The Woman Behind the Secret
1408 Words
Episode 6: The Woman Behind the Secret
Emma stared at the photograph in her hands.
SHE KNOWS EVERYTHING.
The words were written in black ink across the back.
“Who is she?” Emma asked again.
Alexander didn't answer immediately.
He was staring at the doorway where Daniel had disappeared.
“Alexander?”
He finally looked at her.
“I don't know.”
“But Daniel clearly believes you do.”
“Daniel has always enjoyed playing games.”
“Then why did he say your father was involved?”
Alexander picked up his father's notebook.
“I don't know.”
He closed it and placed it inside his jacket.
“We're leaving.”
Emma followed him out of the library.
As they walked through the dark hallway, she noticed several old photographs hanging on the wall.
One photograph caught her attention.
It showed Alexander's parents standing beside a young woman.
Emma stopped.
“Alexander.”
He turned.
“That's her.”
He looked at the photograph.
His face changed.
“Who?”
“The woman from the message.”
Alexander stepped closer.
The woman stood beside his mother, smiling at the camera.
Emma pointed to her.
“Who is she?”
Alexander stared at the photograph for several seconds.
Then he whispered a name.
“Rebecca.”
“Rebecca who?”
“Rebecca Carter.”
Emma froze.
“Carter?”
Alexander looked at her.
“Yes.”
Emma's heart began pounding.
“My surname is Carter.”
Alexander's expression became serious.
“That's why I hired you.”
Emma stepped backward.
“What?”
“You think I hired you because of your résumé?”
She stared at him.
“I thought you said I was qualified.”
“You are.”
“Then why?”
Alexander took a deep breath.
“Your surname appeared in my father's records.”
Emma couldn't speak.
“My father mentioned a Rebecca Carter several times.”
“Who was she?”
“I don't know.”
“Then how can you know my family is connected to her?”
“Because my father wrote your name.”
Emma shook her head.
“My name?”
“Yes.”
He pulled out his father's notebook and opened it.
Near the back was a handwritten page.
Emma leaned closer.
There it was.
**EMMA CARTER.**
Her own name.
She stared at it.
“That isn't possible.”
“It was written eight years ago.”
“I was seventeen.”
“I know.”
“Then how could your father know my name?”
“I don't know.”
Emma felt dizzy.
Everything she believed about her life was suddenly uncertain.
“My parents never mentioned your family.”
“Are your parents alive?”
“Yes.”
“Where are they?”
“My father died when I was young.”
Alexander's expression changed.
“And your mother?”
“She lives outside the city.”
“When was the last time you spoke to her?”
“Three days ago.”
Alexander looked at the notebook again.
“Call her.”
“Now?”
“Yes.”
Emma took out her phone.
She dialed.
No answer.
She tried again.
Still nothing.
Her heart began beating faster.
“My mother always answers.”
Alexander looked toward the dark hallway.
“Something is wrong.”
Emma immediately called a neighbor.
After several rings, a woman answered.
“Emma?”
“Mrs. Wilson, have you seen my mother today?”
There was a pause.
“No.”
“When did you last see her?”
“Yesterday morning.”
Emma's stomach tightened.
“Are you sure?”
“Yes. Why?”
“Nothing.”
She ended the call.
Alexander was already calling his security team.
“Find Rebecca Carter.”
Emma stared at him.
“You think something happened to my mother?”
“I think we need to find her before someone else does.”
They returned to the city before sunrise.
Alexander arranged for security to watch Emma's mother's house.
Then they went to Hayes Global.
Emma sat in Alexander's office, exhausted.
“I want answers.”
“I know.”
“You knew my name before you hired me.”
“Yes.”
“You knew my family might be connected to your parents' deaths.”
“Yes.”
“And you still hired me without telling me?”
Alexander looked at her.
“I needed to know if you were connected to what happened.”
Emma stood.
“You used me.”
“I protected you.”
“You don't get to decide the difference.”
Alexander remained silent.
Emma turned away.
“I trusted you.”
He looked at her.
“I know.”
“Then tell me the truth.”
Alexander walked toward her.
“The truth is that I don't know who to trust anymore.”
Emma looked at him.
“Not even me?”
His voice softened.
“Especially you.”
She frowned.
“Why?”
“Because I care what happens to you.”
Silence filled the room.
Emma looked away.
“This isn't about me.”
“It became about you the moment I saw your name in my father's notebook.”
Before she could respond, someone knocked.
Sophia entered.
“Mr. Hayes, there's a problem.”
“What?”
“We received a package.”
Alexander looked at Emma.
“Where?”
“Your private office.”
He immediately followed her.
A small package sat on his desk.
No return address.
Alexander opened it carefully.
Inside was an old key.
And a photograph.
Emma picked up the photograph.
It showed a young Rebecca Carter standing beside Clara.
On the back were three words:
**YOUR MOTHERS KNEW.**
Emma looked at Alexander.
“My mother knew Clara?”
“Apparently.”
A second message was attached to the key.
**LOCKER 217.**
Alexander recognized it immediately.
“The old railway station.”
“What is inside?”
“I don't know.”
“Then let's find out.”
They drove to the station.
Locker 217 was hidden in an old section of the building.
Alexander inserted the key.
The lock clicked.
Inside was a small metal box.
Emma opened it.
There were letters, photographs, and a memory card.
She picked up the first letter.
It was addressed to Alexander's mother.
She read the first few lines.
Then her face went pale.
“What?”
Emma handed it to Alexander.
He read it.
His hands began to shake.
The letter said that Clara and Rebecca had discovered someone inside the Hayes family was secretly moving company money.
But there was more.
The final paragraph contained a sentence that changed everything.
**If anything happens to us, protect Emma. She is the key to exposing the truth.**
Emma stared at Alexander.
“Why would they want to protect me?”
Alexander looked at the old letters.
“I don't know.”
Suddenly, the station lights went out.
A sound echoed behind them.
Footsteps.
Alexander grabbed Emma's hand.
“Stay close.”
A man's voice came from the darkness.
“You finally found the box.”
Alexander turned.
“Daniel.”
Daniel stepped into the dim emergency light.
“You shouldn't have come here.”
Alexander stood in front of Emma.
“Where is Clara?”
Daniel smiled.
“She warned you.”
“About what?”
“About trusting the wrong person.”
Alexander's expression hardened.
“What did you do to my mother?”
Daniel's smile disappeared.
“I didn't kill her.”
“Then who did?”
Daniel looked at Emma.
“Her mother knows.”
Emma's heart stopped.
“My mother?”
Daniel nodded.
“She knows exactly what happened eight years ago.”
“Where is she?”
Daniel looked at his watch.
“If you want her alive, you have one hour.”
Alexander stepped forward.
“Where?”
Daniel smiled.
“Go back to the beginning.”
“What does that mean?”
“The place where your promise was made.”
Then the lights came back on.
Daniel was gone.
Emma looked at Alexander.
“Where was your promise made?”
Alexander's face became pale.
“At my family's old chapel.”
He looked at the clock.
They had fifty-eight minutes left.
And for the first time, Emma realized that finding the truth might mean losing the only family she had left.
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