Chapter 8: Vanessa's Last Secret
Vanessa sat in the interrogation room with her hands cuffed to the table.
Her black jacket was torn at the shoulder.
A small cut ran across her forehead.
She looked nothing like the elegant woman who had stood beside me beneath the chandeliers, waiting for me to propose.
Now she looked exhausted.
And frightened.
I entered with Detective Mitchell.
Vanessa immediately looked up.
“Marcus.””
I remained standing.
“Where are my daughters?””
“They're safe.””
“Where?””
“An ambulance took them to the police station. Daniel Brooks is with them.””
I exhaled.
“Why did you take them?””
“I didn't.””
I laughed bitterly.
“You expect me to believe that?””
“Two men broke into the townhouse. I followed them.””
Detective Mitchell placed a photograph on the table.
“Your fingerprints were found on the vehicle used to transport the children.””
Vanessa looked at it.
“Because I opened the door.””
“Why?””
“To get them out.””
I leaned forward.
“Then why didn't you call the police?””
She looked at me.
“Because one of the men was wearing a police badge.””
Detective Mitchell's expression changed.
“What?””
Vanessa nodded.
“He had an official uniform. He told Daniel Brooks there was an emergency involving Elena. When Daniel opened the door, the man hit him.””
“Did you see his face?””
“Yes.””
“Name?””
“Officer James Mercer.””
Detective Mitchell immediately wrote it down.
“I'll verify that.””
Vanessa looked at me again.
“Marcus, I know you hate me.””
“Hate isn't strong enough.””
She flinched.
“I deserve that.””
“You helped my father steal my wife.””
“I know.””
“You let my daughter believe her mother was dead.””
“I know.””
“You stood beside me while I proposed to you.””
Tears filled her eyes.
“I know.””
I slammed my hand against the table.
“Then why?””
Vanessa lowered her head.
For a long time, she said nothing.
Then she pulled something from the pocket of her jacket.
A small silver locket.
She placed it on the table.
“I found this in Richard's office.””
I opened it.
Inside was a faded photograph of a young woman holding a baby.
The woman was Catherine.
The baby was Vanessa.
On the back was a handwritten note.
My granddaughter. My second chance.
I looked up.
“Explain.””
Vanessa wiped her face.
“Richard told me my parents had died when I was a baby. He said he raised me because he was my only surviving relative.””
I stared at her.
“He told you that?””
“Yes.””
“But he isn't your father.””
“No. My mother was Richard's younger sister, Elizabeth.””
I looked at Detective Mitchell.
She nodded slightly.
The family tree was becoming clearer.
Vanessa continued.
“Elizabeth was Catherine's daughter. She died when I was two. Richard took me in and raised me.””
I stared at the locket.
“So you knew about the trust?””
“Not at first.””
“When did you find out?””
“When I was twenty-four. Richard showed me Catherine's original documents. He said the family had been robbed of its inheritance and that I needed to help him recover it.””
“By helping him imprison Elena?””
Vanessa shook her head.
“He told me Elena was dangerous. He said she had stolen the documents and was planning to sell Lily to a foreign family.””
I almost laughed.
“And you believed him?””
“I was young. He had raised me. I trusted him.””
“And when did you realize he was lying?””
Her eyes filled.
“The first night I visited the chamber.””
I felt my chest tighten.
“What?””
Vanessa nodded.
“Richard took me there after Elena had been imprisoned. He told me I needed to deliver medication and food.””
I stared at her.
“You knew where she was?””
“Yes.””
“Every single day?””
“No. I visited three times.””
I stood.
“You expect me to forgive you because you only visited three times?””
“No.””
“Then what do you want?””
She looked down.
“I want you to know that Elena never stopped fighting.””
I said nothing.
Vanessa continued.
“She refused to sign the trust documents. She refused to tell Richard where Catherine's original letter was hidden. And she kept telling him that Lily would eventually come home.””
I sat down again.
“Why did you stay with me?””
Vanessa looked directly at me.
“Because Richard wanted me to.””
My stomach tightened.
“He wanted you to marry me?””
“Yes.””
“Why?””
“Because the marriage would give him access to your personal assets and allow him to consolidate control over the family company.””
I remembered the ring box.
The flowers.
The guests.
The perfect evening.
It had all been a business transaction to him.
Vanessa leaned forward.
“But there was another reason.””
I waited.
“Richard wanted me to become Ava's legal guardian if anything happened to you.””
My blood went cold.
“What?””
“He had already prepared the paperwork. After the wedding, he planned to convince you to sign a new estate agreement.””
I shook my head.
“He wanted custody of Ava?””
Vanessa nodded.
“He wanted both girls.””
“Why?””
“Because Lily controls the trust. Ava is your biological daughter. And Richard believes your daughters together can restore his control over the company.””
I stared at her.
“He's insane.””
Vanessa looked toward Detective Mitchell.
“There's something else. Richard has a second facility.””
The detective leaned forward.
“Where?””
“Under the old Reynolds estate. It's connected to the medical basement through a service tunnel.””
“What's inside?””
Vanessa hesitated.
“Records. Original birth certificates. Financial documents. And people.””
I felt sick.
“People?””
She nodded.
“Richard kept people there when they refused to cooperate.””
Detective Mitchell stood.
“Why didn't you tell the police earlier?””
Vanessa looked at her.
“Because Richard has someone inside the department.””
The detective's face hardened.
“Who?””
“Captain Robert Hayes.””
Mitchell immediately stepped back.
“That's impossible.””
Vanessa shook her head.
“He has been receiving payments from Richard for years. He was the one who approved the original missing-person investigation involving Elena.””
Detective Mitchell looked toward the observation window.
Then she quietly closed the folder.
“I'm going to verify this independently.””
When she left, Vanessa turned toward me.
“Marcus, there's something I need to tell you.””
I looked at her.
“What now?””
She swallowed.
“When I helped Richard move Elena into the chamber, she told me something.””
“What?””
“She said Catherine had hidden a recording.””
I frowned.
“What recording?””
“A recording of Richard admitting what he did to Daniel.””
I leaned forward.
“Where is it?””
Vanessa looked at the locket.
“Inside this.””
I opened the silver casing again.
The photograph was attached to a thin metal backing.
I examined the edges.
There was a tiny seam.
I pressed it.
A hidden compartment opened.
Inside was a microSD card.
Vanessa nodded.
“Catherine gave it to me when I was a child. Richard never knew I still had it.””
I looked at her.
“Why keep it?””
“Because I wanted proof that he had lied about my family.””
Detective Mitchell returned with a technician.
They took the card and connected it to a secure laptop.
A recording appeared.
The date was twenty-eight years earlier.
The video showed Richard sitting in an office.
He looked younger, but his voice was unmistakable.
A second man sat across from him.
I recognized the face immediately.
Daniel Reynolds.
My real father.
Richard was speaking.
“Mother won't sign. If she transfers the trust, everything goes to you.””
Daniel replied, “Then let her make that decision.””
Richard laughed.
“You still don't understand. If she chooses you, I lose everything.””
The recording continued.
Richard leaned closer.
“Marcus will be mine. The child will never know the difference.””
I felt my stomach twist.
Then Daniel stood.
“You stay away from my son.””
Richard smiled.
“Your son?””
He opened a folder.
Inside were photographs of me as a baby.
Then he said something that made Vanessa cover her mouth.
“By the time I'm finished, he'll hate you. He'll grow up believing you abandoned him. And when he's old enough to take over the company, he'll hand everything to me.””
The recording ended.
I sat motionless.
My entire life had been designed around my father's ambition.
Then another file appeared on the card.
It was a second video.
The timestamp was fourteen months earlier.
Richard stood inside a room I recognized immediately.
The underground chamber.
Elena was sitting behind the glass partition.
Richard leaned toward the camera.
“You have one last chance. Tell me where Catherine hid the original will.””
Elena lifted her head.
“No.””
Richard sighed.
“Then your daughter will pay for your stubbornness.””
Elena looked straight at him.
“If you touch Lily, Marcus will destroy you.””
Richard smiled.
“Marcus doesn't even know who he is.””
Then he turned toward someone outside the camera.
A woman's voice answered.
“I'll handle him.””
The camera shifted.
Vanessa appeared.
But she wasn't wearing the clothes I'd seen her wear at home.
She was holding a syringe.
Elena screamed.
And the recording ended.
I slowly turned toward Vanessa.
She was crying.
“Marcus, I swear I never injected her. I switched the medication.””
I stood.
“You held a syringe over my wife?””
“I was trying to keep Richard from hurting her!””
“You expect me to believe that?””
She lowered her head.
“No.””
Detective Mitchell removed the card.
“We have enough to issue a warrant.””
Before she could finish, her phone rang.
She answered.
Her face changed immediately.
“What do you mean?””
She listened.
Then she looked at me.
“Mr. Reynolds…”
“What?””
“Richard has escaped custody.””
I stared.
“How?””
“The transport vehicle was intercepted.””
My blood ran cold.
Then her phone vibrated again.
A new message appeared.
A photograph.
My two daughters were sitting in the back seat of a black vehicle.
And beside them was a man holding a gun.
The message contained one sentence.
*BRING THE ORIGINAL WILL TO THE OLD ESTATE, OR THE GIRLS DIE.*
I looked at Vanessa.
She whispered:
“He knows we found the recording.””
Then she said something even worse.
“Marcus, he doesn't want the company anymore.””
I stared at her.
“What does he want?””
May you like
She looked toward the photograph.
“He wants to erase the entire family.””
