Chapter 9: The Truth My Grandfather Buried
The room felt smaller.
Not because more people had entered.
Because the truth had.
I held the document in my hands, staring at the words that refused to make sense.
A birth record amendment.
A legal document.
A name change.
My name.
My grandfather’s signature.
And a statement that turned my entire understanding of my family upside down.
I looked at Amos.
The man who taught me how to ride a bicycle.
The man who stayed awake with me when I had nightmares.
The man who always told me that honesty was the foundation of everything.
“Tell me it’s fake.””
My voice barely came out.
Nobody moved.
Not Thomas.
Not my parents.
Not Chandler.
Not even Captain Brooks.
Only my grandfather.
He looked older than he had minutes ago.
Like the weight of a secret he had carried for decades had finally become too heavy.
“Delaine…”
I shook my head.
“No.””
My grip tightened around the paper.
“Don’t say my name like that.””
His eyes filled with pain.
“Please.””
“I need the truth.””
A long silence followed.
Then Amos Mercer sat down.
And for the first time since I found him in that shed, he looked defeated.
“The document is real.””
The words hit harder than I expected.
I stepped back.
Thomas watched quietly.
Almost satisfied.
My father looked between us.
“You knew?””
I turned toward him.
“What?””
Richard stared at my grandfather.
“You knew all these years?””
My grandfather didn’t answer.
And somehow, that hurt even more.
“You all knew something about me.””
My voice shook.
“Everyone knew except me.””
My mother looked away.
Chandler closed his eyes.
Even he knew how bad it sounded.
My grandfather reached for my hand.
I pulled away.
Not because I hated him.
Because I was hurt.
And I needed him to understand that.
“What is this?”” I asked.
He looked at the document.
“Your mother gave birth to you.””
I frowned.
“That’s not an answer.””
He nodded slowly.
“I know.””
His voice cracked.
“But the woman who gave birth to you was not Victoria.””
The room went silent.
I felt like I couldn’t breathe.
“What?””
My grandfather looked at me.
“Your biological mother was my daughter.””
I stared at him.
The words didn’t connect.
“My…”
He swallowed.
“Your biological mother was Evelyn.””
Everyone turned.
Evelyn covered her mouth.
Tears filled her eyes.
“No.””
I looked at her.
No.
Not Evelyn.
My aunt.
The woman who had always been kind to me.
The woman who looked at me like she saw something familiar.
My mind raced through every memory.
The way she hugged me.
The way she defended me.
The way she cried when I left Halloway.
It all felt different now.
“Why?””
My voice broke.
“Why didn’t anyone tell me?””
My grandfather looked devastated.
“Because we thought we were protecting you.””
I laughed quietly.
A painful sound.
“Everyone in this family says that.””
My eyes moved around the room.
“Protecting me.””
I looked at the shed door in my memory.
“The same way you protected Grandpa?””
Nobody answered.
Because nobody could.
Evelyn stepped forward.
“Delaine.””
I looked at her.
She was crying now.
“I wanted to tell you.””
“Then why didn’t you?””
She looked down.
“Because I was afraid.””
“Of what?””
She wiped her tears.
“Of losing you.””
I stared at her.
“You already lost me.””
The words hurt her.
Good.
They needed to hurt.
Because everyone here had made choices.
Everyone had decided what I could handle.
What I deserved to know.
And every decision had taken something from me.
Thomas spoke quietly.
“Now you understand.””
I turned toward him.
“No.””
His expression changed slightly.
“You don’t get to act like you’re the hero.””
“I’m telling you the truth.””
“You’re using the truth.””
That made him pause.
Because it was true.
Thomas had not come here to help me.
He had come here because chaos benefited him.
My grandfather looked at him.
“You don’t care about Delaine.””
Thomas smiled.
“I care about fairness.””
“No.””
My grandfather’s voice became firm.
“You care about winning.””
The room went quiet.
Thomas’ smile disappeared.
For the first time, I saw anger.
Real anger.
“You always thought you were better than me.””
My grandfather looked at him.
“No.””
“Yes.””
Thomas stepped forward.
“You had the name. The family. The respect.””
His voice grew sharper.
“I built everything beside you.””
My grandfather shook his head.
“We built it together.””
Thomas laughed.
“That’s what you tell yourself.””
Then he looked at me.
“But the truth is, Amos always knew how things worked.””
I frowned.
“What does that mean?””
Thomas smiled.
“He knew blood mattered.””
My stomach tightened.
My grandfather looked at him.
“Stop.””
Thomas ignored him.
“He knew the Mercer name was everything.””
My eyes moved toward my grandfather.
“What is he talking about?””
Amos looked away.
And I knew.
Another secret.
Another locked door.
My anger returned.
“Grandpa.””
He closed his eyes.
“When Evelyn became pregnant, she was young.””
Evelyn looked down.
“Your grandfather wanted to protect her.””
“From what?””
He hesitated.
“From the family.””
I froze.
The family.
The same family that had always talked about honor.
The same family that had destroyed itself over reputation.
“My parents?””
“No.””
My grandfather looked at Thomas.
“From people like him.””
Thomas smiled coldly.
“You see?””
He looked at me.
“He admits it.””
My grandfather continued.
“Thomas wanted control of everything.””
Thomas laughed.
“And you wanted to hide your mistakes.””
My grandfather’s face tightened.
“I made one mistake.””
“What?””
“I trusted you.””
Silence.
Then my phone rang.
Everyone looked at it.
Unknown number.
Again.
I answered.
“Hello?””
A voice came through.
Distorted.
Filtered.
But familiar enough to make my heart race.
“Delaine.””
I stood still.
Because I knew that voice.
“Who is this?””
A pause.
Then:
“You should stop listening to them.””
My eyes moved around the room.
“Thomas?””
Nobody answered.
The voice continued.
“The truth you’re looking for is not in that house.””
My grip tightened.
“Then where is it?””
Another pause.
“The old Mercer factory.””
My grandfather’s face changed instantly.
“No.””
Everyone looked at him.
“What?”” I asked.
He stood abruptly.
“Do not go there.””
The fear in his voice was different.
Not fear for himself.
Fear for me.
“Why?””
He looked at the phone.
Then at me.
“Because that is where everything started.””
The call ended.
I stared at the screen.
Captain Brooks stepped closer.
“Who was it?””
I looked at my grandfather.
“He said the Mercer factory.””
My grandfather went pale.
“No.””
“Grandpa.””
“No.””
His voice became desperate.
“Delaine, listen to me.””
I had never heard him sound like that.
Not when he was trapped.
Not when he was betrayed.
Not even when he discovered the stolen money.
“Whatever is there…”
He swallowed.
“Whatever you find…”
He looked at me.
“Do not believe the first thing you see.””
A cold feeling moved through me.
Because everyone in my family had been hiding something.
But now I understood the real danger.
The truth itself could be manipulated.
I looked toward Thomas.
He was gone.
Nobody had seen him leave.
The front door was open.
Rain blew inside.
Captain Brooks immediately moved toward it.
But he was already gone.
Only one thing remained on the floor.
A small envelope.
My name written on it.
Again.
I picked it up.
Inside was one photograph.
Old.
Faded.
A picture of my grandfather.
Thomas.
Evelyn.
And another person standing beside them.
A person I had never seen before.
On the back of the photo was a handwritten message:
*Before you find out who betrayed your family, find out who your family betrayed first.*
I turned the picture over again.
And stared at the stranger.
Because there was something impossible about that face.
May you like
Something that made my entire body go cold.
The stranger looked exactly like me.
