Chapter 15 — The Night Thomas Disappeared
Chapter 15 — The Night Thomas Disappeared
The room remained silent after the video ended.
Nobody moved.
Nobody spoke.
The final message stayed frozen on the screen.
“Ask your father what happened the night Thomas disappeared.”
All eyes turned toward Edward Hawthorne.
The man who had returned from the dead.
The man who claimed he disappeared to protect his family.
The man who now seemed to hold the missing piece of the entire mystery.
Alexander stared at him.
“Dad…”
Edward closed his eyes.
He already knew the question was coming.
“What happened that night?”
For years, Alexander had replayed that night in his mind.
The argument.
The rain.
Thomas standing at the entrance with a bag.
The look on his brother’s face.
The feeling that something was wrong.
But there had always been a missing piece.
Something nobody explained.
Now, after twelve years, the truth was finally within reach.
Edward slowly sat down.
“I never wanted you to know this.”
Alexander’s voice became colder.
“That seems to be the family tradition.”
The words hurt.
But Edward accepted them.
“You have every right to be angry.”
Thomas looked at his father.
“Then tell the truth.”
Edward nodded.
“I will.”
Twelve Years Earlier
The night Thomas disappeared, Edward had discovered that someone inside the company was leaking confidential information.
The Hawthorne empire was being attacked from within.
Edward suspected Richard Whitmore.
But he needed proof.
Thomas had also discovered the financial records.
The same evidence that could expose the entire operation.
Edward remembered the moment Thomas entered his office.
“He was angry.”
Thomas looked down.
“Because I thought you were hiding something.”
Edward nodded.
“You thought I was protecting the wrong people.”
Thomas said nothing.
“Then I told you to leave.”
Alexander froze.
“You told him to leave?”
Edward looked at him.
“Yes.”
The confession hurt.
“Why?”
“Because someone was listening.”
The room became silent.
Edward continued.
“I knew there was a traitor nearby. I didn’t know who.”
Thomas looked at his father.
“So you pushed me away to protect me.”
Edward nodded.
“I needed the person watching us to believe we had fallen apart.”
Alexander shook his head.
“You could have told us.”
Edward looked at him sadly.
“No.”
“Why?”
“Because the enemy was closer than we realized.”
Everyone became quiet.
Edward looked around the room.
“The person who betrayed us had access to everything.”
His eyes moved toward the document.
“The company.”
“The foundation.”
“The security systems.”
“And the family.”
Marcus looked uncomfortable.
“Are you saying you suspected someone in the household?”
Edward nodded.
“Yes.”
“Who?”
Edward hesitated.
And that hesitation frightened everyone.
“Someone none of us wanted to believe.”
Before anyone could ask more, the palace alarm suddenly sounded.
Again.
Everyone turned.
Marcus immediately checked his device.
“This time, it’s not a system failure.”
Alexander looked at him.
“Then what is it?”
Marcus’s face changed.
“Someone opened the main gate.”
Security rushed to the entrance.
Everyone followed.
The massive front doors opened slowly.
Standing outside was a woman.
Older.
Exhausted.
Holding a small suitcase.
Alexander looked confused.
“Who are you?”
The woman looked at Eleanor.
Her eyes filled with tears.
“I’m sorry.”
Eleanor immediately recognized her.
Her face went pale.
“No…”
Thomas stepped forward.
“Who is she?”
Eleanor whispered:
“Someone who should have come back years ago.”
The woman lowered her head.
“My name is Sarah.”
Nobody spoke.
Eleanor continued:
“She was Thomas’s assistant.”
Thomas froze.
“My assistant?”
Sarah nodded.
“Yes.”
Alexander looked at her carefully.
“Why are you here?”
Sarah looked terrified.
“Because I know who really betrayed your family.”
Inside the palace, everyone gathered again.
Sarah placed a folder on the table.
“I kept these hidden for twelve years.”
Alexander opened it.
Inside were photographs.
Emails.
Documents.
Then he saw something shocking.
A photograph of a secret meeting.
The people in it were unmistakable.
Richard Whitmore.
A company executive.
And…
Marcus Reed.
The room went silent.
Marcus stared at the photograph.
“That’s not possible.”
Sarah looked at him.
“You were there.”
Marcus shook his head.
“No.”
Thomas looked angry.
“Then explain why your face is in the picture.”
Marcus looked at Alexander.
“I swear to you, I don’t know what this is.”
Victoria, watching from a distance through a hidden camera feed, smiled.
Everything was going exactly as planned.
Sarah took another document from the folder.
“There is more.”
Alexander looked at her.
“What?”
She handed him a letter.
“It was written the night Thomas disappeared.”
Alexander opened it.
The handwriting was Thomas’s.
But the message was not for Marcus.
Not for Edward.
Not for Eleanor.
It was addressed to Alexander.
His hands began to shake.
He read the first line:
"Brother, if you are reading this, it means I failed to protect you."
Alexander swallowed.
The next sentence was even worse.
"The person who betrayed us is someone you love."
Everyone stared.
Thomas looked shocked.
“I never wrote that.”
Alexander looked up.
“What?”
Thomas stepped closer.
“That’s not my letter.”
The room froze.
Someone had forged Thomas’s handwriting.
Someone had created a false message.
Someone had spent twelve years manipulating the Hawthorne family.
Then the palace lights flickered.
A voice came from the security speakers.
A voice everyone recognized.
Victoria.
“Congratulations.”
Everyone looked up.
“You finally found the truth.”
Alexander’s face hardened.
“How did you get into our system?”
Victoria laughed.
“Because I didn’t break into your family.”
A pause.
“I’ve been part of the story from the beginning.”
The speakers went silent.
And for the first time…
everyone understood.
This was not just about money.
May you like
Not just about power.
Victoria had been planning this revenge for twelve years.
