Chapter 6: The Name Hidden in the Past
The phone remained pressed against my father’s ear.
But he no longer looked like a businessman.
He looked like a man hearing a ghost.
“Tell me who you are,” he demanded.
The person on the other end didn’t answer.
My father’s eyes moved to the old photograph on the desk.
The one showing him and Lucian.
The one with the message written across it.
You don’t know your daughter.
“Where are you?”” my father asked.
A pause.
Then his face turned pale.
“No.””
He ended the call.
I stared at him.
“Who was it?””
He didn’t respond.
“Dad.””
He sat down slowly.
“It was a woman.””
“What woman?””
He looked at me.
“A woman who shouldn’t be alive.””
The words made my skin crawl.
“What does that mean?””
My father rubbed his forehead.
“I don’t know.””
“That’s not true.””
He looked away.
“You know something.””
He stayed silent.
And that silence became an answer.
I stepped back.
“How many secrets are there?””
“Valeria—”
“No.””
My voice shook.
“You spent my entire life telling me you wanted to protect me. But every time something serious happens, I discover another part of the story you hid.””
My father looked devastated.
“I was trying to keep you safe.””
“From what?””
He didn’t answer.
“From what?””
Finally, he said:
“From the people who wanted to use you against me.””
The room went quiet.
I thought about Lucian.
The photo.
The phone call.
Carolina.
Everything connected somehow.
“Is this why you kept me away from the company?””
“Yes.””
“Because you knew someone might come after me?””
“Yes.””
I looked at him.
“And today I walked into your dealership without anyone knowing who I was.””
My father closed his eyes.
“I know.””
“And someone immediately treated me like I was worthless.””
His expression hardened.
“Carolina was wrong.””
“She was.””
I looked toward the window.
“But maybe she showed me something important.””
“What?””
“What happens when nobody knows my last name.””
My father didn’t respond.
Because he knew I was right.
The next morning, we returned to the dealership.
Not because of Carolina.
Because of the mystery behind her.
The moment we entered, everyone became silent.
Carolina was waiting.
She looked different.
The arrogance was gone.
She looked exhausted.
“Mr. Moretti.””
My father stopped.
“Where is Lucian?””
Her eyes moved away.
“I don’t know.””
“You called him.””
“No.””
“Then who called you yesterday?””
She hesitated.
“I already told you. I don’t know.””
I stepped forward.
“Carolina.””
She looked at me.
For the first time, she looked ashamed.
“I owe you an apology.””
I said nothing.
She continued.
“What I did was wrong.””
“Yes.””
She nodded.
“I judged you.””
“Yes.””
Her eyes lowered.
“I thought money determined value.””
A long silence followed.
Then she whispered:
“I was wrong.””
I believed she meant it.
But my father wasn’t finished.
“Why did you say you removed Valeria for a reason?””
Carolina looked nervous.
“Because someone instructed me.””
The room froze.
“Who?””
“I don’t know his name.””
My father stepped closer.
“Describe him.””
She swallowed.
“He contacted me three months ago.””
“What did he want?””
“Information.””
“About what?””
Carolina looked at me.
“About your daughter.””
My heart sank.
“Me?””
She nodded.
“He wanted to know if you visited the dealerships.””
My father’s expression changed.
“What else?””
“He wanted me to report anything unusual.””
“Why?””
Carolina looked terrified.
“Because he said…”
She stopped.
“Because he said your daughter was the only person who could expose what happened twenty years ago.””
Nobody spoke.
The words felt impossible.
Twenty years ago.
My mother.
Lucian.
The company.
All of it.
My father’s phone suddenly buzzed.
He looked at the screen.
A message.
His face changed.
“What is it?”” I asked.
He didn’t answer.
He handed me the phone.
There was only one sentence.
*If you want the truth about your mother, come alone.*
Below it was an address.
And a name.
May you like
A name my father had spent years trying to forget.
*Lucian Vale.*
