CHAPTER 9 — The Secret Behind Sarah’s Death
"The truth about what really happened to your first wife, Sarah."
The room went completely silent.
I don't know what hurt more.
The words.
Or the way Thomas said them.
Like he had been waiting years to finally reveal them.
My hand tightened around the back of the chair.
"Don't say her name."
Thomas looked at me.
"Why?"
"Because you don't get to talk about my wife."
His expression didn't change.
"Maybe because you never knew the truth."
My heart started pounding.
I looked at Eleanor.
She was staring at Thomas.
Not with anger.
Not with confidence.
With confusion.
"What does Sarah have to do with this?"
Thomas didn't answer.
That scared me.
Because Thomas always had an answer.
He was the kind of man who could lie while smiling.
But now...
he looked nervous.
I stepped forward.
"Start talking."
Thomas looked at Eleanor.
Then at me.
"Fifteen years ago, everything changed because of one decision."
"What decision?"
"Your company acquisition."
I shook my head.
"We already discussed this."
"No."
He opened the folder.
"You discussed the version everyone believed."
He pulled out another document.
"Not the truth."
I grabbed the paper.
At first, I didn't understand what I was seeing.
Then I saw the date.
Three weeks before Sarah died.
My breathing stopped.
"What is this?"
Thomas said nothing.
I looked closer.
A business report.
A private investigation.
And Sarah's name.
My hands started shaking.
"Why was Sarah investigating Whitmore Holdings?"
Nobody answered.
I looked at Eleanor.
She looked just as shocked.
"I didn't know."
For the first time that night...
I believed her.
Because her face wasn't angry.
It was broken.
"Sarah knew?"
Thomas nodded.
"She found something."
"What?"
He looked at me.
"The same thing that destroyed both of our families."
I felt a chill.
"What are you talking about?"
Thomas walked closer.
"Someone inside Whitmore Holdings stole the money."
I nodded.
"We know that."
"No."
He shook his head.
"You don't understand."
He pointed at the documents.
"The person who stole the money wasn't just trying to destroy Whitmore."
A pause.
"They were trying to destroy you."
My stomach tightened.
"Why?"
Thomas looked at Eleanor.
"Because Richard was the only person who could expose them."
The room went silent.
I looked down at the report again.
Sarah's handwriting was on the bottom.
My Sarah.
The woman who always noticed things nobody else did.
The woman who believed people deserved the truth.
I whispered:
"She knew."
Thomas nodded.
"She was close to proving it."
My voice became low.
"What happened?"
Nobody spoke.
Then Eleanor whispered:
"Sarah's accident..."
I turned toward her.
"What?"
Her face had lost all color.
"Are you saying..."
Thomas looked away.
And that was the moment I understood.
My entire body went cold.
"No."
I shook my head.
"No."
Thomas looked at me.
"Richard..."
"No."
My voice became louder.
"Sarah died in a car accident."
"That's what you were told."
I felt like the room was moving.
"Don't."
Thomas continued.
"Her car wasn't supposed to be on that road."
Silence.
"What does that mean?"
He looked at the documents.
"Someone changed her schedule."
My chest tightened.
"Who?"
Nobody answered.
And somehow...
that was worse.
Then Maya spoke.
"Daddy?"
I looked at her.
She was scared.
Not because she understood everything.
Because she understood my pain.
I immediately walked to her.
"I'm okay."
But I wasn't.
I hadn't been okay for years.
I just learned how to keep moving.
Then Eleanor suddenly spoke.
"Thomas..."
Her voice was different.
"You knew this?"
He didn't answer.
She stepped closer.
"You knew Sarah was investigating?"
Still nothing.
Her face changed.
"You knew Richard didn't destroy my father."
Thomas looked away.
"And you never told me."
The room became colder.
Because Eleanor was finally seeing what I saw.
Thomas wasn't her partner.
He was using her.
I looked at him.
"You needed her anger."
He said nothing.
"You found a grieving woman who wanted someone to blame."
Silence.
"You gave her my name."
Thomas's jaw tightened.
"And she spent fifteen years helping you destroy me."
Eleanor looked sick.
"Thomas..."
He suddenly raised his voice.
"Don't start pretending you care now!"
Everyone froze.
His calm mask disappeared.
"You wanted revenge!"
He pointed at Eleanor.
"You wanted Richard to suffer!"
She stepped back.
"But you lied to me."
Thomas laughed bitterly.
"I gave you what you wanted."
"No."
Her voice shook.
"You gave me a lie."
The room went silent.
Then my phone rang.
Unknown number.
Normally, I wouldn't answer.
But tonight...
nothing was normal.
I picked up.
"Hello?"
For a few seconds...
only breathing.
Then a woman's voice.
An old voice.
A voice I didn't recognize.
"Richard Sterling?"
"Yes."
"My name is Claire Whitmore."
Eleanor froze.
"What?"
I looked at her.
"Who is that?"
The woman continued.
"I was your father's accountant fifteen years ago."
My heart tightened.
"Why are you calling me?"
A pause.
Then:
"Because I know who really destroyed Whitmore Holdings."
I looked at Thomas.
His face changed.
The first real fear I had seen from him.
The woman continued.
"And I know who ordered the accident that killed Sarah."
Nobody moved.
I gripped the phone.
"Who?"
The answer came quietly.
A name.
A name that made Eleanor cover her mouth.
Because she knew it.
Everyone knew it.
The person behind everything.
The person who had been hiding for fifteen years.
Claire whispered:
"Victor Whitmore."
Eleanor stepped back.
"My father?"
The phone went silent.
Then Claire said:
"No, Eleanor."
A pause.
"Not your father."
"The man who made your father take the fall."
My heart stopped.
"Who?"
Claire answered:
"The person who has been controlling everything from the beginning."
Then the line went dead.
I slowly lowered the phone.
Thomas looked terrified.
Eleanor looked destroyed.
And Maya held my hand tighter.
Because all three of us finally understood one thing.
This was never a story about revenge.
It was a story about someone hiding the truth.
May you like
And they had been willing to destroy a little girl...
just to keep it buried.
