Chapter 6: The Friend Who Betrayed Me
I stared at the letter until the words blurred.
The man you trust most.
There were only a few people in my life who had earned that title.
My business partners.
My closest friends.
The people who stood beside me when Cross Technologies was nothing more than an idea written on a napkin.
But one person stood above all of them.
Someone who had been there the day Lily was born.
Someone who helped me survive after Rachel died.
Someone who knew every secret I had.
Andrew Vale.
My oldest friend.
My company’s first investor.
Lily’s godfather.
I felt sick.
“No,” I whispered.
I wanted the letter to be wrong.
I needed it to be wrong.
Because Andrew was family.
The next morning, I went straight to his office.
He looked surprised when I entered.
“Daniel?””
Andrew smiled.
The same smile I had trusted for years.
“What brings you here?””
I placed Rachel’s letter on his desk.
The smile disappeared.
Only for a second.
But I saw it.
And that was enough.
“You know what this is.””
Andrew sat down slowly.
“Where did you get that?””
I stared at him.
“Answer my question.””
He looked at the letter.
Then at me.
“Daniel…”
“Did you know Rachel was investigating Hawthorne Academy?””
Silence.
“Did you?””
Finally, he sighed.
“Yes.””
My chest tightened.
“Why didn’t you tell me?””
“Because she asked me not to.””
“Why?””
Andrew looked exhausted.
“Because she was scared.””
“Of who?””
He didn’t answer.
I stepped closer.
“Was it you?””
His eyes lifted.
Pain crossed his face.
“No.””
“Then tell me the truth.””
He stood.
“I was trying to protect you.””
I laughed bitterly.
“Protect me?””
I pointed toward the door.
“My daughter was targeted at school.””
His expression changed.
“She’s okay?””
“She was humiliated. Threatened. Someone broke into her records.””
Andrew became pale.
“What?””
I watched him carefully.
“You already knew.””
His face told me everything.
“Daniel…”
“How long?””
He looked down.
“How long have you known someone was looking for Lily?””
He didn’t answer.
I walked around his desk.
“Twelve years?””
Andrew closed his eyes.
And that was when I knew.
“I didn’t betray you.””
His voice was quiet.
“I saved your life.””
I stared at him.
“Explain.””
Andrew opened a drawer.
Inside was another folder.
He placed it on the desk.
“After Rachel died, I found this.””
I opened it.
Inside were documents.
Medical records.
Research papers.
Names.
And at the center of everything was Lily.
Andrew spoke slowly.
“Rachel discovered that certain families at Hawthorne were involved in illegal medical experiments.””
I looked up.
“What?””
“They were using donations and research programs to cover it.””
My hands tightened around the folder.
“And Lily?””
Andrew swallowed.
“Lily was part of the research.””
My heart stopped.
“No.””
“Daniel, listen.””
“No.””
I pushed the folder away.
“My daughter is not an experiment.””
“I know.””
His voice cracked.
“I know.””
He looked at me.
“Rachel found out that Lily’s blindness was not caused by genetics like they claimed.””
The room became silent.
“What are you saying?””
Andrew looked at the documents.
“She believed Lily was harmed because of what they were testing.””
I felt the world shift.
For twelve years, I believed Lily was born blind.
I believed it was something we simply had to accept.
But now someone was telling me something impossible.
Someone had caused it.
My phone rang.
Unknown number.
Again.
I answered.
A voice spoke.
“You found the letter.””
I froze.
“Who is this?””
The person ignored the question.
“You’re looking in the wrong direction, Daniel.””
I looked at Andrew.
“What do you want?””
A pause.
Then:
“I want you to ask your friend why he erased the truth about Lily’s birth.””
My eyes locked onto Andrew.
The caller continued.
“Because he didn’t save your daughter.””
The line went silent.
And for the first time in twelve years…
May you like
I wondered if the person standing beside me had been protecting Lily…
or hiding her from me.
