Chapter 13 - The Other Father
Daniel lowered the gun just enough for my mother to speak.
Forty-one years earlier, before she married my father, Evelyn had been involved with his business partner, Victor Dane.
Victor owned forty-eight percent of the company.
He died in a plane crash before Daniel was born.
The shares transferred under a private agreement to my father—on one condition.
Victor’s child would eventually inherit equal control.
My father accepted the deal.
Then spent decades pretending Daniel was biologically his because admitting otherwise would have split the company.
“So the trust was built on two lies,” I said.
My mother nodded.
Daniel’s face twisted.
“No. The trust was built to steal from me.”
“You still inherited Victor’s economic interest,” I said.
“Not control.”
“That’s what this was about?”
He laughed. “Control is the only thing anyone in this family ever respected.”
Claire spoke from the chair.
“You made a child pay for that.”
Daniel turned the gun toward her.
“You don’t get to judge me.”
“I do,” Claire said. “Because I helped you.”
Everyone froze.
Claire looked at me.
“The kitchen footage wasn’t the first recording.”
“What?”
“I started recording them years ago. Evelyn. Daniel. Reeves. Every time they threatened to move Lena.”
Daniel’s eyes widened.
“Where?”
Claire smiled through tears.
“Somewhere you never found.”
He crossed the room and grabbed her hair.
Police shouted from outside.
Daniel fired once toward the ceiling.
My mother screamed.
Then Claire kicked the chair backward, slamming into his knees.
The gun fell.
Marcus burst through the side door.
Daniel ran for the kitchen.
I tackled him before he reached the exit.
We hit the floor hard.
He punched me once.
I hit back.
Then Marcus dragged me away while Ruiz cuffed Daniel.
For the first time in my life, my brother looked afraid.
But as police pulled him toward the door, he looked at Claire and said, “You think those recordings save you?”
Claire went pale.
Daniel smiled.
May you like
“They prove you were there the night Rachel signed.”
