Chapter 7: The Truth Hidden in the Contract
“Don’t trust Victoria.””
Emma’s voice disappeared before I could say another word.
I stood frozen.
The phone remained pressed against my ear.
The call was over.
But those four words kept repeating in my mind.
*Don’t trust Victoria.*
Behind me, Victoria looked like she had stopped breathing.
She had heard Emma’s voice.
She knew exactly what those words meant.
I slowly lowered the phone.
Nobody spoke.
Not James.
Not Victoria.
Not even Lily.
The silence inside my father’s hidden archive felt heavier than the walls around us.
I looked down at the contract in my hand.
Victoria’s signature was there.
Clear.
Real.
Impossible to explain.
“Damon…”
Her voice was barely a whisper.
I looked up.
“Why is your name on this?””
She opened her mouth.
Nothing came out.
That answer hurt more than anything.
Because after everything I had learned tonight, I still wanted to believe there was a reason.
A misunderstanding.
A missing piece.
Something that would make Victoria innocent.
But the woman standing in front of me had spent years beside me while hiding the truth.
And now Emma had warned me.
“Explain.””
Victoria looked at Lily.
Then at me.
“I can explain.””
“Then do it.””
Her eyes filled with tears.
“But you need to understand something first.””
I laughed quietly.
“Do I?””
“Yes.””
Her voice cracked.
“Because the person who put my name on that document was not the person I was working for.””
I stared at her.
“What does that mean?””
She stepped closer.
“I was investigating your father.””
I didn’t move.
“Investigating?””
“Yes.””
“Then why is your signature on a plan to remove me?””
Victoria looked at the document.
“Because I was pretending to be on his side.””
I wanted to believe her.
I hated that part of me still wanted to believe her.
“Pretending?””
She nodded.
“Charles thought I was helping him.””
“And you weren’t?””
“No.””
“Then why didn’t you tell me?””
Her face fell.
“Because Emma told me not to.””
I felt anger rise again.
“Everyone keeps saying Emma told them things.””
My voice became sharper.
“But nobody tells me anything.””
Victoria looked down.
“Because Emma knew you would try to fight.””
“She knew me.””
“Yes.””
“She knew I would look for her.””
“Yes.””
“She knew I would never stop.””
Victoria nodded.
“That’s exactly why she stayed away.””
The words hurt.
Even though they came from someone trying to explain.
I looked away.
“Tell me the truth.””
Victoria took a deep breath.
“The night Emma disappeared, Charles had a plan.””
“What plan?””
“To take control of Whitmore Industries.””
I looked at the documents.
“By removing me?””
“Yes.””
“Why?””
“Because he believed you were becoming too independent.””
I frowned.
“That makes no sense.””
Victoria shook her head.
“Your father built the company, but he wanted complete control forever.””
I thought about every argument we had.
Every disagreement.
Every time he told me I was too emotional.
Too trusting.
Too willing to listen to other people.
Maybe those weren’t criticisms.
Maybe they were warnings.
“What did Emma find?””
Victoria looked at the files.
“Your father had been moving company assets into private accounts.””
“Stealing?””
She hesitated.
“I don’t know the full legal details.””
“But?””
“But Emma believed he was preparing to destroy your reputation and blame you.””
I stared at the folder.
The evidence was everywhere.
Documents.
Plans.
Records.
My father had been preparing my downfall.
“How were you involved?””
Victoria’s eyes filled with shame.
“I worked for him.””
The honesty stopped me.
“What?””
“Before I met you, Charles hired me.””
My chest tightened.
“For what?””
“To get close to you.””
The words landed harder than any confession before.
I looked at Lily.
Then back at Victoria.
“So everything was fake?””
“No.””
Her answer came instantly.
“I swear to you, Damon, not everything.””
“But the beginning was.””
She looked away.
“Yes.””
The room became silent.
I remembered our first meeting.
Victoria at a charity event.
Her smile.
Her kindness.
The way she seemed to understand me.
Was any of it real?
“I was supposed to watch you.””
“Watch me?””
“Report your decisions.””
“To my father.””
“Yes.””
“And then?””
Victoria swallowed.
“Then I found out what he was really planning.””
“When?””
“When Emma came to me.””
I looked at her.
“Why did that change things?””
“Because Emma was the first person who knew the truth about me.””
My expression hardened.
“She knew you were working for him?””
“Yes.””
“And she still trusted you?””
Victoria nodded.
“Because she understood something.””
“What?””
“She knew I wasn’t like him.””
I almost smiled.
Almost.
“Emma saw good in everyone.””
Victoria looked down.
“Even when they didn’t deserve it.””
That sounded exactly like Emma.
The woman who believed people could change.
The woman who would forgive too easily.
The woman who had apparently trusted the wrong people.
“Where is she?””
Victoria shook her head.
“I don’t know.””
“You spoke to her.””
“Only once.””
“When?””
“Right before she called you.””
I froze.
“What?””
Victoria’s face changed.
“She called you?””
“Yes.””
“When?””
“Tonight.””
My heart stopped.
“From where?””
“I don’t know.””
“What did she say?””
Victoria hesitated.
“She said she was sorry.””
My throat tightened.
“She said she wanted to hear your voice.””
I looked away.
Because that hurt.
Emma had been alive.
She had wanted me.
And I had been living my life believing she was gone.
“What else?””
Victoria’s voice dropped.
“She said Charles was not the only person who betrayed you.””
My eyes narrowed.
“What does that mean?””
“I don’t know.””
A sound came from the hallway.
A floorboard creaked.
Everyone turned.
James immediately moved toward the door.
“Someone’s here.””
The archive lights flickered.
Then a shadow moved outside the room.
“Damon.””
Victoria grabbed my arm.
“Get Lily.””
I looked at her.
For once, there was no hesitation.
No secrets.
Only fear.
I grabbed Lily and pulled her close.
James opened the door.
Nobody was there.
Only a small envelope lying on the floor.
My name was written on it.
Again.
I picked it up.
Inside was a single piece of paper.
Three words.
*Ask James Whitmore.*
I looked at my cousin.
Slowly.
James’ face changed.
“What?””
I held up the note.
“Why does someone want me to ask about you?””
James shook his head.
“I don’t know.””
But he looked nervous.
Too nervous.
Victoria stepped back.
“Damon…”
I watched James carefully.
“Tell me the truth.””
“There’s nothing to tell.””
“Then why does someone know your name?””
Silence.
James looked at the floor.
And that was when I saw it.
A small scar on his wrist.
A scar I remembered.
Because five years ago, on the night Emma disappeared, James had told me he was nowhere near the accident.
But the police report mentioned something strange.
A witness had seen another person at the scene.
A man with a scar on his wrist.
I stared at him.
“Where were you that night?””
James went pale.
“Damon…”
“Where were you?””
He stepped backward.
“I can explain.””
Those words again.
Everyone always said the same thing.
I looked at Lily.
I looked at the documents.
I looked at the people around me.
And I realized something terrifying.
My father had not built one secret.
He had built an entire world of them.
“Start talking.””
James’ eyes filled with fear.
Then his phone rang.
He looked at the screen.
And his face turned white.
“What is it?””
He didn’t answer.
I walked toward him.
“James.””
Slowly, he handed me the phone.
There was a message.
From Charles.
One sentence.
*You were never supposed to let Damon find the archive.*
I looked at James.
My cousin.
My family.
The man who had stood beside me my entire life.
And then another message appeared.
This time with a photograph.
A photograph of Emma.
Standing behind James.
Taken five years ago.
On the night she disappeared.
May you like
Under the image were four words:
*Ask him what happened.*
