Chapter 5 - THE NOTEBOOK THAT HID THE TRUTH
Tessa didn’t sleep.
Not because of the phone call.
Not because someone tried to scare her.
Because for the first time, she questioned everything Eda had ever told her.
The old woman who raised her in the kitchen.
The woman who taught her patience.
Kindness.
And honesty.
But apparently…
Eda had secrets.
A lot of them.
At 5:00 a.m., Tessa sat at her small kitchen table and opened the leather notebook.
The pages were worn.
Some stains were from years of cooking.
Others looked older.
Much older.
She turned through the recipes.
Simple meals.
Family dishes.
Comfort food.
Then she found something she had never noticed before.
A small symbol in the corner of one page.
A circle.
With three lines through it.
Tessa frowned.
She flipped through the notebook.
The same symbol appeared again.
And again.
Finally, she reached the last page.
There was a hidden pocket inside the leather cover.
Her hands shook.
She had owned this notebook for almost a year.
And she never knew.
Inside was a folded piece of paper.
Yellow.
Old.
She opened it.
One sentence.
If Ronan Callahan ever tastes the recipe again, the truth must come out.
Tessa stopped breathing.
Below the sentence was a name.
Not Eda’s.
Someone else’s.
Elena Callahan.
Ronan’s mother.
At 9:00 a.m., Tessa walked into Beaumont House.
Ronan was already waiting.
No security.
No assistants.
Just him.
“You found something.”
It wasn’t a question.
Tessa placed the paper on the table.
His expression changed instantly.
“Where did you get this?”
“Your mother’s name is inside Eda’s notebook.”
Ronan picked up the paper.
His hands tightened.
“My mother wrote this.”
“How do you know?”
“Because I know her handwriting.”
Silence.
Tessa watched him carefully.
“You said she died fourteen years ago.”
“Yes.”
“But this was written after?”
Ronan didn’t answer.
That was the answer.
Tessa crossed her arms.
“What happened to her?”
Ronan looked away.
For the first time, he didn’t look powerful.
He looked like a son who lost his mother.
“The official story was a car accident.”
“And you don’t believe it.”
“No.”
“Why?”
Ronan looked at her.
“Because the brakes were cut.”
Tessa went silent.
“Someone killed her?”
“Yes.”
“Who?”
Ronan’s jaw tightened.
“That’s what I’ve spent fourteen years trying to find out.”
Tessa looked at the notebook.
“And Eda knew?”
“She knew something.”
“Then why didn’t she tell you?”
Ronan stared at the paper.
“Because she was protecting me.”
A long silence followed.
Then Tessa asked:
“Why did she trust me with it?”
Ronan didn’t answer.
Because that was the question he feared most.
Why Tessa?
Why now?
Before either of them could speak, the restaurant doors opened.
A man walked in.
Expensive suit.
Calm smile.
Perfect appearance.
Ronan immediately changed.
Tessa noticed.
“You know him?”
Ronan’s voice became cold.
“Yes.”
“Who is he?”
The man approached.
“Ronan.”
He smiled.
“After fourteen years, you finally found the recipe.”
Ronan stared.
“Damian Cross.”
The man looked at Tessa.
“And I see you found someone new to protect.”
Tessa felt something was wrong.
Very wrong.
Because Ronan Callahan looked at Damian Cross the same way he looked at a loaded gun.
“Why are you here?”
Damian smiled.
“To finish what my father started.”
The room went silent.
Ronan’s eyes narrowed.
“Your father is dead.”
Damian leaned closer.
“That’s what everyone believed.”
Then he looked at Tessa.
“And apparently…”
May you like
A slow smile appeared.
“Your little waitress has the missing piece.”
