My hands trembled as I picked up the cassette.
It was old.
The label had faded with time.
But the handwriting…
I recognized it instantly.
My father’s.
For a moment…
I couldn’t move.
“What if…”
My voice caught.
“What if I can’t do this?”
Lucien stepped beside me.
His hand found mine without a word.
“You don’t have to do it alone.”
I looked at him.
Then at Serena.
She quietly moved to my other side.
“We’ll listen together.”
For the first time in twenty-four years…
I wasn’t facing my family’s past by myself.
⸻
Arthur Bellamy carefully placed the cassette into an old tape recorder.
The machine clicked.
Then hissed.
Static filled the room.
A long pause.
And then…
A man’s voice.
Warm.
Gentle.
Familiar.
“If you’re hearing this…”
My heart stopped.
It was him.
My f
