CHAPTER 12: The Woman Who Was Supposed to Be Dead
For several seconds, Rafael could not process the words.
Not because he did not hear them.
Because he did.
Perfectly.
Every sound disappeared except Diego’s voice repeating inside his mind.
Your mother.
Impossible.
A lie.
A cruel mistake.
Anything except reality.
Rafael stood inside the abandoned church, surrounded by people who had spent years hiding secrets from him.
His father.
His uncle.
Kell.
Diego.
And now a name he thought belonged only to the past.
His mother.
Elena De Santos.
A woman he had buried fifteen years ago.
A woman whose death shaped the person he became.
“No.”
The word escaped quietly.
Almost like he was rejecting the universe itself.
Diego’s voice came again through the earpiece.
“Rafael, listen to me.”
Rafael touched the device.
“Say it again.”
A pause.
Diego hesitated.
Then:
“The person who gave them our location…”
“Someone using your mother’s old identification.”
The church became silent.
Rafael looked at Mateo.
His father’s expression changed.
Not surprise.
Recognition.
That was worse.
“You knew.”
Mateo did not answer.
Rafael’s eyes hardened.
“You knew.”
Mateo looked away.
And that was enough.
Another secret.
Another wound.
Rafael turned away from him.
“How many times?”
His voice became colder.
“How many times did everyone decide I was better off not knowing?”
Nobody answered.
Because there was no answer that could justify fifteen years of silence.
Nate looked between the adults.
He did not understand everything.
But he understood enough.
People were hurting.
People were afraid.
Rafael noticed the boy’s expression.
Immediately, his anger shifted.
Not disappeared.
Controlled.
He walked toward Nate.
“Are you okay?”
Nate nodded.
But his hands were shaking.
Rafael crouched down.
“Look at me.”
Nate looked up.
“Nothing happening here is your fault.”
The boy swallowed.
“Everyone keeps fighting because of me.”
Rafael shook his head.
“No.”
“Yes.”
Nate’s voice became smaller.
“Because I remember.”
Rafael looked directly at him.
“That is not your fault.”
A pause.
“Sometimes remembering the truth is the bravest thing a person can do.”
Nate stared at him.
Then slowly nodded.
Behind them, Adrian watched.
For the first time, he looked less like a powerful businessman.
And more like an old man who had made too many mistakes.
“Your mother was not supposed to die.”
Rafael turned sharply.
The words came from Adrian.
“What did you say?”
Adrian looked at him.
“Elena was supposed to disappear.”
Rafael froze.
“What?”
Mateo closed his eyes.
Like he knew this conversation was unavoidable.
Adrian continued.
“The accident was planned.”
Rafael stared.
“My mother’s death?”
“Yes.”
The anger returned instantly.
“You knew?”
Adrian shook his head.
“I knew someone was trying to remove everyone connected to your father.”
“But I didn’t know they would target her.”
Rafael stepped closer.
“Who did?”
Silence.
Then Mateo spoke.
“The same person who attacked me.”
Rafael looked at him.
“Who?”
Mateo did not answer.
Instead, he walked toward the old wooden table.
He picked up the photograph.
Then turned it over.
There was writing on the back.
A name.
A name Rafael had never expected.
Victor De Santos.
Rafael stared.
His grandfather’s brother.
A man who disappeared before Rafael was born.
A man nobody mentioned.
“Who is Victor?”
Adrian looked uncomfortable.
“Someone who believed the De Santos family belonged to him.”
Rafael looked confused.
“He’s dead.”
Mateo shook his head.
“No.”
Another impossible truth.
Rafael laughed quietly.
“This family has more dead people alive than living people.”
Nobody smiled.
Because it was true.
Mateo continued.
“Victor created a hidden branch of the family organization.”
“Years ago.”
“He believed your grandfather chose the wrong heir.”
Rafael understood.
A power struggle.
An old family war.
“And my mother?”
Mateo’s voice became heavy.
“She found out.”
“What?”
“She discovered Victor’s plans.”
“She tried to expose him.”
Rafael felt his hands tighten.
“And they killed her.”
Mateo looked down.
“Yes.”
For years, Rafael remembered his mother as someone who simply disappeared from his life too early.
Now he had to accept something much worse.
She was taken from him.
By someone who shared his blood.
The church doors suddenly opened.
Everyone turned.
A man stood outside.
Older.
Wearing a dark coat.
Holding an umbrella.
Rafael immediately recognized him from old family photographs.
The face was older.
The hair was gray.
But the eyes were the same.
Cold.
Confident.
Unapologetic.
Victor De Santos.
Alive.
“I was wondering how long it would take you to find me.”
Rafael stared.
Nobody moved.
Victor stepped inside.
“You have your father’s anger.”
A pause.
“But your mother’s weakness.”
Rafael’s expression changed.
“What did you say?”
Victor smiled.
“She always believed people could be saved.”
Rafael walked forward.
“You killed her.”
Victor tilted his head.
“No.”
“I gave her a choice.”
Rafael stopped.
“A choice?”
“Yes.”
Victor looked at Nate.
“She chose to protect a secret.”
His eyes returned to Rafael.
“Just like Emily.”
Rafael’s anger became almost impossible to contain.
“Where is Nate’s mother?”
Victor smiled slightly.
“You still think this is about finding people.”
A pause.
“You still don’t understand.”
“Understand what?”
Victor looked around the church.
“At the end of this story, Rafael…”
“Everyone who lied to you will have a reason.”
“And everyone who told you the truth…”
“Will have a price.”
The church lights flickered.
Then a phone rang.
Victor’s phone.
He answered.
Listened.
Then smiled.
“What?”
Rafael watched him.
Victor looked directly at him.
“Your little nurse woke up.”
Rafael froze.
“Emily?”
Victor nodded.
“But she remembers something now.”
A pause.
“Something about the night your father disappeared.”
Rafael stepped forward.
“Where is she?”
Victor smiled.
“Come find out.”
Then he turned and walked away.
Rafael wanted to stop him.
But something held him back.
A realization.
Victor was not running.
He wanted Rafael to follow.
This was not an escape.
It was an invitation.
And invitations from enemies always came with a trap.
Diego’s voice returned through the earpiece.
“Rafael.”
“What?”
A pause.
“There's another problem.”
“What now?”
Diego hesitated.
Then said:
“The hospital records show Emily Carter was never admitted.”
Rafael froze.
“What?”
“She was removed from the system.”
“How?”
Another pause.
“Someone with De Santos access.”
Rafael looked around the church.
At his father.
His uncle.
Victor.
Everyone connected to his family.
And finally he understood.
The enemy was not attacking from outside.
May you like
The enemy had been living inside his world for years.
TO BE CONTINUED…
