Chapter 6 - THE TRUTH THAT CHANGED EVERYTHING
The door opened slowly.
Too slowly.
I prepared myself.
But nobody entered.
Instead, a small envelope slid across the floor.
Then the footsteps disappeared.
I waited.
Ten seconds.
Twenty.
Nothing.
Finally, I picked up the envelope.
Lily stared.
“Who is Agent Walker?”
I didn’t answer.
Not yet.
Because the truth was complicated.
And dangerous.
I opened the envelope.
Inside was a photograph.
My old team.
A life from fifteen years ago.
And written on the back:
WE KNOW WHAT YOU DID.
Lily looked at the picture.
“Dad…”
I folded it.
“I need to tell you something.”
She looked hurt.
“Was our whole life a lie?”
That question hurt more than anything Richard had done.
“No.”
I sat beside her.
“Never.”
“Then why didn’t you tell me?”
Because I was afraid.
Because I thought leaving that life behind would protect her.
Because I thought disappearing would keep danger away.
But I was wrong.
“I wanted you to have a normal life.”
She laughed sadly.
“Normal?”
She touched the bruise on her arm.
“Dad, my husband tried to destroy me.”
I lowered my head.
She was right.
My silence had not protected her.
It had only left her alone.
“I’m sorry.”
For a moment, neither of us spoke.
Then Lily asked:
“What exactly were you?”
I looked at her.
“The person people called when things went wrong.”
She waited.
“I worked in intelligence.”
Her eyes widened.
“Like the government?”
“Yes.”
“And you just walked away?”
“Yes.”
“Why?”
I looked at the photo.
“Because your mother died.”
Lily became quiet.
“I lost enough people.”
My voice became softer.
“I didn’t want to lose you too.”
A tear rolled down her face.
“Dad…”
“I thought if I became nobody, nobody would find us.”
A phone rang.
Not mine.
Lily’s.
Unknown number.
She looked at me.
I nodded.
Answer it.
She pressed speaker.
Richard’s voice filled the room.
“Lily.”
Her face changed.
“What do you want?”
“I want this to end.”
I stepped closer.
Richard continued.
“You’re making a mistake.”
Lily’s voice shook.
“No. I made a mistake when I trusted you.”
Silence.
Then Richard laughed.
“You think your father can save you?”
I looked at the phone.
“He already did.”
Richard became quiet.
Then he said:
“Your father doesn’t know what he’s dealing with.”
I replied:
“Neither do you.”
A pause.
Then Richard whispered:
“Ask him what happened fifteen years ago.”
The call ended.
Lily slowly turned toward me.
“What happened fifteen years ago?”
I had spent fifteen years running from that question.
Now it had finally caught me.
May you like
And I knew…
The truth I buried was about to destroy everything.
