Chapter 12 - The Bodyguard Who Carried the Truth
Dominic summoned Marcus to his private office.
I sat beside Rose while Anthony's photograph lay on the desk.
Marcus entered quietly.
The moment he saw the picture, his expression changed.
"Where did you get that?"
Dominic looked at him.
"Anthony Carter."
Marcus went still.
Dominic leaned forward.
"You knew him."
Marcus nodded.
"Yes."
"And you knew Rose was alive."
A long silence followed.
Then Marcus lowered his head.
"Yes, boss."
Dominic's voice hardened.
"You've worked beside me for sixteen years. Why didn't you tell me?"
Marcus looked older suddenly.
"Because Adrian threatened to kill both girls if I spoke."
I stared at him.
"You knew my father?"
Marcus turned toward me.
"Anthony was my best friend."
My breath caught.
"He never told me about you."
"He couldn't."
Marcus sat slowly.
"Your father discovered Adrian had arranged Rose's adoption. He asked me to help find her."
Rose wiped her eyes.
"Did you?"
Marcus nodded.
"We located the family who'd adopted you. They were kind people. They loved you."
"Then why didn't you bring me home?"
"Because Adrian found out."
His voice broke.
"He sent men after Anthony. I tried to warn him."
I gripped the chair.
"Was it really an accident?"
Marcus shook his head.
"No."
Tears spilled down my cheeks.
Marcus continued.
"I arrived at the construction site after Anthony had already been attacked. I was too late."
He looked directly at me.
"I'm sorry, Lily."
For a long moment, nobody spoke.
Then Dominic asked, "Why stay with the Vale family?"
Marcus looked at him.
"Because I needed to keep Adrian close. And because when you became head of the organization, I believed you'd eventually uncover what he'd done."
Dominic stared at him.
"You could've told me."
Marcus nodded.
"I should have."
I looked at the man who'd reached for his gun when I touched Dominic.
For the first time, I understood the fear in his eyes.
He'd spent years protecting secrets that could get people killed.
Marcus reached into his coat.
My body stiffened instinctively.
He noticed.
Then he slowly removed a small leather notebook.
"Anthony gave me this before he died."
He placed it on the desk.
Inside were names, dates, financial records, and coded references to hidden accounts.
Dominic examined the pages.
His expression darkened.
"These are Adrian's offshore holdings."
Marcus nodded.
"And evidence of the people he paid to carry out the attacks."
Rose leaned forward.
"Can this prove what happened to Anthony?"
"With the original supporting records, it may help."
Dominic looked toward the final page.
A handwritten address appeared beneath a date.
Then he froze.
"Marcus, what's this?"
Marcus swallowed.
"The place where Adrian stored the documents he stole from Eleanor."
I stared at the address.
An old property outside Hawthorne.
The same building where Mom had worked when I was a child.
Then Marcus revealed the final secret.
"Eleanor didn't just hide documents there."
May you like
He looked at me.
"She left a recording explaining everything Adrian did to her."
