Chapter 62 — The Man Who Was Supposed to Be Dead

 

The silence inside the conference room was unbearable.

Evelyn couldn't stop staring at Daniel's phone.

Rebecca's final words continued echoing in her mind.

Your father is alive.

It sounded impossible. Daniel's father, Richard Anderson, had supposedly died five years ago in a tragic car accident. Hisfuneral had been attended by business associates, politicians, and members of the Anderson family.

Daniel himself had identified the body.

Or at least, that was what he had always believed.

"Daniel," Evelyn whispered.

He looked at her.

"Are you sure your father died?"

Daniel clenched his jaw.

"I attended his funeral. I saw his body inside the coffin."

"Could there have been a mistake?"

"I don't know anymore."

Alexander stepped forward.

"We shouldn't jump to conclusions. Rebecca might be telling the truth, but we need evidence."

Daniel turned toward him.

"Find her. I want to know where she is and why she suddenly decided to reveal this."

Alexander nodded.

"I'll handle it."

Evelyn gathered the documents her father had left behind.

"There's something else we need to investigate."

"What?" Daniel asked.

"My mother's disappearance."

Daniel looked at her carefully.

"You're right. We need to find her."

Evelyn nodded, although fear was already growing inside her.

For years, she had believed her mother had abandoned her.

Now she was beginning to wonder whether someone had deliberately separated them.

And if that person was Richard Anderson, then the truth could be far more dangerous than she imagined.

That evening, Daniel received an unexpected visitor.

His father's former driver, Henry Collins, had arrived at the mansion.

The elderly man looked nervous.

"Sir, I heard about the news."

Daniel frowned.

"What news?"

"About Mrs. Evelyn's inheritance."

Daniel exchanged a glance with Evelyn.

"What does that have to do with you?"

Henry looked toward the windows before speaking.

"There's something I've been carrying for years. Something I should have told you a long time ago."

Daniel stepped closer.

"Speak."

Henry swallowed.

"On the night your father supposedly died, I was the one who drove him to the airport."

Daniel froze.

"That's impossible."

"I know what the official report says, sir. But I swear, your father was alive that night."

Evelyn stood.

"Did you see him?"

Henry nodded.

"He was wearing a different suit. He told me he was leaving the country temporarily. He said the accident would makeeveryone believe he was dead."

Daniel stared at him.

"Why didn't you report this?"

Henry lowered his head.

"Because he threatened my family. He said my children would suffer if I ever spoke."

Daniel's hands curled into fists.

"Where did he go?"

"I don't know, sir. But before leaving, he asked me to deliver something to you."

Henry reached inside his coat and pulled out a small envelope.

Daniel opened it.

Inside was a photograph of Richard Anderson standing beside a woman.

Evelyn immediately recognized her.

It was her mother.

Her knees nearly weakened.

"That's my mother."

Daniel looked at the photograph.

On the back were two handwritten words.

Project Evelyn.

Evelyn felt her blood run cold.

"What is Project Evelyn?"

Henry shook his head.

"I don't know, ma'am. But I remember hearing your father's name mentioned several times during those meetings."

"My father?"

"Yes. Your biological father and Mr. Anderson were once business partners."

Evelyn stared at the photograph.

Her entire life was beginning to unravel.

The following morning, Daniel and Evelyn visited the old Anderson family estate.

The mansion had been abandoned since Richard's supposed death.

Dust covered the furniture, and the once-beautiful garden had become overgrown.

Daniel unlocked his father's private study.

"I haven't entered this room since the funeral," he admitted.

Evelyn looked around.

"Maybe we'll find something here."

They began searching through drawers and cabinets.

After nearly an hour, Evelyn discovered a hidden compartment behind a bookshelf.

Inside were several folders.

Daniel pulled them out.

The first contained financial records.

The second contained photographs.

The third was labeled:

PROJECT EVELYN — CONFIDENTIAL.

Daniel opened it.

His expression changed immediately.

"What is it?" Evelyn asked.

He handed her the documents.

Her eyes moved across the pages.

There were records of financial transfers, medical reports, and correspondence between Richard Anderson and anunidentified person.

Then she found a document bearing her mother's signature.

It was dated twelve years earlier.

Subject: Transfer of Custody

Evelyn's breathing became uneven.

"Why would my mother sign something like this?"

Daniel read the document.

"It says she voluntarily agreed to leave the country."

"That's a lie!"

Evelyn threw the papers onto the desk.

"My mother would never leave me willingly."

Daniel gently held her shoulders.

"I believe you."

She looked at him.

"Then why does everyone keep telling me she abandoned me?"

Before Daniel could respond, they heard a sound from the hallway.

Footsteps.

Someone was inside the mansion.

Daniel immediately stepped in front of Evelyn.

"Stay behind me."

A shadow appeared near the doorway.

Then a familiar voice spoke.

"You really shouldn't have come here."

Daniel's eyes widened.

"Father?"

A man stepped into the light.

Richard Anderson.

Older, with silver hair and a deep scar running along his left cheek, but unmistakably the same man Daniel had buried fiveyears earlier.

Evelyn instinctively stepped backward.

Richard smiled.

"Hello, son."

Daniel stood frozen.

"You're alive."

"Obviously."

"You let me bury an empty coffin?"

Richard shrugged.

"Sometimes sacrifices must be made to protect an empire."

Daniel's expression hardened.

"You made me believe my own father was dead!"

"And look how well you managed without me."

Daniel stepped forward angrily.

"Why did you involve Evelyn?"

Richard's smile disappeared.

"Because her father made a foolish decision."

Evelyn raised her chin.

"Don't talk about my father."

Richard turned toward her.

"You're just like him. Always believing that the world owes you the truth."

"No. I simply want to know what you did to my mother."

For the first time, Richard looked uncomfortable.

Then he smiled again.

"Your mother made her own choices."

"Where is she?"

"Somewhere safe."

Evelyn's eyes filled with tears.

"Take me to her."

Richard shook his head.

"Not so quickly."

Daniel grabbed his father's arm.

"If you know where she is, tell us."

Richard pulled away.

"Still protecting your wife? Interesting. I thought you married her because you had no other choice."

Daniel's jaw tightened.

"I married her because I wanted to."

Richard laughed.

"Don't lie to yourself, Daniel. You know exactly why that marriage happened."

Evelyn looked between them.

"Enough! I don't care about your business arrangements. I want answers."

Richard slowly reached into his coat and produced a small photograph.

He placed it on the desk.

It showed a young woman holding a newborn baby.

Evelyn recognized the woman immediately.

Her mother.

But the baby wasn't her.

There was a name written underneath.

Rebecca Shaw.

Evelyn stared at the photograph.

"What does Rebecca have to do with my mother?"

Richard leaned back.

"That's the question you should have asked years ago."

Meanwhile, across the city, Rebecca sat inside a small apartment.

Her hands were trembling as she stared at her phone.

She had just received a message.

You shouldn't have contacted Daniel.

Another message appeared.

You know what happens when you betray us.

Rebecca closed her eyes.

She had spent years hiding the truth.

But she could no longer watch Evelyn suffer because of secrets that had nothing to do with her.

She opened an old photograph stored in her gallery.

It showed Rebecca as a little girl standing between two women.

One was her biological mother.

The other was Evelyn's mother.

Tears rolled down her cheeks.

"I'm sorry, Evelyn," she whispered.

A knock suddenly came from the door.

Rebecca froze.

"Who's there?"

No answer.

Another knock followed.

She slowly approached the door and looked through the peephole.

A man in a black suit was standing outside.

Rebecca immediately stepped backward.

Her phone vibrated.

An unknown number.

She answered with a shaking hand.

"Hello?"

A cold voice spoke.

"Open the door, Rebecca."

Her eyes widened.

"Please. I haven't told her everything."

The man outside knocked again.

"That's exactly why we're here."

Rebecca dropped the phone.

She rushed toward the back door, but before she could reach it, someone entered through the kitchen.

Two men grabbed her arms.

"Let me go!"

One of them covered her mouth.

Her phone fell to the floor.

The last thing she saw before being dragged away was the photograph lying beside the sofa.

Back at the abandoned mansion, Richard continued explaining.

"Your mother and I worked together on a private investment project. Your father discovered what we were doing and triedto stop us."

Evelyn shook her head.

"My father was an honest man."

Richard laughed.

"Honest men can still make dangerous enemies."

Daniel stepped closer.

"What was Project Evelyn?"

Richard looked at him.

"Your marriage."

Daniel frowned.

"What?"

"Your marriage was never simply about protecting the company. It was about bringing Evelyn into the Anderson family."

Evelyn felt sick.

"Why?"

Richard opened another folder.

"Because your father's shares were transferred to you. Once you married Daniel, I expected to gain influence over thoseassets."

Daniel's expression turned furious.

"So you arranged our marriage to steal her inheritance?"

"I arranged a partnership."

"She's not a business transaction!"

Richard's eyes narrowed.

"Careful, son. You're forgetting who built everything you own."

Daniel moved closer.

"And you're forgetting that everything I built after your disappearance is mine."

Richard smiled.

"Then perhaps it's time you learned who really controls your company."

He placed another document on the desk.

Daniel examined it.

His face turned pale.

It was a legal agreement transferring several major company assets to an offshore corporation.

The authorization carried Daniel's electronic signature.

"I never signed this."

Richard shrugged.

"You did. You simply didn't know what you were signing."

Daniel looked at the date.

It was from the period when he had been dealing with a serious medical emergency.

Someone had used his digital authorization.

"Who did this?"

Richard smiled.

"Someone very close to you."

Evelyn suddenly remembered Rebecca's warning.

Then Daniel's phone rang.

Alexander was calling.

Daniel answered immediately.

"Did you find Rebecca?"

Alexander's voice was urgent.

"Daniel, there's a problem. Rebecca has disappeared."

Daniel looked at Evelyn.

"What?"

"Her apartment was searched. We found signs of a struggle."

Evelyn covered her mouth.

"Is she alive?"

"We don't know."

Daniel turned toward his father.

"Where is she?"

Richard calmly adjusted his cufflinks.

"Why would I know?"

Evelyn stepped forward.

"You're lying!"

Richard looked at her.

"Perhaps. But there's something you should understand, Evelyn."

He leaned closer.

"Your mother isn't the only person you've lost."

Evelyn's heart pounded.

"What are you talking about?"

Richard smiled coldly.

"Ask your husband what happened to the child who was born before your wedding."

Daniel suddenly went pale.

Evelyn slowly turned toward him.

"Daniel?"

He couldn't meet her eyes.

"Tell me what he's talking about."

Daniel remained silent.

And in that moment, Evelyn realized that the man she had married was hiding something even bigger than she hadimagined.

"Daniel," she whispered, her voice breaking.

"Did you have a child?"

He finally looked at her.

Before he could answer, Richard walked toward the exit.

"Enjoy discovering the truth, son. You've both been living inside a beautiful lie."

The door slammed behind him.

Evelyn stared at Daniel, waiting for an explanation.

But his silence was more frightening than any confession.