Chapter 6 - The Father I Thought Was Dead Left Me a Fortune
Jenna had spent her entire life believing her father died when she was a baby.
Her mother never talked about him.
Only once, when Jenna was twelve, she had asked.
Her mother had said:
“He loved you enough to stay away.”
Jenna had never understood.
Now Alexander explained.
Her father was alive.
His name was Daniel Carter.
He had been forced into hiding after discovering Victor's financial crimes.
He had spent twenty-five years collecting evidence.
He had watched Jenna from a distance.
He had attended her college graduation.
Her wedding.
Paisley's birth.
He had never approached her because doing so would have exposed her.
Jenna felt betrayed.
“Why didn't he tell me?”
“Because Victor was watching.”
“Was he at my wedding?”
Alexander nodded.
Jenna covered her mouth.
“He was there?”
“Yes.”
“Where?”
Alexander showed her a photograph.
A man stood in the back of the church.
Older.
Gray-haired.
Holding a bouquet.
Jenna recognized him.
She had seen him before.
At least, she thought she had.
Her father's face looked strangely familiar.
“Where is he now?”
“Safe.”
“I want to see him.”
“You can.”
Jenna met Daniel that afternoon.
He stood outside a small house in Connecticut.
When he saw her, he began crying.
“Jenna.”
She couldn't move.
“You're my father.”
“Yes.”
“Why?”
He stepped closer.
“I was afraid that if I came back, you would die.”
“You let me grow up without you.”
“I know.”
“You let me think you were dead.”
“I know.”
She slapped him.
Then she hugged him.
Both cried.
For the first time, Jenna understood why her mother had hidden so much.
It hadn't been because she didn't trust Jenna.
It had been because she wanted Jenna alive.
Daniel gave Jenna another envelope.
Inside was a letter from Eleanor.
Our daughter deserves a life untouched by our enemies.
Jenna cried.
Then Daniel looked at Paisley.
“She's beautiful.”
“She is.”
“She has your mother's eyes.”
Jenna smiled.
Daniel crouched beside Paisley.
“Hello.”
Paisley stared at him.
“Who are you?”
He smiled.
“Someone who has been waiting a very long time to meet you.”
Paisley looked at Jenna.
“Is he family?”
Jenna nodded.
“Yes.”
That was the beginning.
Not the end.
Because Victor's trial was still coming.
And before it began, the prosecutor discovered something disturbing.
The accident that killed Eleanor Carter had been staged.
They recovered a second vehicle.
Inside was a hidden camera.
The footage showed Eleanor meeting someone the night before she died.
That person was not Victor.
It was someone else.
Someone who had been helping her.
The footage was blurry.
But Alexander recognized the person immediately.
He whispered:
“That's impossible.”
Jenna looked at him.
“Who is it?”
Alexander stared at the screen.
“Your mother-in-law.”
Jenna's face went pale.
“Holly?”
“Yes.”
“But why would she help my mother?”
Alexander shook his head.
“I don't know.”
They watched the footage again.
Holly handed Eleanor an envelope.
Then Eleanor said something.
The audio was barely audible.
But the investigators enhanced it.
Eleanor said:
“Protect my daughter.”
Holly replied:
“I will.”
Jenna stared.
Why would the woman who had humiliated her at the birthday party have once promised her mother to protect her?
May you like
There had to be another secret.
And it was hidden in the envelope.
