Chapter 6 - The Man Who Never Came Home
I stared at the photograph until my vision blurred.
My father's face.
Older.
Thinner.
But unmistakably his.
I remembered the last time I'd seen him alive.
He'd kissed my forehead before leaving for work.
"Be good to your mother, Sophie."
Those were his final words.
At least, that's what I'd believed.
Now he was standing outside a hospital nine years later.
I looked at Antonio.
"Where is he?"
"Connecticut."
"Then take me there."
He hesitated.
"Sophie, we need to confirm the photograph is genuine."
I stood.
"That's my father."
"I understand."
"No, you don't!"
My voice broke.
"I buried him when I was fifteen. I watched my mother fall apart. I spent years thinking he'd never come home."
Tears spilled down my cheeks.
"And you're telling me he's alive?"
Antonio remained silent.
Then he said quietly:
"If he's alive, we'll find out why he couldn't return."
I stared at him.
Something about the way he spoke made me feel less alone.
Later that evening, a federal investigator contacted us.
The hospital in Connecticut had treated a patient under the name Daniel Bennett.
But the records showed he was discharged two days earlier.
No forwarding address.
No known residence.
The investigator explained that the matter might be connected to an old witness-protection case.
My heart tightened.
"Witness protection?"
Antonio nodded slowly.
"Your father testified against Vincent."
I stared.
"Then why couldn't he contact us?"
"Sometimes threats continue long after a case ends."
I looked away.
But something bothered me.
If Dad had survived, why had Mom believed he died?
Why had Grandma never told me?
And why was Vincent searching for the wooden box?
That night, Grandma Rose asked to speak with me alone.
We sat near the hotel window.
Her hands trembled around a cup of tea.
"Sophie, there's something I should've told you years ago."
I looked at her.
"What?"
She began crying.
"Your father didn't abandon you."
My throat tightened.
"Then why didn't he come home?"
"Because Vincent threatened you."
I closed my eyes.
Grandma continued.
"Daniel agreed to disappear if Vincent promised to leave you and your mother alone."
"But Mom died thinking he was dead."
Rose shook her head.
"No, sweetheart."
I stared.
"What?"
"Your mother knew."
The words hit me like a blow.
"She knew Dad was alive?"
Grandma nodded.
"She kept the secret to protect you."
I stood.
"Why would she do that?"
Rose's eyes filled.
"Because the last time Daniel tried to contact you, Vincent sent a man to your school."
My stomach dropped.
Grandma whispered:
"Your mother stopped him before he reached you."
I covered my mouth.
Then she revealed something worse.
"Claire didn't die from the illness the doctors first suspected."
My heart stopped.
"What?"
Grandma began sobbing.
May you like
"Someone made her sick."
And according to Rose, my mother had discovered who was responsible before she died.
