Chapter 5 - THE LETTER THAT CHANGED EVERYTHING
I reached my mother's room first.
She was standing beside her wheelchair.
Something was wrong.
The letter.
The old letter.
It was gone.
I looked around.
"Where is it?"
Nobody answered.
"Where is the letter?"
Clara looked confused.
"I had it in my hand."
My mother's face was pale.
Then I noticed something.
The window.
It was open.
The curtains moved slightly.
Someone had been inside.
My security system was supposed to make that impossible.
I immediately grabbed my phone.
"Call security."
Clara looked worried.
"Bennett..."
I ignored her.
"Now."
Within seconds, three security officers entered the room.
The head of security, Marcus, looked at me.
"Sir?"
"Someone entered this room."
He checked the window.
"No signs of forced entry."
I stared at him.
"Then someone opened it."
Nobody spoke.
Because everyone understood what that meant.
The person who took the letter knew this house.
Knew the security.
Knew the family.
I turned toward my mother.
"Who else knows about Rose?"
Her silence answered before her words did.
"Very few people."
"Names."
She looked exhausted.
"Bennett..."
"Names."
Finally, she whispered.
"Your father's old attorney."
"Who else?"
"Elias."
"Anyone else?"
She hesitated.
That hesitation scared me.
"Mother."
Her voice dropped.
"Your uncle."
I froze.
"My uncle died fifteen years ago."
She looked at me.
"No."
My stomach tightened.
"What?"
"He didn't die."
The room went completely silent.
I stared at her.
"Explain."
My mother's hands shook.
"Your father told everyone he left the country."
"But?"
"But he stayed."
I felt the room spinning.
"Where?"
My mother looked toward the door.
Like she was afraid someone might hear.
"He changed his name."
I stepped closer.
"Who?"
My mother's voice became almost a whisper.
"Victor Hale."
I knew that name.
Everyone did.
Victor Hale.
The man who was believed to have disappeared after a financial scandal.
The man whose existence was erased from our family history.
The man my father never mentioned.
"You're telling me my uncle is alive?"
My mother nodded.
"And he knows about Clara?"
"Yes."
"Why?"
Her eyes filled with tears.
"Because Victor was the reason Rose disappeared."
Clara covered her mouth.
"No..."
I looked at my mother.
"What did he do?"
She didn't answer immediately.
And that scared me more.
Finally, she said:
"He threatened her."
My blood went cold.
"Why?"
My mother looked at Clara.
"Because Rose knew something about your father."
"What?"
My mother whispered:
"She knew where the money came from."
The room changed.
This was no longer about an affair.
No longer about a hidden daughter.
This was bigger.
Much bigger.
My family's empire had a secret foundation.
And someone was willing to hurt people to protect it.
That night, I couldn't sleep.
At 3:00 a.m., I went downstairs.
I found Clara sitting in the kitchen.
She looked exhausted.
"You should sleep."
She looked up.
"Funny."
"What?"
"Your mother says the same thing."
For the first time, I almost smiled.
Almost.
I sat across from her.
"I owe you an apology."
She looked surprised.
"For what?"
"For not seeing you."
Clara lowered her eyes.
"You didn't know."
"I should have."
She shook her head.
"Bennett, you were trying to save your mother."
I looked at her.
"With money."
She didn't disagree.
After a moment, she asked:
"Do you hate him?"
"Who?"
"My father."
I didn't answer.
Because the truth was complicated.
I hated what he did.
But I still missed the father I thought I knew.
Clara understood.
"You know what hurts the most?"
"What?"
"Growing up knowing someone existed who should have loved you..."
She paused.
"...and realizing they chose not to."
That sentence stayed with me.
Then my phone rang.
Again.
Unknown number.
I answered.
This time, there was no warning.
Only a voice.
An old voice.
A familiar voice.
"Bennett."
I froze.
Because I recognized it.
"Uncle Victor?"
A quiet laugh.
"Your mother finally told you."
I stood.
"Where are you?"
"Somewhere your father once trusted."
"Why did you take the letter?"
Silence.
Then:
"Because that letter would destroy your family."
I tightened my grip.
"You mean expose the truth."
"No."
His voice became colder.
"Expose what your mother did."
My heart dropped.
"What are you talking about?"
Victor whispered:
May you like
"Ask your mother why Rose never got to see her daughter again."
The call ended.
