Chapter 12 - The Father Behind The Secret
The man standing in front of me looked older.
Tired.
But familiar.
The same eyes.
The same expression.
The same feeling I remembered from childhood.
“Dad?”
The word escaped my mouth.
He looked at me.
“I’m sorry, Mara.”
I stepped back.
“No.”
Ten years.
Ten years of grief.
Ten years of believing I lost him.
And now he was standing alive.
“Why?”
His face broke.
“Because if I came back, they would come for you.”
“Who?”
He looked toward Ellie.
“The people who created Bluebird.”
My mother started crying.
“You knew?”
He nodded.
“I knew everything.”
I stared.
“Then why did you let me suffer?”
He closed his eyes.
“Because suffering was safer than being found.”
I wanted to hate him.
I tried.
But looking at him…
I only saw another person who had been trapped.
“What is Bluebird?”
He sat down.
“Not an inheritance.”
I frowned.
“What?”
“It was never created to give Ellie money.”
My heart tightened.
“Then what?”
He looked at me.
“Protection.”
“For what?”
He was silent.
Then:
“For a war.”
The room became quiet.
My father explained.
Years ago, the Kingsley empire discovered a network of wealthy families manipulating businesses, governments, and legal systems.
Bluebird was created to stop them.
Ellie was chosen because she represented the future of Kingsley.
But someone wanted control.
Someone inside the family.
Someone who knew every secret.
“Who?”
My father looked at me.
“The person who convinced Grant to marry you.”
I froze.
“Who?”
He answered:
“Vanessa’s father.”
I stared.
“Vanessa?”
He nodded.
“She wasn’t a random mistress.”
My stomach turned.
“She was placed in his life.”
Then my phone rang.
Daniel.
I answered.
His voice was urgent.
“Mara.”
“What?”
“I found Grant.”
“Where?”
A pause.
“He wants to talk.”
“Why?”
Daniel hesitated.
“Because Vanessa’s father is trying to kill him.”
Silence.
May you like
The man who betrayed me…
Was now running for his life.
