Chapter 7: The Truth About My Father
I wish I could say I immediately screamed.
I wish I could say I threw something.
I wish I could say I hated Emma in that moment.
But the truth was worse.
I felt nothing.
My mind simply stopped working.
“You were driving?””
Emma nodded.
Tears rolled down her face.
“I was nineteen.””
I stared at her.
“Nineteen.””
The word sounded strange.
Like I was repeating something from a different life.
“You told me Dad fell asleep at the wheel.””
“I know.””
“You told me the accident wasn’t anyone’s fault.””
“I know.””
My voice became quieter.
“You let me believe that for six years.””
Emma covered her face.
“I was scared.””
I laughed.
Not because anything was funny.
Because the situation was impossible.
Everyone I trusted had been carrying pieces of the truth while I lived inside a lie.
Gregory watched us.
Enjoying it.
That was when my anger returned.
Not toward Emma.
Toward him.
“You knew.””
Gregory looked at me.
“Yes.””
“How?””
“Because secrets are valuable.””
I stepped toward him.
“You used her.””
“I used information.””
“She was grieving.””
“She was weak.””
The way he said it made my blood run cold.
Not emotional.
Not guilty.
Just factual.
Like hurting people was simply a strategy.
Emma stood.
“You promised you wouldn’t tell her.””
Gregory looked at her.
“And you promised you’d help me.””
Emma’s face changed.
“You lied.””
He smiled.
“Everyone lies.””
“No.””
I looked at Gregory.
“Everyone makes mistakes.””
The room became quiet.
“But not everyone turns those mistakes into weapons.””
Daniel moved closer to Emma.
“She was manipulated.””
Gregory laughed.
“She made her choice.””
Emma looked at him.
“I trusted you.””
“And that was your mistake.””
The cruelty in his voice finally broke something inside her.
She stood straighter.
“You really are a monster.””
Gregory shrugged.
“Maybe.””
Then he looked at me.
“But monsters win.””
I walked toward the window.
Outside, the city lights blurred through the rain.
For years, I had imagined finding out what really happened that night.
I imagined answers.
Closure.
Instead, I found another betrayal.
My father died because of a moment.
A mistake.
A scared teenager making a terrible decision.
But Gregory?
Gregory built his entire life around calculated choices.
There was a difference.
I turned around.
“Tell me everything.””
Emma looked at me.
“Are you sure?””
“No.””
My voice shook.
“But I need the truth.””
She nodded.
Then she told me.
Six years earlier, she had taken my father’s car without permission.
She had been arguing with him earlier that evening.
She wanted to leave.
He followed her.
They fought inside the car.
She lost control.
The crash happened on a wet road.
My father died.
Emma survived.
But before he died, he told Daniel something.
Something that changed everything.
“What did Dad say?”” I asked.
Daniel looked at me.
“He told me to protect you.””
My eyes burned.
“He knew?””
“He knew he might not make it.””
I swallowed.
“And the company?””
Daniel opened the folder again.
“Your father created a condition.””
Rachel looked up.
“What condition?””
Daniel answered:
“The company could only transfer to someone who proved they could protect it.””
I frowned.
“Proved?””
Daniel nodded.
“He wanted to make sure whoever inherited it wasn’t controlled by greed.””
I looked at Gregory.
Suddenly everything became clear.
He didn’t just marry me for money.
He married me because he believed he could manipulate the person standing between him and a fortune.
But there was one thing he didn’t know.
My father never trusted appearances.
Neither did I.
Gregory grabbed his coat.
“I’m done with this.””
Rachel stepped forward.
“You’re not leaving.””
He smiled.
“You can’t stop me.””
Then he pulled out his phone.
And for the first time…
I saw him genuinely confident.
“What are you doing?”” I asked.
He looked at me.
“Making sure everyone knows who you really are.””
My phone buzzed.
Then Emma’s.
Then Rachel’s.
A message had been sent.
Attached was a photo.
A photo of me.
And beneath it was a caption.
*The innocent wife who destroyed her own family.*
Gregory looked at me.
“You wanted a war.””
May you like
He smiled.
“Now everyone gets to watch.””
