Chapter 6: The Man i Was Warned to Hate

Isabella’s POV

“Alexander’s father was responsible for everything.”

I read the sentence again, hoping the words would somehow change. They didn't.

My hands trembled around the letter, while Alexander stood beside me, his face drained of color. The silence between us felt heavier than the secrets we had just uncovered.

“Isabella,” he whispered.

“Don't.” I stepped away when he reached for me. “Please, don't say my name like nothing has changed.”

His hand slowly fell to his side.

“I didn't know about this letter.”

“But your father was responsible for my father's disappearance!” My voice cracked. “How could you not know something this important?”

“Because my father died when I was fifteen. He never told me anything about Daniel.”

I stared at him, searching for the smallest indication that he was lying. All I found was an expression I had never seen before: helplessness.

And somehow, that hurt even more.

Mama sat on the sofa, covering her face with trembling hands. I turned toward her, clutching the letter against my chest.

“Ma, I need you to tell me everything. No more lies. No more protecting me from a truth that has already destroyed our lives.”

She slowly lowered her hands.

“Your father discovered something terrible about the Monteverde family,” she whispered. “Something involving Alexander's father and the company's illegal transactions.”

Alexander immediately stiffened.

“What transactions?”

“Daniel found documents proving that your father had been transferring company money into secret accounts. When he confronted him, your father threatened to expose everything.”

I looked between them, struggling to comprehend the revelation.

“Are you saying Papa disappeared because he discovered financial crimes?”

Mama nodded, tears slipping down her cheeks.

“Daniel planned to meet me that night. He promised he would explain everything and take us somewhere safe. But he never arrived.”

“Then what happened?”

“Richard came to my apartment the following morning. He told me Daniel had betrayed his family and fled the country. He warned me that if I continued asking questions, I would lose you before you were even born.”

My stomach twisted.

“But the letter says Alexander's father was responsible.”

Alexander shook his head, his jaw tightening.

“My father might have been involved in something, but that doesn't mean he killed Daniel.”

“Nobody said anything about killing him,” I replied bitterly. “Unless there's something else you haven't told me.”

He fell silent.

That silence frightened me more than an argument ever could.

I looked down at the letter again. Beneath my father's signature was a faint mark, almost invisible against the yellowed paper. It looked like a number followed by several letters.

“What does this mean?”

Alexander leaned closer, careful not to touch me.

“That's a document reference number. My family's legal department used similar codes for confidential records.”

“So you can find it?”

“Possibly.”

“Then do it.”

He met my eyes. “I will.”

“No, Alexander. You will show me everything you find. I won't be another woman your family can silence.”

“I would never let them hurt you.”

“Your promises mean nothing right now.”

The words wounded him, but I couldn't take them back. I had spent my entire life trusting the only person who had raised me. Now I was discovering that even her love had been shaped by fear.

Alexander took a slow breath.

“Then don't trust my promises. Watch what I do.”

For a moment, I almost reached for his hand.

Almost.

Before I could answer, his phone vibrated. He glanced at the screen, and his expression darkened.

“Who is it?” I asked.

“My father's former attorney.”

“Answer it.”

He hesitated before accepting the call and placing it on speaker.

“Mr. Monteverde,” an older man's voice said urgently. “I received your message about Daniel's records. You need to stop searching immediately.”

Alexander's eyes narrowed.

“Why?”

“Because those records were sealed for a reason. Your grandfather has spent twenty-two years making sure they remain buried.”

“And what does that have to do with me?”

The attorney hesitated.

“Everything. Your father left instructions that were never meant to be discovered by the family.”

My heartbeat quickened.

“What instructions?” I demanded.

There was a pause.

“Who is that?” the attorney asked.

“Isabella Reyes,” I answered.

The silence that followed was terrifying.

“Oh, God,” he whispered. “You're Daniel's daughter.”

I gripped the phone's edge.

“You knew my father?”

“I represented him before he disappeared. Listen carefully. There is a safe deposit box registered under his name. It contains evidence that could change everything you believe about his disappearance.”

“Where is it?”

“Your father left the key with someone he trusted. Someone who has remained close to the Monteverde family all these years.”

Alexander stepped forward.

“Who?”

Before the attorney could respond, another voice interrupted the call.

“That's enough, Counselor.”

My blood turned cold.

Richard.

The line abruptly disconnected.

Alexander immediately called back, but the number was unavailable. He slammed his phone onto the table, his composure finally breaking.

“Damn it!”

I flinched.

He noticed and instantly stepped away, guilt crossing his face.

“I'm sorry,” he murmured.

I looked at him, remembering the warning my father had written. Do not trust him—not even if he tells you he loves you.

“Alexander, there's something I need to ask you.”

He faced me.

“Did your father ever tell you why he died?”

His expression changed.

“He died in a car accident.”

“That's what your family told you. But what if that wasn't the truth either?”

He stared at me, unable to answer.

Then his phone vibrated again.

This time, it was a message from an unknown number.

Alexander opened it, and I watched the color drain from his face.

“What is it?”

He slowly turned the screen toward me.

A photograph showed my father standing beside Alexander's father outside a building. Both men looked furious, and Daniel was holding a thick envelope.

Beneath the photograph were eleven words.

Your father didn't disappear alone. Alexander's father died protecting his darkest secret.

I looked up at Alexander, my heart pounding.

Then another message arrived.

Ask your mother who was driving the car that night.

I turned toward Mama.

She had stopped crying.

Her face was completely white, and her lips trembled as she whispered the words that shattered whatever remained of my trust.

“Isabella, I was there.”

My knees nearly buckled.

“What?”

Mama reached for me, but I stepped backward.

“I saw your father that night,” she confessed. “And I was the last person who spoke to him before he disappeared.”

I stared at her, unable to breathe.

“Then why did you tell me you were waiting for him?”

She began to sob.

“Because, anak, I was the reason he never came home.”

End of Chapter 6.🌜