Chapter 12 - THE PROMISE MY FATHER NEVER BROKE
I stared at the photograph.
Alexander couldn't have been more than four years old.
My father stood beside him, one hand resting protectively on his shoulder.
"How did Dad know you when you were little?" I asked.
Alexander looked equally stunned.
Anthony, who had been brought into Daniel's room in a wheelchair, slowly reached for the photograph.
"Miguel was Alexander's first bodyguard."
I turned toward him.
"My father?"
Anthony nodded.
"He worked for me before he became a repairman. He was also my closest friend."
Alexander looked at the image.
"I remember him."
His voice was barely audible.
"He used to teach me how to stand with my feet apart so I wouldn't fall."
I smiled through tears.
"That sounds like Dad."
Anthony continued.
"When Alexander's mother became ill, Miguel promised her he'd always protect her children."
I looked at the photograph again.
My father had never mentioned any of this.
Not once.
"He left the Ashford organization because he wanted a normal life," Anthony explained. "But when he discovered Edward's fraud, he knew innocent people were in danger."
Daniel looked at me.
"Your father saved me that night."
My eyes filled.
"I know."
Daniel shook his head.
"No. You don't understand."
He took a shaky breath.
"Victor Kane wasn't trying to attack me at first. He was trying to force me into a car."
I stared at him.
"Why?"
"Because I'd found the original financial records. I was going to expose Edward."
"What happened?"
"Your father saw the struggle and intervened. He fought Victor long enough for me to escape."
Daniel swallowed.
"But Victor stabbed him."
Tears streamed down my cheeks.
Daniel's voice broke.
"I should've stayed."
I shook my head.
"My dad made his choice."
Daniel lowered his eyes.
"He saved my life."
I looked at him.
"Then honor that by living it well."
For several seconds, nobody spoke.
Then Alexander stepped beside me.
"Your father protected my family long before I knew what that meant."
I looked up at him.
"And now you're protecting mine."
His expression softened.
"I'd like to do more than that, Sophia."
My heart beat faster.
"What do you mean?"
Before he could answer, Marcus entered.
"Victoria Lane has contacted her attorney."
Alexander straightened.
"What does she want?"
"Immunity in exchange for evidence against Edward."
Anthony frowned.
"She's bargaining."
Marcus nodded.
"But there's something else."
He placed a document on the table.
Victoria had given investigators the location of Edward's hidden accounts.
And attached to the statement was a shocking confession.
Edward Lane had ordered the attack that killed Miguel Reyes.
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But the person who had warned Edward about Miguel's evidence was someone we had trusted for years.
Charles Whitcomb.
