Chương 6
David closed his eyes.
The guilt on his face was almost unbearable to watch.
"I should have listened to her."
Emily shook her head.
"Dad."
"No."
His voice cracked.
"I was so focused on building the company and protecting everyone financially that I stopped seeing what was happening right in front of me."
He looked at his daughter.
"I lost your mother."
He paused.
"And then I lost you."
Emily felt tears forming again.
"But you didn't know."
David looked at her.
"Someone made sure I didn't."
The words carried a quiet anger.
Not the kind of anger that exploded.
The kind that grew from years of pain.
Victoria remained silent near the bookshelf.
For the first time, she looked older.
The confidence she had carried for years was fading.
"Where is the rest of the file?" David asked.
Victoria looked at him.
"What?"
"The rest of Sarah's notes."
"There were more pages?"
David stepped closer.
"You expect me to believe you only found these?"
Victoria looked away.
That small movement told him everything.
"You kept them."
Victoria did not answer.
"Where are they?"
Her silence became confirmation.
Emily watched her carefully.
"Why would you hide them?"
Victoria finally looked at her.
"Because I was trying to protect you."
Emily's expression changed.
"You don't get to say that anymore."
Victoria looked hurt for a moment.
Only for a moment.
"You have no idea what I sacrificed."
Emily took a breath.
"I know what I lost."
The room became quiet.
"I lost my father."
She looked toward David.
"I lost my home."
Then she looked back at Victoria.
"I lost years believing I was unwanted."
Victoria lowered her eyes.
David noticed something.
A small hesitation.
A small sign that Victoria was no longer completely certain of her own story.
"Take us to the documents."
Victoria looked at him.
"David."
"Now."
She stared at him for several seconds.
Then she walked toward the far side of the library.
Behind a large painting was a hidden compartment built into the wall.
Emily watched in disbelief.
"You hid them here?"
Victoria opened the compartment.
Inside was a small metal box.
She removed it carefully and placed it on the desk.
David stared at it.
"What else have you hidden in this house?"
Victoria did not respond.
The question remained unanswered.
David opened the box.
Inside were dozens of papers.
Photographs.
Bank records.
Letters.
And a small voice recorder.
Emily immediately noticed it.
"What is that?"
Victoria looked nervous.
David picked it up.
"This was Sarah's."
Emily looked at him.
"How do you know?"
"She used one exactly like this when she recorded ideas for her research."
David examined the device.
There was a small label attached.
Sarah's handwriting appeared again.
For David.
Only when the truth is unavoidable.
Nobody moved.
The message felt like a warning from the past.
David pressed the button.
At first, there was only static.
Then a familiar voice filled the room.
Sarah.
Emily covered her mouth.
She had not heard her mother's voice in years.
David closed his eyes.
The pain of hearing someone he lost came rushing back.
"David," Sarah's recorded voice said.
"If you are hearing this, something has happened."
A pause followed.
"I need you to listen carefully."
Everyone in the room remained silent.
"I discovered that money has been moved through accounts connected to the company."
David looked down.
"I first believed it was an internal mistake."
Sarah continued.
"But the more I investigated, the more I realized someone was intentionally hiding information."
A sound of paper moving could be heard in the recording.
"I don't know who I can trust anymore."
Emily looked at Victoria.
Victoria looked uncomfortable.
"David, if you hear this, please understand something."
Sarah's voice became softer.
"I never wanted to leave you."
David's face changed.
Emily looked at him.
"I never wanted Emily to grow up without her father."
Tears filled David's eyes.
"But someone convinced me that you were in danger."
The room became completely still.
"What?" David whispered.
Sarah continued.
"I was told that if I exposed what I found, our family would be destroyed."
A long pause followed.
"I believed I could fix it myself."
David looked at the recorder.
"Sarah..."
"But I was wrong."
The recording became quieter.
"If anything happens to me, the person who benefits most from my silence is not the person you think."
Everyone froze.
Emily felt a chill move through her.
"What does that mean?"
The recording continued.
"David, look at the people who knew about the investigation."
Another pause.
"Look at the people who had access."
Then the recording ended.
The silence afterward felt even louder.
David stared at the device.
The message had created more questions than answers.
Victoria slowly stepped back.
"You see why I didn't want you to hear that."
David turned toward her.
"No."
His voice was calm.
"I see why you didn't want me to know."
Victoria's expression hardened.
"You don't understand."
"Then explain."
She looked at Emily.
"I was trying to keep her alive."
Emily froze.
"What?"
Victoria took a breath.
"After Sarah died, I found out someone was still looking for those documents."
David stared at her.
"Who?"
Victoria shook her head.
"I don't know."
"Then how do you know Emily was in danger?"
"Because someone broke into this house."
Emily's face changed.
"When?"
"The night before you left."
David looked confused.
"Why didn't you tell me?"
Victoria looked away.
"Because I found out something else."
"What?"
Victoria hesitated.
"Someone had been following Emily."
A cold feeling moved through the room.
Emily remembered moments from her past.
The feeling of being watched.
The strange phone calls.
The unknown cars near her apartment.
She had always thought she was imagining things.
"Why didn't you tell me?" David asked again.
Victoria looked at him.
"Because I didn't know if I could trust you."
David stared at her.
The answer hurt more than he expected.
"You thought I was involved?"
May you like
Victoria said nothing.
And that silence was enough.
