Chapter 6: The Voice From My Mother’s Past
The voicemail sat on my father’s phone like a ticking clock.
Neither of us touched it.
Neither of us spoke.
The name on the screen kept staring back at us.
*Rachel’s old friend.*
A person who shouldn’t have been able to contact us.
A person my father clearly knew.
My father walked away from the table.
Just a few steps.
But it looked like he was trying to escape the weight of everything happening around him.
“Dad.””
He stopped.
“What?””
“Who is she?””
He didn’t turn around.
“Her name is Emily.””
I waited.
“And?””
My father slowly faced me.
“She was your mother’s best friend.””
“Then why did you say the number shouldn’t exist?””
His face tightened.
“Because Emily died.””
The room went completely silent.
I stared at him.
“What?””
“She died eight years ago.””
My fingers tightened around my phone.
“That’s impossible.””
“I know.””
My father walked back to the table.
He picked up the phone but didn’t open the voicemail.
“How do you know it’s her?””
“I don’t.””
“Then why are you scared?””
That question hit him.
Because it was the truth.
My father wasn’t just confused.
He was afraid.
And I had never seen my father afraid before.
Not when Mom died.
Not when we struggled financially.
Not when he had to raise me alone.
“What happened to her?”” I asked.
He looked down.
“She knew things about your mother.””
“That’s not an answer.””
He sighed.
“Emily was the person your mother called when she needed someone to talk to.””
“About what?””
He hesitated.
Then:
“About me.””
I frowned.
“You mean your marriage?””
“Yes.””
“Was she angry at you?””
My father looked away.
“Sometimes.””
That answer hurt.
Not because I thought my parents were perfect.
Because I realized I only knew half of their story.
My father sat down.
“Your mother and I loved each other.””
“I know.””
“But love doesn’t mean people never hurt each other.””
I nodded slowly.
“What did Emily know?””
He looked at the phone.
“She knew about my business problems.””
“The same problems Mom found out about?””
“Yes.””
“And Vanessa?””
He became quiet.
I immediately noticed.
“Dad.””
He looked at me.
“What?””
“You did that thing again.””
“What thing?””
“The thing where you decide what I can handle.””
He sighed.
Maybe because he knew I was right.
“Vanessa knew Emily.””
My heart stopped.
“What?””
“I didn’t know until recently.””
“How recently?””
“After I received that message.””
I stood.
“Wait.””
I tried to put the pieces together.
“Vanessa knew my mother’s best friend?””
“Yes.””
“And she never told you?””
“No.””
I felt a chill.
“Why?””
My father didn’t answer.
Because neither of us knew.
But the question was terrifying.
Why would someone hide a connection to your dead wife?
My father finally unlocked the voicemail.
“Listen.””
I sat beside him.
The recording started.
Static filled the room.
Then a woman’s voice appeared.
A voice that sounded older than I expected.
Tired.
Broken.
“Daniel…”
My father immediately closed his eyes.
The voice continued.
“If you’re hearing this, it means Vanessa finally made her move.””
My heart started pounding.
My father looked at me.
The message continued.
“I tried to warn you years ago. I tried to tell you what she was doing, but you wouldn’t listen.””
My father whispered:
“No…”
I looked at him.
The woman continued.
“Rachel trusted the wrong person before she died. She thought she was protecting her family, but she didn’t realize someone close to her was already planning how to replace her.””
My breathing stopped.
Replace her.
My father gripped the phone.
“Who are you talking about?”” he whispered.
As if Emily could hear him.
The voicemail continued.
“Daniel, you need to know the truth. Rachel’s accident was not the only thing Vanessa was involved in.””
I froze.
My father stood up so quickly the chair moved backward.
“No.””
The recording ended.
Just like that.
No explanation.
No answers.
Only silence.
I looked at my father.
“Dad…”
He didn’t respond.
He replayed the voicemail.
Again.
And again.
Like he was hoping the words would change.
They didn’t.
Finally, he placed the phone down.
“I need to find Vanessa.””
I stood.
“Dad.””
“I need answers.””
“So do I.””
He looked at me.
For a moment, I saw the father who wanted to protect me.
Then I saw something else.
A man who needed the truth.
“We’re going together.””
I was surprised.
“What?””
“I spent twelve years deciding what you should know.””
His eyes filled with regret.
“I’m not doing that anymore.””
An hour later, we found Vanessa.
Not at home.
Not at the restaurant.
At a place neither of us expected.
My father’s old office.
The one he had stopped using after his company failed.
The building was almost empty.
The hallway lights flickered above us.
“How did you know she was here?””
My father looked at his phone.
“She sent me a message.””
“What did it say?””
He didn’t answer.
That worried me.
“Dad.””
He showed me.
One sentence.
*If you want the truth about Rachel, come alone.*
My stomach dropped.
“She wanted you to come alone.””
“Yes.””
“But you brought me.””
“Yes.””
“Why?””
My father looked at the old office door.
“Because I’m done letting people separate us.””
Those words meant more than he realized.
We walked inside.
The office was dark.
Dust covered the old desk.
Old files sat untouched on shelves.
Then a voice came from the corner.
“You brought her.””
Vanessa stepped out.
My body went tense.
My father moved slightly in front of me.
“Stay away from my daughter.””
Vanessa smiled sadly.
“There it is again.””
“What?””
“You protecting her.””
My father stared at her.
“What did you do?””
She looked at me.
“I tried to tell you.””
“Tell me what?””
“That your father isn’t the man you think he is.””
My father’s expression hardened.
“Don’t.””
Vanessa ignored him.
“Did he tell you about the phone call?””
My blood ran cold.
My father went silent.
“What phone call?”” I asked.
Vanessa smiled.
The kind of smile that meant she believed she finally had power.
“The night your mother died.””
My father stepped forward.
“Enough.””
“No.””
She looked at me.
“She deserves to know.””
I looked between them.
“Dad?””
He didn’t answer.
That was the answer.
Something else existed.
Something he hadn’t told me.
Vanessa continued.
“Your mother wasn’t driving home after an argument.””
My heart raced.
“She was meeting someone.””
My father’s face changed.
“Stop.””
“Someone who had information about your father’s company.””
I looked at my father.
“Is that true?””
He swallowed.
“Yes.””
The word felt like a knife.
“But that’s not what you think.””
Vanessa laughed.
“Of course he would say that.””
My father turned toward her.
“You don’t get to rewrite history.””
“No?””
She stepped closer.
“Then tell her why Rachel was afraid.””
I looked at my father.
“Dad…”
His face was full of pain.
“I didn’t know she was afraid.””
Vanessa smiled.
“But you knew she was going to meet someone.””
My father froze.
I saw it.
The smallest reaction.
But I saw it.
“You knew?””
He looked at me.
“I knew she was meeting Emily.””
My heart sank.
“And you never told me?””
“I thought it was unrelated.””
“Unrelated?””
Vanessa stepped forward.
“Everything connects, Lily.””
My father’s phone suddenly buzzed.
He looked down.
A new message.
His face changed.
“What?””
I moved closer.
The message was from an unknown number.
A photo was attached.
My father opened it.
And immediately went pale.
I looked at the screen.
It was an old photograph.
My mother.
Emily.
And Vanessa.
Standing together.
The date was printed at the bottom.
The picture was taken three days before my mother died.
My voice barely came out.
“Why was Vanessa with my mother?””
Nobody answered.
Because the truth was finally appearing.
Vanessa hadn’t entered our family after my mother was gone.
May you like
She had been there before.
And she had been closer to the tragedy than anyone ever knew.
