Chapter 5: The Guest Who Knew Everything
My fingers went numb around the phone.
The message was still glowing on the screen.
*Stop asking questions, or your father dies.*
For a moment, I couldn’t hear anything else.
Not the whispers.
Not the music equipment being quietly moved away.
Not the nervous conversations spreading through the ballroom.
All I could hear was my own heartbeat.
My father noticed immediately.
He had spent his entire life reading people.
Especially me.
“Ethan.””
His voice was calm, but his eyes weren’t.
“What happened?””
I locked the phone screen.
“Nothing.””
The lie left my mouth before I could stop it.
And my father knew.
Of course he knew.
He had raised me.
“Don’t do that.””
His voice became softer.
“Don’t protect me by lying to me.””
That sentence almost broke me.
Because it was exactly what he had been doing for twenty-seven years.
Protecting me.
Lying to me.
Carrying everything alone.
I looked around the ballroom.
Hundreds of faces stared back.
Some looked confused.
Some looked scared.
Some looked fascinated, like this was entertainment instead of a family falling apart.
But one face mattered.
The person who sent that message.
Someone here knew.
Someone here was watching.
My grandfather stepped closer.
“What happened?””
I hesitated.
Then I showed him the phone.
The moment he read the message, his expression changed.
Not surprise.
Recognition.
That terrified me.
“You know who this is.””
It wasn’t a question.
My grandfather looked away.
My father noticed.
“Charles.””
The older man remained silent.
My father’s voice sharpened.
“Charles, who sent that?””
My grandfather finally looked at him.
“I don’t know.””
My father stared at him.
“You’re lying.””
The room became uncomfortable again.
I hated that everyone was watching.
But I also knew something.
This wasn’t just my family’s secret anymore.
Someone had threatened my father.
And whoever they were, they were close enough to see everything.
Diane suddenly stepped forward.
“This has gone too far.””
Everyone turned toward her.
She looked nervous.
Actually nervous.
“I think everyone needs to calm down,” she said.
I stared at her.
A few hours ago, she had been the loudest person in the room.
Now she wanted peace.
Interesting.
“You’re right,” I said.
She seemed relieved.
Then I continued.
“Everyone should calm down.””
I stepped closer.
“Especially the person who just threatened my father.””
The ballroom erupted.
People started whispering.
Diane’s face tightened.
“What are you implying?””
“I’m not implying anything.””
I looked around.
“I’m saying someone here knows what happened to my mother.””
Silence.
My grandfather’s eyes moved across the room.
Like he was searching.
Like he already had a suspicion.
Then his gaze stopped.
And I followed it.
At first, I didn’t understand.
He was looking at a man near the family table.
A man I recognized.
Vanessa’s uncle.
Richard Whitmore.
Diane’s older brother.
He had barely spoken all night.
That alone was strange.
Because Richard was the kind of person who normally enjoyed attention.
He was wealthy, successful, and always ready to remind people of it.
But now?
He looked uncomfortable.
Very uncomfortable.
My father noticed him too.
The change in his expression was immediate.
“Richard.””
The name came out like a warning.
Everyone turned.
Richard slowly stood.
“What?””
My father stared at him.
“How long have you known?””
Richard laughed nervously.
“Known what?””
Nobody believed him.
Not even Diane.
She looked at her brother.
“Richard?””
He ignored her.
My father took one step forward.
“You were there.””
The room went silent.
Richard’s face changed.
Just for a second.
But it was enough.
I felt my stomach drop.
“What does that mean?””
My father didn’t answer.
He looked at Richard.
“You were there the night Eleanor died.””
My entire body went cold.
Richard swallowed.
“I was part of the investigation.””
“No.””
My father’s voice was quiet.
“You were part of the problem.””
The ballroom exploded with whispers.
Diane looked between them.
“Arthur, you need to be careful.””
My father looked at her.
“Do I?””
She immediately looked away.
That small reaction told me more than words could.
I turned toward Vanessa.
She was standing near the altar.
Her face was pale.
“Vanessa.””
She looked at me.
“I didn’t know.””
The words came quickly.
Almost too quickly.
“I swear.””
I studied her face.
For the first time tonight, I didn’t know whether to believe her.
Not because she had betrayed me.
But because I was realizing I knew so little about the people around me.
My father looked at Richard.
“You knew Eleanor was going to expose the accounts.””
Richard’s jaw tightened.
“You have no proof.””
“No?””
My father reached into his jacket.
Everyone watched.
He pulled out a small folder.
My breath caught.
More secrets.
More things he had hidden.
He handed it to Claire.
“Open it.””
Claire looked confused.
But she did.
Inside were documents.
Pages.
Records.
Photographs.
She scanned the first page.
Then the second.
Her expression changed.
“What is this?””
My father looked at me.
“The reason your mother died.””
Nobody spoke.
Claire looked up.
“Mr. Bennett…”
“Read it.””
She hesitated.
Then she turned toward the crowd.
“These are financial records from twenty-seven years ago.””
She looked at Richard.
“Transfers made from Whitmore Holdings accounts.””
Richard’s face hardened.
Claire continued.
“Large amounts of money were moved through unauthorized accounts.””
Diane shook her head.
“No.””
Richard looked angry now.
“Don’t do this.””
Claire ignored him.
“The person who discovered the missing funds was Eleanor Whitmore.””
My mother.
My grandfather’s daughter.
Richard’s sister.
I looked at him.
“You stole from your own family?””
He laughed bitterly.
“You have no idea what you’re talking about.””
My father stepped closer.
“I know exactly what happened.””
Richard looked at him.
“You always thought you were better than everyone.””
My father’s expression didn’t change.
“No.””
He looked around the room.
“I just refused to become like you.””
Richard’s face turned red.
For the first time, the confident businessman disappeared.
A frightened man appeared instead.
“You think you won?””
His voice lowered.
“You have no idea what you started.””
My father immediately moved toward me.
Not away.
Toward me.
Protecting me.
Always protecting me.
“What did you do, Richard?””
Richard looked at him.
Then at me.
And smiled.
A cold, empty smile.
“The question isn’t what I did.””
He reached into his pocket.
Several guests gasped.
Security immediately moved.
But Richard only pulled out his phone.
He tapped the screen.
Then my phone vibrated.
Another message.
This time from the same unknown number.
I opened it.
And my blood froze.
It wasn’t a threat.
It was a photograph.
A photograph of my father taken earlier that evening.
Standing outside the ballroom.
Before the wedding started.
With a man I didn’t recognize.
Underneath the picture was a message:
*Your father knows who really killed your mother. Ask him why he protected the person responsible.*
I looked up.
My father saw my face.
“Ethan?””
I slowly turned toward him.
The question escaped before I could stop it.
“Dad…”
Everyone watched.
“Is it true?””
His expression changed.
“What?””
My voice shook.
“Did you know who killed Mom?””
The silence that followed was unbearable.
Because my father didn’t answer immediately.
May you like
And that was the first time in my entire life…
I saw him afraid of telling me the truth.
