THE SECRET PROTECTOR
1294 Words
Chapter 10
The Secret Protector
Aria couldn't stop staring at the photograph.
A little girl stood in the picture, smiling at the camera.
It was her.
She recognized the pink dress, the small hair clips, even the stuffed rabbit she had carried everywhere as a child.
But there was something she didn't recognize.
The person standing behind her.
A woman.
Only half of her face was visible.
“Elias,” Aria whispered through the phone, “who is she?”
“I don't know.”
“You said you've seen this picture before.”
“In my mother's things.”
“Then we need to find it.”
“I agree.”
Aria stood up.
“Where?”
“My house.”
---
The Valencia Estate
Elias led Aria into a private study she had never entered before.
The room was filled with old books, photographs, and documents belonging to his mother.
He opened a wooden cabinet.
“My father never allowed anyone to touch these.”
Aria looked around.
“Then why are you showing them to me?”
“Because I'm done letting my father decide what I'm allowed to know.”
He pulled out several boxes.
They searched through photographs for almost an hour.
Then Aria stopped.
“Wait.”
She held up an old photograph.
It was the same woman.
This time, her face was clear.
Aria stared at it.
“Who is she?”
Elias took the photograph.
His expression changed.
“I've seen her before.”
“Who?”
“My mother's secretary.”
“What's her name?”
Elias turned the photograph over.
There was handwriting on the back.
Clara Reyes — Elena's assistant.
Aria frowned.
“Where is she now?”
Elias shook his head.
“I don't know.”
A knock came at the door.
They both turned.
Victoria stood there.
“I do.”
Elias narrowed his eyes.
“You know Clara?”
Victoria nodded.
“My father mentioned her once.”
“What happened to her?” Aria asked.
Victoria hesitated.
“She disappeared.”
Aria's stomach tightened.
“Another disappearance?”
Victoria nodded.
“Shortly after Elena disappeared.”
Elias stared at the photograph.
“So she knew something.”
“Probably,” Victoria said.
“And your father knows where she is?”
“I don't know.”
Elias looked at her carefully.
“You've been hiding things from me.”
Victoria sighed.
“Yes.”
“Why?”
“Because I didn't know who I could trust.”
---
The Old Address
Victoria gave them an address written on a piece of paper.
It led to a small house on the outskirts of the city.
Elias parked outside.
Aria looked through the window.
“This place looks abandoned.”
“Maybe it is,” Elias said.
They approached the front door.
Elias knocked.
Nothing.
He knocked again.
Still nothing.
Then they heard a voice from inside.
“Go away.”
Elias exchanged a glance with Aria.
“Clara Reyes?”
Silence.
Then the door opened slightly.
An older woman appeared.
Her eyes widened when she saw Elias.
“Your mother's son.”
Elias froze.
“You know me?”
Clara stared at him.
“I've been waiting for you.”
Aria stepped forward.
“Were you the one protecting me?”
Clara looked at her.
For several seconds, she said nothing.
Then her eyes filled with emotion.
“Yes.”
Aria's breath caught.
“Why?”
Clara opened the door wider.
“Because Elena asked me to.”
---
Elena's Secret
They sat inside Clara's modest living room.
Clara placed an old box on the table.
“Your mother knew something terrible was happening inside Valencia Corporation,” she told Elias.
“She discovered that money was being moved through companies that didn't really exist.”
Elias's jaw tightened.
“Adrian.”
Clara nodded.
“But Adrian wasn't working alone.”
Aria leaned forward.
“Who else?”
Clara looked at Elias.
“Your father.”
The room became silent.
Elias looked away.
“I already suspected that.”
“Your father wasn't the person who planned everything,” Clara continued. “But he knew about the financial scheme.”
“Then why did he stay silent?”
“Because he was protecting you.”
Elias looked confused.
“Protecting me?”
Clara nodded.
“Your mother wanted to expose the truth. Your father was afraid that if she did, you would become a target.”
Aria slowly asked,
“And my family?”
Clara looked at her.
“Your aunt Marissa helped Elena collect evidence.”
She opened the box.
Inside were several old documents and photographs.
At the very bottom was a letter.
Clara handed it to Aria.
“It was written for you.”
Aria stared at the envelope.
Her name was written across it.
Aria Santos.
Her hands trembled slightly as she opened it.
Inside was Elena's handwriting.
«Aria,
If you are reading this, then Clara has finally found you.
I'm sorry you had to become part of this.
Your family helped me when no one else would.
I made a promise to protect you, even if I couldn't remain in your life.
But there is something you must know.
The danger didn't disappear when I did.»
Aria stopped reading.
She looked at Elias.
“What does that mean?”
Elias didn't answer.
Clara did.
“It means whoever wanted Elena gone never stopped looking for the evidence.”
---
The Missing Page
Elias examined the documents.
“There's something missing.”
Clara nodded.
“The final page.”
“Where is it?”
“I don't know.”
Aria looked at her.
“But you were protecting me.”
“Yes.”
“From whom?”
Clara's expression became serious.
“From anyone searching for Elena's final evidence.”
Suddenly, a loud noise came from outside.
Everyone froze.
Elias stood immediately.
“Stay here.”
He moved toward the window.
A black car sped away from the street.
Elias grabbed his phone.
“Security?”
No answer.
The signal had disappeared.
Aria looked at Clara.
“How did they find us?”
Clara's face turned pale.
“Because someone knew you were coming here.”
Elias turned around.
His expression was cold.
“Someone followed us.”
Victoria stepped closer to the window.
“No.”
She pointed toward the road.
“They didn't follow us.”
Elias looked at her.
“What?”
Victoria swallowed.
“They were already waiting.”
---
One Last Secret
Before they left, Clara called Elias back.
“There is one more thing.”
Elias turned.
“What?”
Clara looked at Aria.
“Your mother didn't just leave a message for you.”
She opened another drawer.
Inside was a small key.
It had the number 9 engraved on it.
Aria stared at it.
“Another key?”
Clara nodded.
“Your mother told me that if you ever met Elias, I was supposed to give this to you.”
Elias frowned.
“What does it open?”
Clara shook her head.
“She never told me.”
Aria took the key.
For the first time, she understood that Elena had been preparing for this moment long before Aria even knew Elias existed.
Elias stood beside her.
“We'll figure it out.”
Aria looked at him.
“You promise?”
He nodded.
“I promise.”
Neither of them noticed Clara watching them with a sad smile.
Because Clara knew something they didn't.
The key marked 9 wasn't meant to open another room.
It was meant to open something much closer to home.
And whoever had been watching Aria all these years was about to reveal themselves.
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