Chapter 14: The Last Secret Of Cross Technologies
The man standing in the doorway smiled.
Not a cruel smile.
A familiar one.
That was what made it worse.
Because I knew him.
I had shaken his hand thousands of times.
I had trusted him with my company.
My money.
My future.
My family.
“Marcus.””
Rachel looked at me.
“Your investigator?””
I could not answer.
Because the truth was standing in front of me.
Marcus Reed.
The man who helped me uncover the secrets.
The man who guided me toward the truth.
The man who always seemed one step ahead.
He lowered his weapon.
“I didn’t want it to happen this way.””
My voice was barely a whisper.
“How long?””
Marcus looked away.
“How long did you know?””
He said nothing.
That was enough.
“Since the beginning?””
His silence answered.
I felt betrayed in a way I could not explain.
Not because Marcus lied.
Because I had finally allowed myself to trust someone again.
And he had taken that trust.
“Why?””
Marcus sighed.
“Because your father gave me a choice.””
“Choice?””
“He saved my family.””
I stared.
“And in return?””
Marcus looked at Rachel.
“I was supposed to protect the research.””
Rachel stepped forward.
“You were supposed to protect children.””
Marcus looked ashamed.
“I know.””
“Then why didn’t you?””
His face hardened.
“Because by the time I understood what William Cross had created, it was too late.””
Marcus lowered the weapon.
“I tried to stop it.””
Rachel laughed bitterly.
“You helped bury it.””
“I protected Lily.””
“You hid her from her father.””
Marcus looked at me.
“I knew Daniel would destroy everything trying to expose them.””
He was right.
That was the painful part.
If I had known twelve years ago, I would have gone after every person involved.
And Lily would have become a target.
But there was a difference.
Protecting someone was not the same as deciding their entire life for them.
I stepped forward.
“You all kept saying you protected my daughter.””
My voice shook.
“But nobody asked what she wanted.””
Silence.
Because nobody had an answer.
Then the facility alarm started.
A red light flashed.
Marcus looked toward the entrance.
“What did you do?””
I stared at him.
“What?””
He looked confused.
“I didn’t activate anything.””
Rachel’s face went pale.
“They’re here.””
More footsteps.
More than one person.
Marcus immediately moved toward the door.
“Daniel, take Rachel and leave.””
I looked at him.
“Why help us now?””
He looked at me.
“Because I made a mistake twelve years ago.””
The footsteps got closer.
“And I’m tired of letting other people pay for it.””
We escaped through an underground tunnel beneath the facility.
Rachel held my hand as we moved.
For the first time in twelve years, she was beside me.
But there was no happiness.
Not yet.
Too much damage remained.
When we reached the exit, my phone rang.
Lily.
I answered immediately.
“Sweetheart?””
Her voice was calm.
Too calm.
“Dad.””
“Are you okay?””
“Yes.””
A pause.
“But I need to tell you something.””
I looked at Rachel.
“What?””
Lily took a breath.
“I found something in Grandma’s old room.””
My heart stopped.
“What?””
“A box.””
“What was inside?””
Silence.
Then:
“Pictures.””
“Of what?””
Her voice dropped.
“Of me.””
I frowned.
“What do you mean?””
“They were taken before I was born.””
Rachel froze.
I looked at her.
“That’s impossible.””
Lily continued.
“There’s also a letter.””
My hand tightened around the phone.
“Read it.””
“I did.””
“And?””
Her voice shook.
“Dad…”
“What does it say?””
A long pause.
Then:
“It says my blindness was not an accident.””
I closed my eyes.
Rachel covered her mouth.
Lily whispered:
“It says Grandma knew.””
The call ended.
And suddenly, everything we believed was still incomplete.
Because Rachel had hidden the truth.
Andrew had hidden the truth.
Marcus had hidden the truth.
But now we had to ask the hardest question.
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What if Lily’s blindness was not the result of the experiment?
What if it was the reason the experiment existed?
