Chapter 12: Daniel’s Last Secret
Chapter 12: Daniel’s Last Secret
The night air felt heavier than ever.
Olivia stared at Daniel.
The man who had almost destroyed her life.
The man who had lied to her.
The man who had planned her wedding as part of a scheme.
And yet...
he was standing there trying to protect them.
She didn’t know what to believe anymore.
“Why should I trust you?” Olivia asked.
Daniel looked at her.
He didn’t defend himself.
He didn’t make excuses.
“I don’t expect you to.”
The answer surprised her.
“I know what I did.”
His voice was quieter than she had ever heard.
“I know I hurt you.”
A bitter smile crossed his face.
“But if I wanted you dead, Olivia, you wouldn’t be standing here.”
Nobody spoke.
Even Victor seemed surprised by Daniel’s honesty.
Catherine stepped forward.
“You worked for Margaret.”
Daniel looked at her.
“Yes.”
Olivia felt her chest tighten.
The confirmation still hurt.
“But not the way you think.”
“Then explain.”
Daniel took a deep breath.
“I met Margaret five years ago.”
The words immediately caught Olivia’s attention.
“Five years?”
“Yes.”
The same year her father died.
Daniel continued.
“She found me after Richard’s death.”
“Why?”
“Because she knew I had access to you.”
Olivia felt cold.
“She wanted you close to me.”
Daniel nodded.
“She wanted me to gain your trust.”
Emma looked away.
Because she already knew.
Daniel continued:
“My job was to convince you to transfer control of the company assets.”
Olivia stared.
“And you agreed.”
Daniel looked ashamed.
“Yes.”
The answer hurt because there was no denial.
“I thought I could control the situation.”
Victor laughed bitterly.
“You thought you were smarter than Margaret.”
Daniel didn’t respond.
Because it was true.
“I discovered too late that Margaret wasn’t trying to steal money.”
Daniel looked at Olivia.
“She was trying to erase every person who knew the truth about your father.”
Catherine’s expression changed.
“She wanted the evidence destroyed.”
Daniel nodded.
“Yes.”
Olivia crossed her arms.
“Then why the cake?”
Everyone became silent.
Daniel looked down.
“That wasn’t my plan.”
“Explain.”
Daniel hesitated.
“Margaret ordered me to make sure you couldn’t attend the final company meeting.”
Olivia frowned.
“The sedative.”
“Yes.”
Her heart sank.
“You were going to drug me.”
Daniel closed his eyes.
“Yes.”
The honesty shocked everyone.
“But not poison you.”
He looked at her.
“The dose was supposed to make you sleep for several hours.”
Olivia stared.
“That’s supposed to make me feel better?”
“No.”
Daniel shook his head.
“It doesn’t.”
A painful silence.
“I was wrong.”
The words seemed difficult for him to say.
“I let ambition turn me into someone I hated.”
Olivia looked away.
She wanted to be angry.
She was angry.
But she also saw something different.
Regret.
Real regret.
Then Sophie interrupted.
“Wait.”
Everyone looked at her.
“If Daniel didn’t put the poison in the cake... who did?”
Silence.
That question changed everything.
Because the sedative had almost killed Olivia.
And Daniel wasn’t responsible.
Daniel looked toward the road.
“Margaret.”
Victor frowned.
“How do you know?”
“Because she changed the plan.”
Daniel’s voice became serious.
“When I refused to continue helping her, she took control.”
Olivia looked at him.
“You betrayed her?”
Daniel nodded.
“After I found out she planned to kill you.”
The words shocked everyone.
Catherine stepped forward.
“You knew?”
“Yes.”
“When?”
Daniel looked at Olivia.
“The night before the wedding.”
A painful silence followed.
“You knew I was in danger.”
“Yes.”
“And you still let the wedding happen?”
Daniel looked devastated.
“I was trying to find proof.”
Olivia shook her head.
“No.”
Her voice trembled.
“You were trying to save yourself.”
Daniel didn’t argue.
Because part of it was true.
Then Victor suddenly looked toward the mansion.
“Wait.”
Everyone turned.
“What?”
Victor pointed.
A light was on inside the abandoned Bennett estate.
But nobody had entered.
The mansion had been empty for years.
Catherine’s face changed.
“That’s impossible.”
Daniel looked at the house.
“No.”
He whispered.
“She’s there.”
“Who?”
Daniel’s expression became dark.
“Margaret.”
Everyone froze.
“How do you know?”
Daniel reached into his pocket.
He pulled out a small device.
“A tracker.”
Olivia stared.
“You put a tracker on her?”
Daniel nodded.
“She knew I betrayed her.”
A pause.
“So she started watching me.”
Sophie looked toward the mansion.
“Then she knows we’re here.”
Daniel nodded.
“Yes.”
Suddenly, every light in the mansion turned on.
One by one.
The entire house illuminated.
Then the front door opened.
A woman stepped onto the balcony.
Elegant.
Calm.
Smiling.
Margaret Bennett.
Olivia’s aunt.
The woman who had comforted her at her father’s funeral.
The woman who had told her:
“Your father loved you more than anything.”
Now she looked down at Olivia.
And smiled.
“Well.”
Her voice carried through the night.
“This family reunion took longer than I expected.”
Olivia felt frozen.
Margaret looked at Daniel.
“You were always weak.”
Then at Catherine.
“You should have stayed dead.”
Finally, her eyes landed on Olivia.
“And you...”
A pause.
“You should have never opened that vault.”
Olivia stepped forward.
“Why did you kill my father?”
Margaret smiled.
“Because your father made one mistake.”
She leaned against the balcony railing.
“He believed family mattered more than power.”
The words were terrifying.
Then Margaret lifted a small envelope.
Olivia recognized it immediately.
Her father’s missing box.
The final evidence.
Margaret held it in her hand.
“You want the truth?”
She smiled.
“Come inside.”
A pause.
“But come alone.”
Olivia looked at everyone.
Nobody wanted her to go.
But everyone knew something.
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The final secret was inside that house.
And Margaret had been waiting five years for this moment.
