Chapter 7: The Letter Meant for Diane
I read the sentence again.
Then again.
*Ryan, trust no one. Not even the person who raised you.*
My father’s handwriting.
My father’s warning.
But my father’s words felt impossible.
Because there was only one person in that room who had raised me.
Diane.
She saw the message on my phone.
Her face changed.
“Ryan…”
I stepped back.
“No.””
“Listen to me.””
“No.””
My voice was shaking.
“You don’t get to tell me what to believe anymore.””
Diane looked hurt.
For a second, I almost felt guilty.
Almost.
Then I remembered my suitcase on the driveway.
The missing pictures.
The way she looked at my father’s death like it was an opportunity.
“What did you do?”” I asked.
Her eyes filled with frustration.
“I didn’t hurt your father.””
“I didn’t ask that.””
She went quiet.
I looked at Victor.
“And you?””
Victor raised an eyebrow.
“What about me?””
“Why are you here?””
He didn’t answer immediately.
That hesitation bothered me.
Everyone had secrets.
Everyone except me.
Apparently, I was the last person to learn the truth about my own life.
Victor picked up the document from the desk.
“Your father wrote that letter because he knew this moment would happen.””
“What moment?””
“The moment when the people around you started fighting over what he left behind.””
“I’m not something to fight over.””
“No,” Victor said.
Then he looked at Diane.
“But there are things connected to you that are worth a lot of money.””
My stomach tightened.
“Money?””
Diane looked away.
Victor continued.
“Your father discovered something before he died.””
“What?””
“He found evidence that someone had been moving money from his accounts.””
I stared at Diane.
“No.””
Victor nodded.
“That’s why he changed his will.””
Diane suddenly stepped forward.
“Stop lying.””
Victor looked at her.
“You’re afraid because you know I’m telling the truth.””
“I’m afraid because you’ve spent years destroying people.””
“Like you destroyed Laura?””
The room went silent.
I looked at Diane.
“What does he mean?””
She didn’t respond.
“Diane.””
Her eyes closed.
“I didn’t destroy your mother.””
“Then tell me what happened.””
She looked exhausted.
Like she had been carrying this weight for years.
“Your father met Laura before he met me.””
“I know.””
“No, Ryan. You don’t.””
She sat down.
“He met her when she was already struggling. She had problems. She made mistakes.””
Victor’s expression darkened.
“Be careful.””
Diane ignored him.
“Your father wanted to help her. He wanted to save everyone.””
“And Daniel?””
She looked at me.
“He wasn’t supposed to disappear.””
The way she said it made my blood run cold.
“Meaning?””
Before she could answer, Victor interrupted.
“Meaning your father knew the truth.””
Diane stood.
“You don’t know what he knew.””
“I know enough.””
The two of them stared at each other.
Years of hatred passed between them without a single word.
Then Diane walked toward the desk.
She picked up the sealed letter Michael had mentioned.
The one meant for her.
My father had left a message specifically for Diane.
She opened it.
Her hands trembled.
I watched her eyes move across the page.
At first, she looked angry.
Then confused.
Then terrified.
“What does it say?”” I asked.
She folded the letter immediately.
“Nothing.””
I almost laughed.
“Nothing?””
“Yes.””
“You just went pale reading nothing?””
She gripped the paper.
“This doesn’t concern you.””
Victor stepped closer.
“Read it.””
Diane looked at him.
“No.””
“Read it.””
“No.””
Then Victor pulled something from his pocket.
Another photograph.
He placed it on the desk.
Diane froze.
I picked it up.
It was my father.
Standing outside a courthouse.
Beside him was Diane.
And in the background…
Was Daniel.
A young boy.
My brother.
I looked at Diane.
“You knew where he was.””
She started shaking her head.
“No.””
“You knew.””
“No, Ryan.””
Her voice cracked.
“I knew where he was taken.””
The room went completely silent.
My heart stopped.
“What?””
Diane looked at the photograph.
“I tried to stop it.””
“Tried?””
I stepped toward her.
“What does that mean?””
She looked at me with tears in her eyes.
“The person who took Daniel…”
She swallowed.
“It was someone in this family.””
The lights suddenly flickered.
Then my phone rang.
Michael.
I answered.
His voice was urgent.
“Ryan, get out of the house.””
My stomach dropped.
“Why?””
A pause.
Then he said:
“Because someone just broke into my office.””
I looked around the room.
At Diane.
At Victor.
At the hidden box beneath my father’s floor.
May you like
And then I heard the sound of glass breaking downstairs.
Someone was already inside.
