manipulation.
But the final page was the one that mattered.
A statement from a witness.
Someone who had been there the night my father died.
My hands went cold.
“Who is this?””
Amy read the name.
“Thomas Reed.””
I recognized it.
My father’s old business associate.
“He saw what happened?””
I nodded.
According to the statement, Thomas had seen Victoria arguing with my father the night before his death.
He had seen Teresa arrive afterward.
And he had heard them discussing “the problem.””
The problem.
My father.
I called Daniel.
“I found more evidence.””
Within hours, he arrived.
He reviewed everything carefully.
Then he looked at me.
“Connor, this changes the case.””
“Against my mother?””
“Yes.””
“What happens now?””
“Now we stop fighting defensively.””
He placed the documents on the table.
“We go after the truth.””
The next morning, Teresa’s attorney contacted Daniel.
They wanted a settlement.
That alone told me they were scared.
The woman who had spent weeks attacking us suddenly wanted peace.
Daniel looked at me.
“They know we have something.””
I nodded.
“Will they admit anything?””
“No.””
“Then why settle?””
“Because they want to limit the damage.””
I thought about my mother.
The woman who raised me.
The woman who held me when I was sick.
The woman who also betrayed me.
I wondered if part of me would always love her.
Maybe that was the hardest part.
Not hating someone.
Loving someone who hurt you.
The settlement meeting happened in a conference room.
Teresa sat across from me.
For the first time, she looked nervous.
Not angry.
Not powerful.
Nervous.
“I never wanted this.””
I looked at her.
“Yes, you did.””
“No.””
She shook her head.
“I wanted to protect what was ours.””
“What was ours?””
She looked away.
“The family.””
I leaned forward.
“A family doesn’t need fake signatures.””
She became quiet.
“A family doesn’t steal.””
Her eyes filled.
“I made mistakes.””
I almost couldn’t believe those words.
My mother.
Admitting mistakes.
But then she added:
“But I did everything because I loved you.””
And there it was.
The excuse.
The one she had used my entire life.
Love.
I shook my head.
“No.””
Her expression changed.
“No?””
“Love doesn’t make you destroy someone.””
She looked at me.
“You’re my son.””
“And Amy is my wife.””
I paused.
“Frederick is my son.””
I pointed between us.
“You don’t get to hurt my family and call it love.””
For once, she had no answer.
The agreement was signed.
The house remained mine.
The guardianship case was dropped.
The financial investigation continued.
But one thing bothered me.
Victoria disappeared.
She was gone before authorities could question her.
And Daniel found something disturbing.
“She transferred ownership of her assets.””
“To who?””
He looked at the papers.
“Your mother.””
I stared.
“That doesn’t make sense.””
“It does if Victoria planned ahead.””
“What does it mean?””
Daniel lowered his voice.
“It means Victoria may have given Teresa everything to make sure Teresa takes the fall.””
I felt cold.
My mother wasn’t the mastermind.
She was a piece.
That night, I found a letter in my mailbox.
No return address.
No name.
Only three words on the front.
*You still don’t know.*
Inside was one photograph.
A photograph of my father.
Standing beside someone.
Someone I had never seen before.
May you like
On the back, a handwritten message waited.
*Your father had another secret.*
