CHAPTER 11: THE FATHER WHO NEVER LEFT
Marcus Thorne forgot how to breathe.
For one impossible second, the entire world stopped.
The dark office.
The dead computer screen.
The cold silence around him.
None of it mattered.
Because standing in front of him was a man who was supposed to be dead.
A man whose funeral Marcus attended fifteen years ago.
A man whose name was carved into a family memorial.
His father.
Richard Thorne.
Marcus stared.
His mind rejected what his eyes were seeing.
“No…”
The word came out as a whisper.
The man standing in the shadows slowly stepped forward.
His face had changed.
Older.
Tired.
Marked by years of hiding.
But Marcus knew those eyes.
He would recognize them anywhere.
“Dad?”
The man’s expression broke.
“Marcus.”
That voice.
The same voice that used to read him bedtime stories.
The same voice that promised:
“I’ll always protect you.”
Marcus stepped backward.
“No.”
His eyes filled with confusion and anger.
“You’re dead.”
Richard lowered his head.
“I know.”
“You’re dead.”
Marcus’s voice became louder.
“I watched them bury you.”
Richard took a painful breath.
“I’m sorry.”
“Sorry?”
A bitter laugh escaped Marcus.
“Do you have any idea what you did?”
The room became heavy.
“Do you know how many nights I wondered why you left me?”
Richard looked away.
“I never wanted you to suffer.”
“But I did!”
Marcus’s voice cracked.
“I lost my father.”
A pause.
“I lost my family.”
Another pause.
“And now I find out everyone lied to me.”
Richard looked at his son.
“I didn’t die.”
Marcus stared.
“Then why did everyone believe you did?”
Richard’s answer was quiet.
“Because I needed them to.”
Ten minutes later, Marcus, Richard, and Victor sat in the private office.
The impossible meeting.
The meeting that should never have happened.
Marcus stood far away from his father.
Not because he hated him.
Because he didn’t know how to feel.
“You have five minutes.”
Richard nodded.
“That’s fair.”
Marcus crossed his arms.
“Start talking.”
Richard looked at the old family photograph on the desk.
“Fifteen years ago, I discovered that someone inside my company was stealing millions.”
Marcus nodded.
“I know.”
Richard looked surprised.
“You know?”
“Clara told me.”
The color disappeared from Richard’s face.
“Clara is alive?”
“Yes.”
Richard closed his eyes.
“Thank God.”
Marcus noticed.
“You thought she was dead?”
Richard nodded.
“Victor made sure everyone who knew the truth disappeared.”
The room became silent.
Marcus stared.
“Victor?”
Richard looked at him.
“Yes.”
“Why?”
“Because Victor wasn’t stealing money.”
A pause.
“He was trying to take everything.”
Marcus felt his stomach tighten.
Richard continued.
“He created a network of fake companies. He moved money slowly. Carefully.”
“And Isabella?”
Richard’s expression changed.
“She was part of it from the beginning.”
Marcus looked down.
“I know.”
Richard shook his head.
“No, Marcus.”
His voice became serious.
“You don’t know the worst part.”
At the hospital, Khloe sat awake.
She couldn’t sleep.
Not after everything.
Not after learning that the people around Marcus had been hiding secrets for years.
She touched her stomach.
“Baby…”
Her voice trembled.
“I promise I’ll protect you.”
A knock came at the door.
She looked up.
“Come in.”
Detective Lauren Hayes entered.
“We need to talk.”
Khloe immediately became alert.
“What happened?”
The detective closed the door.
“We found another piece of evidence.”
“What kind?”
Lauren placed a small envelope on the table.
“This was found inside Isabella Rossi’s apartment.”
Khloe looked confused.
“Why would you show me?”
“Because your name is inside.”
Khloe opened the envelope.
Inside was a handwritten note.
Her face changed as she read it.
Khloe Thorne must disappear before the baby is born.
Her hands began shaking.
“She wanted to kill me?”
Lauren quickly responded.
“We don’t know if that was the final plan.”
Khloe looked up.
“What does that mean?”
The detective hesitated.
“The note was written six weeks ago.”
A pause.
“Before Isabella even knew about the hospital attack.”
Khloe felt cold.
“Then what was she planning?”
Lauren looked at her.
“Something bigger.”
Back in the office, Marcus demanded the truth.
“What is the worst part?”
Richard looked at his son.
“Victor wasn’t working alone.”
Marcus froze.
“Who else?”
Richard took a deep breath.
“Your mother.”
Marcus closed his eyes.
Again.
Another betrayal.
“But she said she didn’t kill you.”
Richard nodded.
“She didn’t.”
A pause.
“She tried to stop Victor.”
Marcus looked confused.
“What?”
“Your mother discovered what Victor was doing.”
“Then why did she hide everything?”
“Because Victor threatened you.”
Silence.
“He told her if she exposed him, you would be next.”
Marcus felt the anger inside him weaken.
For the first time, he saw something different.
Not betrayal.
Fear.
“She protected me?”
“Yes.”
Richard looked down.
“She made terrible choices.”
A pause.
“But she was trying to keep you alive.”
Marcus didn’t know what to feel.
His entire life had been built on half-truths.
Suddenly, Marcus’s phone rang.
Victor.
Everyone in the room became silent.
Marcus stared at the screen.
Richard whispered:
“Don’t answer.”
Marcus looked at him.
“Why?”
“Because he knows.”
“Knows what?”
Richard’s expression changed.
“He knows you found me.”
The phone kept ringing.
Marcus answered.
“Hello?”
Victor’s voice came immediately.
“Where are you?”
Marcus stayed silent.
Victor continued.
“You saw something you weren’t supposed to see.”
Marcus looked at Richard.
Then replied:
“You mean the truth?”
A long pause.
Victor laughed softly.
“So you found him.”
Marcus’s grip tightened.
“You knew?”
“Yes.”
The answer shocked him.
“You knew my father was alive?”
Victor’s voice remained calm.
“I knew everything.”
Marcus felt anger rising.
“Why?”
Victor answered:
“Because your father made one mistake.”
“What mistake?”
“He thought hiding the truth would protect you.”
A pause.
“But secrets don’t protect people.”
Marcus listened.
“They destroy them.”
Then Victor said something that made everyone freeze.
“Your father may have survived fifteen years ago…”
A pause.
“But he won’t survive tonight.”
The call ended.
Marcus immediately stood.
“What did he mean?”
Richard’s face turned pale.
Then suddenly…
The lights in the building flickered.
A loud alarm sounded.
And from outside the office…
A scream echoed through the hallway.
Someone had found them.
And whoever came for Richard…
May you like
Was not planning to let him leave alive.
TO BE CONTINUED...
