Chapter 12 - THE BOX BENEATH THE FLOOR
Valyrian returned to the estate just after midnight.
For the first time in twelve years, the mansion didn't feel like his home.
It felt like evidence.
Marco accompanied him with two investigators.
Caleum had been arrested, but authorities hadn't yet identified everyone involved in the scheme.
The estate's surveillance system had been isolated from its compromised administrator accounts.
Every entrance was guarded.
Valyrian walked into the master bedroom.
The hospital bag was gone.
So were Alicia's medications.
But the room still held traces of the woman who had lived beside him while he failed to notice her suffering.
A book lay on the nightstand.
A blue scarf hung behind the door.
And inside the wardrobe, a small wooden box rested beneath folded sweaters.
Valyrian carefully lifted it.
The lid was decorated with tiny painted stars.
Inside were the white baby shoes' original wrapping paper, an ultrasound photograph, a handwritten note, and a silver bracelet.
He sat on the edge of the bed.
The ultrasound showed a life he'd never known.
He traced the photograph with one finger.
"I'm sorry, little one."
For several minutes, he couldn't move.
Then Marco spoke softly from the doorway.
"Boss?"
Valyrian looked up.
"Take your time."
He shook his head.
"Alicia said the trust document was in here."
Marco approached.
They examined the box.
Nothing looked unusual.
Then Valyrian noticed a tiny brass hinge beneath the velvet lining.
He lifted the false bottom.
Inside lay a sealed envelope.
The signature across its flap belonged to Victor Darks.
The investigators documented the discovery before Valyrian opened it.
The first document confirmed the creation of a protected family trust.
The second contained instructions for replacing Caleum as an authorized manager.
The third was a sworn statement.
Victor had described suspected financial fraud, forged medical documentation, and efforts to isolate him from his family.
Valyrian read every page.
His father had left a trail.
But someone had spent years burying it.
Then Marco found something hidden beneath the envelope.
A small memory card.
The investigators secured it for forensic examination.
Hours later, a verified copy of its contents was shown to Valyrian.
The first video featured Victor Darks.
He sat in a wheelchair beneath a window.
His hair was gray.
His voice was weak but clear.
"My son," Victor began, "if you're watching this, Caleum has probably done exactly what I feared."
Valyrian leaned forward.
Victor continued.
"I made terrible decisions. I built businesses with men I should never have trusted. When I tried to make things right, those men turned against me."
He paused to catch his breath.
"Caleum believed he could control you by taking away everyone who loved you."
Valyrian clenched his fists.
"But there is one person who refused to abandon our family."
Victor smiled faintly.
"Alicia."
Valyrian's eyes filled.
"She found me when I believed I would never see anyone I loved again."
The video continued.
Victor explained that he had entrusted Alicia with the documents because she was outside Caleum's established business network.
She had risked her safety to protect them.
Then he said something that made Valyrian go completely still.
"Son, I know Alicia is ill. I know she's fighting for her life."
Victor's expression became serious.
"But you must understand something."
He leaned closer to the camera.
"Someone inside our family knew about her diagnosis before she did."
Valyrian felt a chill.
Victor continued.
"And I have evidence that Caleum wasn't acting alone."
He lifted a photograph.
The man pictured beside Caleum was someone Valyrian had trusted since childhood.
Matias Darks.
His cousin.
The same man who had helped Alicia investigate the missing money.
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The same man who had claimed to be protecting her.
And the photograph showed Matias receiving a large payment from Caleum only eight months earlier.
