ONE MONTH WITH THE DEVIL

Chapter 17

The rain poured harder as I stared at Victor, my phone shaking in my hand.

My mother's terrified face was still on the screen.

Don't trust anyone. Not even the boy you think you know.

“Lara,” Victor said, stepping closer. “Please, say something.”

“Is everything you told me true?” I asked. “About Charles and my father?”

“Yes. Every word.”

“Then why didn't you tell me?” I stepped back. “You knew someone was trying to destroy my future, yet you let me believe I wasn't good enough for the scholarship!”

“I was trying to protect you!”

“Protect me from what? The truth?” My voice broke. “That's not protection, Victor. You made the decision for me, just like everyone else!”

He looked hurt, but I couldn't bring myself to care.

“My mother is missing, my scholarship is gone, and now I find out that my father's name is connected to some terrible secret. How am I supposed to trust you?”

“I know I made a mistake,” he said quietly. “I should have told you everything. I was afraid Charles would use you against me.”

I looked down at the photograph again.

“How do I know you're not working with him?”

Victor went silent.

“Do you really think I'd hurt your mother?” he asked.

“I DON'T KNOW!” I shouted, tears running down my cheeks. “I don't know who to believe anymore!”

“Because they were trying to protect you.”

We both turned.

Xander stood beneath the school entrance, his jacket soaked from the rain. His expression was serious as he walked toward us.

“Xander,” Victor warned.

“She deserves to know the truth,” Xander replied.

He turned to me.

“Lara, your father wasn't just an employee at Vance Industries. He led the environmental safety team. Three years ago, he discovered serious safety problems at one of the company's factories.”

I stared at him.

“The factory fire?” I whispered.

He nodded.

“I heard about it on the news, but what does that have to do with Dad?”

“Your father tried to report the problems before the fire happened. Charles Montgomery buried his reports and made him look unreliable.”

My chest tightened.

“And when Dad threatened to expose him?”

“They fired him.”

I struggled to process his words.

“What happened to his illness? Was that connected too?”

Xander looked down briefly.

“Your father developed lung cancer after years of exposure to harmful fumes. He believed the company was responsible, but Charles made sure his complaints were ignored.”

I grabbed the wall to steady myself.

My father had tried to do the right thing, and they had punished him for it.

All those years, I had wondered why his old job was never discussed. Now I understood why Mom had always avoided the subject.

“They knew,” I whispered. “They knew what was happening to him.”

“Not everyone knew the whole story,” Xander said. “But some people knew enough to stop it.”

Victor stepped forward.

“Where did you get this information?”

“My father was Lara's father's lawyer,” Xander replied. “Before he left the case, he kept copies of some documents. He believed the truth would eventually come out.”

Victor shook his head.

“You think I've been sitting around doing nothing? I've been searching my father's study for weeks. He refuses to tell me anything, and Charles acts as if none of it ever happened.”

“Then maybe you should start asking why your family allowed it,” Xander said.

“Watch your mouth.”

“Both of you, stop!”

They turned toward me.

I was tired of their arguments. Tired of the secrets. Tired of people deciding what I deserved to know.

“My mother is missing,” I said. “I'm not interested in your fight. I'm finding her.”

“Lara, you can't do this alone,” Victor said.

“Why should I trust you?”

He had no answer.

After a moment, he reached into his jacket and pulled out an old leather notebook.

“Take this.”

I stared at it.

“What is it?”

“Your father's notebook. I found it in my father's study last night. He had kept it hidden for years.”

My hands trembled as I took it.

“Why was it in your father's study?”

“Your father gave it to Evelyn for safekeeping. It contains dates, names, and information about what Charles did. There may also be a clue about where your mother is being held.”

I looked at him in disbelief.

“You had this the whole time?”

“I only found it last night. I planned to bring it to you, but I wanted to understand what was inside first.”

I held the notebook against my chest.

For the first time, I had something that could help me uncover the truth about my father.

But Victor wasn't finished.

“There's something else you need to know.”

I looked at him.

“My father knows what Charles did,” he said. “Richard has been hiding the truth. He thinks keeping the scandal quiet is more important than saving your mother or clearing your father's name.”

I felt sick.

Richard Vance had known all along?

“And you?” I asked. “Are you going to choose your family?”

Victor looked straight into my eyes.

“No. I'm choosing you. I'm not going to let my father's mistakes become mine.”

For a moment, I wanted to believe him.

But the warning on my phone wouldn't leave my mind.

Don't trust anyone.

“I need to go,” I said.

“Lara, please. I know I've given you reasons to doubt me, but I'm on your side.”

I said nothing.

Instead, I turned and ran into the rain.

---

I didn't stop until I reached a quiet alley away from the school.

My lungs burned, and my clothes were soaked, but I didn't care.

I needed answers.

I opened the notebook with shaking hands.

The handwriting on the first page was familiar.

My father's.

Tears filled my eyes as I read.

October 12.

Vance Industries is hiding serious safety failures. Charles has threatened me because I refuse to stay quiet. Elena still doesn't know everything, and I don't want to put her in danger.

But if Lara ever reads this, I want her to know one thing: I tried.

I tried to do what was right. I tried to protect people who couldn't protect themselves.

Don't let them convince you to stay silent. The truth is hidden where they would never expect anyone to look...

The writing stopped.

I quickly turned the page.

It had been torn out.

“No,” I whispered.

I searched the remaining pages, hoping to find another clue, but there was nothing.

Someone had removed the most important part.

My phone vibrated.

Another message from the unknown number.

You have the notebook. Good. Bring it to the old mill at midnight. Come alone. No boys. No police. If anyone follows you, your mother pays the price.

My heart began to race.

The old mill was abandoned and far from town. It was the last place anyone would look for me.

I typed a reply.

How do I know my mother is still alive?

The response came almost immediately.

Another photograph.

My mother was holding a newspaper with today's date. Her eyes were wide with fear, but she was alive.

At least, she had been when the picture was taken.

A second message followed.

Midnight. And Lara? Leave the Vance boy behind. He's the reason your mother is here.

I stared at the screen.

Victor was the reason?

What if everything he had told me was a lie?

I checked the time. I had less than six hours.

Clutching the notebook, I looked toward the main road.

Victor and Xander stood beneath the streetlights, arguing. Even from a distance, I could see how angry they were.

They were fighting over who could protect me.

But neither of them understood what I needed.

I needed the truth.

And I needed my mother back.

I stepped farther into the shadows, determined to find another way.

Then I noticed something parked near the road.

Victor's car.

The engine was running.

I frowned. Hadn't he been standing with Xander?

I moved closer, careful not to be seen.

Someone was sitting in the passenger seat.

A woman with blonde hair.

She turned her head, and my stomach dropped.

Vanessa.

She was watching me.

When our eyes met, she smiled slowly and raised a finger to her lips.

Shh.

Before I could move, the car pulled away into the rain.

I stood frozen.

Why was Vanessa in Victor's car?

Had she been following me? Had she heard everything we said? And why had she looked at me like she knew exactly what was going to happen?

I tightened my grip on my father's notebook.

Charles Montgomery wasn't the only person hiding something.

Victor had secrets. Richard had secrets. And now Vanessa was somehow involved.

I had spent my whole life believing that the truth about my father was buried in the past.

I was wrong.

The truth was alive, and it was coming for me.

And at midnight, I might have to face it alone.