Chapter 9: The Target Was Never Me
The doctor invited us inside.
But nobody sat.
Nobody relaxed.
Because everyone understood something had changed.
For three years, we believed I was the reason.
The accident.
The bullying.
The attacks.
But now the truth was different.
My father was the target.
“Explain,” my father said.
The doctor looked exhausted.
“My name is Dr. Samuel Carter.””
He looked at me.
“Three years ago, I was hired to work at the hospital where your daughter was taken.””
My father’s eyes narrowed.
“Hired by who?””
Samuel hesitated.
“Damian Kane.””
The room went silent.
I expected my father to explode.
He didn’t.
He just stood there.
Waiting.
“What was your assignment?”” he asked.
Samuel looked down.
“To keep you distracted.””
“Distracted from what?””
“From the people inside your company.””
My father’s expression changed.
I didn’t understand.
But he did.
“Damian wasn’t working alone.””
Samuel nodded.
“He had partners.””
My father walked closer.
“Names.””
Samuel looked terrified.
“I can’t.””
My father’s voice became colder.
“You already involved my daughter.””
The doctor closed his eyes.
“Your board members.””
My father froze.
“The people who worked for me?””
“Yes.””
I looked at my father.
“They betrayed you?””
He didn’t answer.
Because I knew the answer.
“Yes.””
Samuel continued.
“Damian believed if you lost control emotionally, you would make mistakes.””
My father laughed quietly.
“He used my daughter as bait.””
“Yes.””
My hands curled into fists.
I hated him.
I hated all of them.
“How did the school happen?””
Samuel looked at me.
“Because Damian realized the accident didn’t break you.””
My father looked at him.
“So he escalated.””
“Yes.””
“He wanted me angry.””
“Yes.””
“Why?””
Samuel swallowed.
“Because angry people stop thinking.””
The words hit hard.
My father had always been careful.
Always controlled.
Damian wanted to destroy that.
Then Samuel walked toward a cabinet.
He pulled out a small box.
“I kept this because I knew one day someone would come looking.””
He handed it to my father.
Inside was a flash drive.
“What is this?””
“Proof.””
My father looked at Marco.
Marco immediately took it.
“We’ll check it.””
Before he could move, Samuel grabbed my father’s arm.
“Wait.””
My father looked at him.
“There is something else.””
“What?””
Samuel looked at me.
“Your daughter needs to know.””
I felt my stomach tighten.
“What?””
Samuel took a breath.
“The night of the accident, Damian wasn’t the only person there.””
My father became still.
“Who else?””
Samuel looked at him.
“You.””
My heart stopped.
“What?””
My father stepped back.
“No.””
Samuel nodded.
“You arrived before the ambulance.””
I looked at my father.
“Dad?””
His face went pale.
“I don’t remember.””
Samuel’s voice softened.
“You were injured too.””
The room went silent.
“What are you saying?”” I asked.
“The crash wasn’t just an attack on one car.””
Samuel looked at my father.
“It was planned to kill both of you.””
My father stared.
“Then why do I not remember?””
Samuel looked down.
“Because someone gave you medication while you were unconscious.””
I felt dizzy.
Someone had manipulated everything.
The accident.
The records.
The memories.
Then Samuel said something that changed everything.
“The person who found you after the crash…”
He looked at me.
“…was not Damian.””
My father stepped forward.
“Who was it?””
Samuel reached into the box.
He pulled out an old photograph.
A photograph from the accident scene.
My father grabbed it.
His face changed instantly.
Because standing beside the destroyed car was a person neither of us expected.
Someone who had always claimed to love me.
Someone who had comforted my father after the accident.
Someone who had cried at my hospital bed.
My father whispered:
“No…”
I looked at the photograph.
May you like
And my blood turned cold.
Because the person standing there was my own grandmother.
