Chapter 11: The Brother’s Final Secret
I stared at the message until my hands started shaking.
My father’s number.
Impossible.
But there it was.
A message from the man who had been buried for eight months.
Ethan saw my face.
“What happened?””
I turned the phone toward him.
His expression changed instantly.
“No.””
“What?””
He took a step closer.
“That’s not possible.””
I pulled the phone away.
“Neither is you being alive.””
Nobody spoke.
The silence was unbearable.
Michael sat down.
“This changes everything.””
I looked at him.
“No.””
I shook my head.
“It changes nothing.””
I looked at Ethan.
“Start talking.””
He didn’t move.
“Ryan…”
“Tell me why my dead father just warned me about you.””
Ethan looked broken.
Not guilty.
Broken.
“I don’t know.””
“That’s not good enough.””
He looked at Michael.
Then at the letter.
Then back at me.
“There are things Dad never told you.””
I laughed.
“Apparently, there are things nobody told me.””
Ethan took a deep breath.
“The photo Mills showed you was real.””
My chest tightened.
“You were working with him.””
“Yes.””
The honesty surprised me.
“Why?””
“To get close to him.””
I stared.
“That’s your explanation?””
“It’s the truth.””
He walked toward the table.
“Mills was careful. He didn’t trust anyone. The only way to find evidence against him was to make him believe I was helping him.””
“So you became his partner?””
“I became his enemy from the inside.””
I looked at Michael.
“Did Dad know?””
“Yes.””
Michael answered before Ethan could.
“Thomas knew everything.””
“Then why did he write that message?””
Nobody answered.
That was when I noticed something.
The message timestamp.
It wasn’t sent today.
It had been scheduled.
My father recorded it before he died.
Someone had activated it.
I looked at the others.
“Someone wants me to distrust Ethan.””
Ethan looked at me.
“Exactly.””
Michael stood.
“Ryan, think.””
I looked again at the phone.
My father’s final warning.
But my father was also the man who left Ethan’s name in his investigation.
The man who trusted Michael.
The man who hid the truth.
I didn’t know what was real anymore.
Then Diane spoke.
“I know who sent it.””
Everyone turned.
She looked exhausted.
“I saw Mills with your father’s phone.””
My eyes narrowed.
“When?””
“The night Thomas died.””
The room froze.
Mills wasn’t just connected.
He had access.
“You watched him?””
Diane looked ashamed.
“Yes.””
“Why?””
She looked down.
“Because I was scared.””
“Of Mills?””
She nodded.
“He threatened me.””
The woman who stole my home.
The woman I hated.
Was admitting she was also trapped.
“What did he threaten you with?””
Diane swallowed.
“Your father had proof of my financial crimes.””
I stared.
“So you did steal from him.””
“Yes.””
The answer came quickly.
No excuses.
“I took money.””
“Why?””
Her eyes filled with tears.
“Because Mills told me if I didn’t help him, he would expose me.””
I looked at Ethan.
Then Michael.
Then Diane.
Everyone was guilty of something.
But who killed my father?
Diane continued.
“Thomas found out everything.””
“Everything?””
She nodded.
“He knew about Mills.””
She looked at Ethan.
“He knew about Ethan.””
Then she looked at me.
“And he knew the truth about your arrest.””
I stepped closer.
“What truth?””
Diane whispered:
“You weren’t the target.””
The room went silent.
“What?””
She looked terrified.
“They wanted to destroy Ethan.””
My brother looked down.
“They used you to get to him.””
I stared at Ethan.
“Why?””
His voice was barely audible.
“Because I had the evidence.””
“What evidence?””
He reached into his jacket.
For a moment, I thought he was going to pull out another secret.
Another lie.
Instead, he pulled out a small memory card.
“Everything Mills did.””
My heart started racing.
“Why didn’t you give this to police?””
Ethan looked at me.
“Because the police were never protecting us.””
I took the memory card.
“Then why show me now?””
Before he could answer, the warehouse lights went out.
Darkness swallowed the room.
A second later—
A gunshot echoed.
Someone screamed.
When the lights returned, Ethan was on the floor.
May you like
Blood spread across his shirt.
And the memory card was gone.
