Chapter 5: The Father Who Was Supposed to Be Dead
Marcus couldn't speak.
Daniel.
His father.
The man he had buried eleven years ago.
The man whose funeral Marcus had stood through while holding Alicia's hand.
The man whose ashes had been scattered across Lake Mercer because Daniel had always said he wanted to be near the water.
Yet Darius had just told him he had seen Daniel at Cedar Lane.
Alive.
Marcus searched Darius's face for a sign of a joke.
There was none.
“You saw him?””
Darius nodded.
“When?””
“An hour ago.””
“Don't lie to me.””
“I’m not.””
Marcus stepped closer.
“What was he wearing?””
Darius answered immediately.
“Gray coat. Dark shirt. No tie.””
Marcus's breath stopped.
Daniel had worn a gray coat nearly every winter.
Not because he liked it.
Because Marcus remembered his mother buying it for him.
The coat had been hanging in Daniel's closet on the day he died.
Marcus shook his head.
“No.””
Darius kept his voice low.
“Marcus, I know what I saw.””
“You saw somebody who looked like him.””
“I've seen Daniel before.””
Marcus stared.
“What?””
Darius looked away.
“Once. Years ago.””
“Where?””
“Cedar Lane.””
Marcus's mind raced.
Darius hadn't even been part of his life then.
“What were you doing there?””
“My mother was working for Evelyn.””
“My mother?””
“Yes.””
“And you saw Daniel?””
“I was seventeen.””
Darius rubbed his jaw.
“I remember because your mother was crying.””
Marcus swallowed.
“Why?””
“She had just found out Daniel had taken Adrian's files.””
Marcus's eyes narrowed.
“Then why didn't she tell me?””
“Because Daniel threatened to destroy her.””
“What did he threaten her with?””
Darius hesitated.
“Your life.””
The words landed quietly.
Marcus looked toward the rain outside.
“My life?””
“Daniel told her that if she ever told you who your biological father was, he would make sure you lost everything.””
Marcus gave a hollow laugh.
“Everything?””
Darius nodded.
“Your education. Your inheritance. Your name.””
Marcus stared at the documents in his hand.
“And he actually did it.””
“He tried.””
“Then why am I not broke?””
“Because he didn't control everything.””
Marcus looked at him.
“Who did?””
“Adrian.””
The name hung in the air.
Marcus shook his head.
“You keep saying Adrian like he's some invisible guardian.””
“He was.””
“Then where has he been?””
Darius didn't answer.
Marcus turned away.
His mind was filling with memories.
Daniel teaching him to drive.
Daniel standing beside him at graduation.
Daniel telling him he was proud.
Daniel lying beside him in the hospital after Marcus's motorcycle accident.
Could all of those memories have been built around a lie?
A siren sounded somewhere in the distance.
Marcus looked at the clock on the garage wall.
2:08 a.m.
Twenty-two minutes until the meeting.
He looked at Darius.
“You said you found Alicia at Cedar Lane.””
“Yes.””
“What was she doing?””
“She was arguing with Daniel.””
Marcus froze.
“Arguing?””
“They were shouting.””
“About what?””
Darius shook his head.
“I couldn't hear everything.””
“Everything you heard.””
Darius closed his eyes briefly.
“She said, ‘You promised me Marcus would never know.’”
Marcus felt a cold pressure behind his ribs.
“And Daniel?””
“He said, ‘He was never supposed to come back.’”
Marcus stared.
“Come back from where?””
“I don't know.””
“You heard them say it.””
“Yes.””
“What else?””
Darius looked at him.
“Daniel told Alicia the divorce wasn't going to happen.””
Marcus frowned.
“What?””
“He told her the divorce papers were worthless.””
“Why?””
“He said because the marriage was never legally valid.””
Marcus's face went blank.
“That’s impossible.””
Darius reached into his jacket and removed another document.
Marcus took it.
It was a marriage certificate.
His name.
Alicia's name.
The date.
The signatures.
Everything appeared legitimate.
Then Marcus noticed the stamp in the corner.
INVALID.
His stomach turned.
“What's this?””
“Your marriage license was never registered.””
Marcus stared.
“For twelve years?””
Darius nodded.
“There was a filing error.””
“No.””
“A deliberate one.””
Marcus looked up.
“Who did it?””
“Daniel.””
Marcus slowly lowered the certificate.
“You're saying my father stopped my marriage from being legal?””
“Yes.””
“Why?””
Darius's expression changed.
“Because he didn't want Alicia to inherit your property.””
Marcus looked at him.
“But why would Alicia want to inherit anything if she wasn't legally my wife?””
“That is the question.””
Marcus thought about the transfer.
The divorce.
The account.
The safe.
The secret meetings.
Then another possibility surfaced.
He looked at Darius.
“She didn't marry me for my money.””
Darius didn't respond.
Marcus's voice became quieter.
“She married me because of the trust.””
“Yes.””
“Then why wait twelve years?””
“Because the trust had a condition.””
“What condition?””
Darius pointed at the legal documents.
“You had to reach thirty-five.””
Marcus stared.
His birthday was three weeks away.
Three weeks.
A chill ran through him.
“How much is the trust worth?””
Darius hesitated.
“Approximately twelve million dollars.””
Marcus laughed once.
Twelve million.
His wife had spent years pretending she wanted a family.
Maybe she'd been waiting for a birthday.
He looked toward the clock.
2:14.
“Why tonight?””
“Because you left.””
Marcus frowned.
“What?””
Darius explained.
“According to the trust agreement, the beneficiary can transfer ownership only after a spouse signs a release.””
Marcus's expression hardened.
“Alicia needed my signature.””
“Yes.””
“But I never signed anything.””
Darius shook his head.
“She didn't need your signature tonight.””
“Then what changed?””
“You walked out.””
Marcus stared.
Darius continued.
“The moment you declared the marriage over, Alicia could argue abandonment.””
Marcus's stomach tightened.
“She wanted me to leave.””
“Yes.””
“And then use that against me.””
“Yes.””
“Then why send me the message?””
Darius looked confused.
“I didn't.””
Marcus pulled out his phone.
“Someone did.””
He showed Darius the three messages.
*Cedar Lane. 2:30 a.m. Come alone.*
*Bring the birth certificate.*
*Do not trust Darius.*
Darius read them.
His face slowly hardened.
“This is bad.””
Marcus almost smiled.
“When did you start using that phrase?””
“Whenever someone is trying to control both sides.””
Marcus looked at the clock.
2:18.
He made his decision.
“I’m going.””
Darius grabbed his arm.
“No.””
“I need answers.””
“So do I.””
“Then come with me.””
“You were told to come alone.””
Marcus stared at him.
“That message specifically told me not to trust you.””
“Exactly.””
“Which makes me think someone wants me to trust you.””
Darius paused.
Marcus pointed toward the driveway.
“You said you were protecting me.””
“I am.””
“Then prove it.””
Darius looked at him for several seconds.
Finally, he nodded.
They left through the garage.
Marcus drove his old black sedan.
Darius followed in the pickup.
Cedar Lane was twelve minutes away.
The old neighborhood looked abandoned at night.
Most houses were dark.
Trees crowded the narrow roads.
By the time Marcus reached the property, the rain had stopped.
A single light glowed from the house.
He parked behind a row of overgrown bushes.
Darius stopped farther away.
Marcus got out.
“Stay here.””
Darius shook his head.
“I'll stay close.””
Marcus walked toward the house.
The front door was unlocked.
He pushed it open.
Dust hung in the air.
The house smelled of wood, mildew, and something medicinal.
“Hello?””
No answer.
He stepped inside.
The hallway walls were covered with old photographs.
His mother as a young woman.
Daniel in a suit.
Adrian standing beside a car.
Marcus moved closer to one photograph.
It showed his mother pregnant.
Standing beside her was Adrian.
On the back, a handwritten sentence was visible through the glass frame.
*Three months before Marcus was born.*
Marcus's hand shook.
A sound came from upstairs.
A chair moving.
Then footsteps.
Marcus climbed the staircase.
At the top, a bedroom door stood open.
Light spilled onto the hallway.
He entered.
Daniel was standing beside the window.
Older.
Thinner.
Gray-haired.
But unmistakably him.
Marcus stopped breathing.
For several seconds, father and son simply stared at each other.
Then Daniel spoke.
“You look like your mother.””
Marcus's eyes filled with anger.
“You're alive.””
Daniel nodded.
“I am.””
“You let me bury you.””
“Yes.””
“You let me believe you were dead.””
“Yes.””
“You let Mom lie to me.””
Daniel's face tightened.
“She was protecting you.””
“From you?””
“Yes.””
Marcus stepped forward.
“Why?””
Daniel looked toward the window.
“Because Adrian was coming back.””
Marcus's voice cracked.
“Where is he?””
Daniel turned.
“He's been back for years.””
Marcus froze.
“Then who called me?””
Daniel's eyes sharpened.
“That wasn't Adrian.””
Marcus felt the room go cold.
“Who was it?””
Daniel took one step toward him.
“Someone who wants you to believe Adrian is alive.””
“Why?””
“Because Adrian being alive would make you rich.””
Marcus stared.
“That doesn't make sense.””
“It does if you understand the trust.””
Marcus held up the birth certificate.
“My father is Adrian.””
Daniel shook his head.
“No.””
Marcus's breath caught.
Daniel stared directly into his eyes.
“Adrian is your biological father.””
Marcus stood perfectly still.
“But I am the man who raised you.””
For the first time, something broke in Daniel's voice.
“I loved you.””
Marcus clenched his jaw.
“Then why did you steal his identity?””
Daniel's expression changed.
“Because Adrian wasn't the only man who wanted your mother.””
Marcus frowned.
“What are you talking about?””
Daniel looked toward the bedroom doorway.
Darius appeared there.
Daniel's face immediately hardened.
“You brought him.””
Marcus turned.
Darius looked terrified.
Daniel pointed at him.
“Then you already know this part.””
“Know what?”” Marcus demanded.
Daniel answered without taking his eyes off Darius.
“Your biological father isn't the man you think he is.””
Marcus looked at the birth certificate.
Then back at Daniel.
“Adrian Cross?””
Daniel shook his head.
“That name was added after the fact.””
Marcus stepped backward.
“By whom?””
Daniel's expression became grim.
“Your mother.””
Silence.
Then Marcus heard footsteps outside the house.
More than one person.
Daniel looked toward the front door.
His face suddenly lost all color.
“They found us.””
Marcus turned.
“Who?””
May you like
Daniel whispered one sentence.
“The people who made sure Adrian Cross stayed dead.””
