Chapter 5
886 Words
Loving You Was Never the Plan
Chapter 5: Secrets Don't Stay Buried
The words echoed through the silent office.
"The file marked... Daniels Family – Confidential."
Arinola frowned.
"Daniels?"
Her surname.
Her pulse quickened.
She looked at Adrian, expecting him to explain.
Instead, his face had gone completely blank.
Not confused.
Not surprised.
Angry.
The kind of anger that came from knowing something was terribly wrong.
"When did this happen?" Adrian asked the security guard.
"About ten minutes ago, sir."
"The CCTV?"
The guard hesitated.
"It was disabled."
Adrian's jaw clenched.
"For how long?"
"Exactly eight minutes."
Eight minutes.
Whoever had broken in knew precisely what they were looking for.
They hadn't stolen computers.
They hadn't taken cash.
They hadn't touched any other confidential documents.
Only one file.
The Daniels Family file.
Arinola felt a chill crawl down her spine.
"I'm sorry..." she said slowly. "Can someone please explain why my family has a confidential file in your company?"
Neither man answered.
That silence frightened her more than any answer could have.
---
Earlier That Night...
The archives were located two floors beneath the main building.
Few employees even knew they existed.
A hooded figure slipped through the dark corridor with practiced ease.
He wore black gloves.
A face mask.
And moved like someone who had done this before.
He stopped at Cabinet 17.
Unlocked it in seconds.
Pulled out a thick brown file.
Across the front, in faded black ink, were the words:
DANIELS FAMILY
He smiled.
"So... it's true."
Before leaving, he looked at one old photograph tucked inside the folder.
The little girl in the picture smiled brightly.
Beside her stood a woman with warm eyes.
The hooded man whispered,
"You've grown up beautifully, Arinola."
Then he disappeared into the darkness.
---
Back at Nova Holdings...
"I think I should go home," Arinola said quietly.
Her head was spinning.
Nothing about today made sense anymore.
She'd gotten a dream job.
Met a mysterious CEO.
Learned she resembled his late mother.
And now...
A secret file with her family name had been stolen.
This couldn't be real.
Adrian nodded.
"I'll have someone drive you."
"I can take a taxi."
"No."
His tone left no room for argument.
"I'd rather know you arrived home safely."
She wanted to protest.
But something in his expression told her he wasn't being controlling.
He was... worried.
"For me?"
He looked away.
"Just a precaution."
---
The black company car rolled through the streets of Lagos.
Arinola stared out the window.
The city lights blurred together.
She replayed the day over and over.
Daniels Family.
What was so important about her family?
Her father had died when she was eight.
Her mother passed away years later after a long illness.
She had no siblings.
No wealthy relatives.
Nothing extraordinary.
Or so she believed.
Her phone buzzed.
Maya ❤️
She answered immediately.
"Hey."
"So?"
"You survived your first day?"
Arinola laughed weakly.
"You won't believe me if I tell you."
"Try me."
"There was a break-in."
"...At your office?"
"Yes."
"What did they steal?"
Arinola hesitated.
"A file."
"So?"
"...It had my family name on it."
Silence.
Even Maya didn't know what to say.
"Girl..."
"You've entered one of those billionaire mystery movies."
"I wish I was joking."
---
The company car stopped outside her apartment.
As she stepped out, the driver spoke.
"Goodnight, Miss Daniels."
"Thank you."
She walked toward her building.
Something felt...
Wrong.
Too quiet.
Too still.
Halfway to the entrance, she noticed it.
A small brown envelope lying on her doorstep.
No stamp.
No address.
Only one word written neatly across the front.
ARINOLA
Her heartbeat quickened.
She looked around.
The street was empty.
She picked up the envelope carefully.
Inside...
Was a photograph.
An old one.
Faded at the edges.
It showed a little girl holding the hand of a smiling woman.
Arinola gasped.
It was the same picture she remembered from childhood.
The one she thought had been lost after her mother's funeral.
Her hands trembled.
There was something written on the back.
She slowly turned it over.
In neat handwriting were the words:
"Your mother lied to you."
Her breathing stopped.
"What...?"
Suddenly—
A loud engine roared behind her.
A black motorcycle sped down the street.
The rider snatched the photograph from her hands.
"No!"
Without thinking, Arinola ran after him.
"Stop!"
The motorcycle accelerated.
She chased it barefoot, her heels abandoned on the sidewalk.
The rider glanced back once.
His eyes were hidden behind a dark visor.
Then...
He deliberately dropped something onto the road.
A silver pendant.
Before she could react, the motorcycle disappeared into the night.
Panting, Arinola picked up the pendant.
It was old.
Cold.
And engraved with a single symbol—
A crescent moon surrounding the letter D.
She frowned.
"I've seen this before..."
But where?
Her phone rang again.
This time...
It wasn't Maya.
It was Adrian.
She answered immediately.
"Hello?"
His voice was urgent.
"Where are you?"
"I'm outside my apartment."
"Listen to me carefully."
His breathing sounded uneven.
"Don't go inside."
Her heart pounded.
"Why?"
There was a long pause.
Then Adrian said the words that made the blood drain from her face.
"Because when my security team got to your apartment..."
"...they found your front door already open."
End of Chapter 5
- Writer
