Chapter 4: The Mother’s Secret
The terrace had gone so quiet that I could hear the fountain behind me.
The same fountain where Vanessa had tried to make me disappear.
Now everyone was watching her.
Not me.
Her.
Vanessa stared at the woman standing in front of her, and for the first time since I had met her, there was no arrogance left on her face.
Only fear.
“Mom,” she whispered again.
The woman’s name was Eleanor Carlisle.
Richard’s former wife.
Vanessa’s mother.
And the woman everyone believed had left the Carlisle family five years ago.
Richard stepped forward slowly.
“Eleanor?””
She looked at him.
“I know you didn’t expect to see me.””
“No,” Richard said quietly.
“I didn’t.””
Her eyes softened for a second.
Then they hardened again.
“I didn’t expect to come back this way either.””
Vanessa shook her head.
“This is insane.””
Eleanor looked at her daughter.
“No. What’s insane is believing you could destroy people forever and never answer for it.””
Vanessa’s face turned red.
“You abandoned us.””
A painful silence followed.
Eleanor lowered the box in her hands.
“I left because I discovered what you were doing.””
The guests started whispering again.
Richard looked confused.
“What are you talking about?””
Eleanor opened the box.
Inside were old documents, photographs, and a small flash drive.
“I found these five years ago.””
She handed the first file to Richard.
He looked through the pages.
His expression changed.
“What is this?””
“Proof that Vanessa created false accounts before Michael Voss was blamed.””
Vanessa immediately shook her head.
“That’s not true.””
Eleanor turned toward her.
“I gave you a chance to tell the truth.””
Her voice cracked slightly.
“You were twenty-six years old. I thought you made one terrible mistake.””
Vanessa looked away.
“But then Michael lost everything,” Eleanor continued.
“And you didn’t care.””
Richard stared at his daughter.
“Is this true?””
Vanessa’s eyes moved around the crowd.
She was searching for someone.
Anyone.
Someone who would stand beside her.
But everyone stepped back.
Even Celeste.
Especially Celeste.
Vanessa noticed.
“You too?””
Celeste looked uncomfortable.
“I didn’t know about any of this.””
Vanessa laughed bitterly.
“Of course you didn’t.””
The cruelty in her voice made Celeste flinch.
That was when I understood something.
Vanessa didn’t just hurt strangers.
She hurt everyone who got too close.
Daniel leaned toward me.
“Are you okay?””
I nodded.
But I wasn’t.
Seeing everything exposed should have felt like victory.
Instead, I felt tired.
Because behind every document was a person.
Behind every number was a family.
Behind every lie was someone who suffered.
Eleanor looked at me.
“Emma.””
I met her eyes.
“You knew?””
She nodded.
“I knew who you were the moment I saw you tonight.””
My eyebrows tightened.
“What?””
She looked at my soaked uniform.
“I knew you were not here for money.””
A chill ran through me.
“What do you mean?””
Eleanor took a step closer.
“Your father.””
My heart stopped.
Nobody spoke about him.
Not anymore.
“My father?””
Richard looked between us.
“Eleanor, what are you saying?””
She looked at me.
“Your father was one of the people Vanessa hurt.””
The terrace blurred for a moment.
I felt like the ground moved beneath my feet.
“No.””
Eleanor’s expression softened.
“I’m sorry.””
I shook my head.
“No. My father died from a heart attack.””
“I know.””
“Then why are you saying this?””
Eleanor looked down.
“Because the stress that caused his collapse started when he discovered the foundation’s missing money.””
My hands went cold.
I remembered my father sitting at the kitchen table months before he died.
The unpaid bills.
The sleepless nights.
The way he kept saying everything would be okay.
I always thought he was protecting me from ordinary problems.
I never knew he was fighting a war.
Vanessa suddenly spoke.
“Don’t listen to her.””
Everyone turned.
She looked desperate now.
“She’s lying because she hates me.””
Eleanor stared at her.
“I spent five years trying to forgive you.””
Her voice trembled.
“I wanted to believe my daughter wasn’t capable of this.””
Vanessa’s eyes filled with anger.
“And now?””
Eleanor looked at the documents.
“Now I know I was wrong.””
A phone suddenly rang.
Everyone looked around.
It was Daniel’s.
He answered.
“Yes?””
His expression changed.
He walked a few steps away.
Then he returned.
“Emma.””
Something about his voice made my stomach tighten.
“What happened?””
Daniel looked at Vanessa.
Then at Richard.
“The police found another file.””
Vanessa froze.
“What file?””
Daniel didn’t answer her.
He looked at me.
“A file connected to your father.””
My breath caught.
“What?””
May you like
Daniel lowered his voice.
“And there’s something inside that changes everything.””
