"I killed someone."
My mother's words struck me harder than any slap ever could.
I stared at her.
"What?"
Her lips trembled.
"I killed someone that night."
Victor smiled.
"There. Now you finally know."
I looked at my mother, waiting for her to deny it.
She didn't.
"Mom…"
She lowered her head.
"I didn't want you to find out like this."
My chest tightened.
"Then tell me the truth."
Victor laughed.
"You think she will?"
My mother looked at him.
"Don't."
"Why not?" Victor asked. "She deserves to know."
He stepped farther into the church.
The gun remained pointed at us.
Adrian moved slightly in front of me.
Victor noticed.
"Still protecting her?"
Adrian's jaw tightened.
"She doesn't need protection from the truth."
Victor smiled.
"No. She needs protection from everyone who created her life."
I looked at him.
"What did you do?"
Victor's expression became cold.
"Nothing compared to what your family did."
My uncle suddenly spoke.
"Enough."
Victor turned toward him.
"You're the last person who should tell me to stop."
"You started the fire."
"And you gave me the reason."
My uncle's face hardened.
"I never asked you to kill anyone."
Victor laughed.
"That's what everyone says when things go wrong."
I looked between them.
"You two worked together."
My uncle shook his head.
"I thought I could control him."
Victor interrupted.
"You thought you could use me."
He pointed the gun toward my uncle.
"You wanted the fortune."
My uncle said nothing.
"You wanted the money hidden inside the warehouse," Victor continued. "You wanted the fire to destroy the evidence. But you never expected Richard to arrive."
My heart pounded.
"And my mother?"
Victor looked at her.
"She arrived because she was looking for Lily."
My mother closed her eyes.
"I heard them arguing," she whispered.
I stepped toward her.
"Who?"
"Richard and your uncle."
My mother swallowed.
"Richard had Lily in his arms. He wanted to take her away."
"Why?"
"Because he knew she was his daughter."
I looked at her.
"You knew?"
"Yes."
Tears rolled down her cheeks.
"I knew Lily was Richard's child."
My voice broke.
"And you raised her anyway."
"She was innocent."
Victor suddenly laughed.
"And that's where everything went wrong."
My mother looked at him.
"You came into the warehouse."
"Yes."
"You had a gun."
"Yes."
"You threatened Richard."
Victor's smile faded.
"He knew too much."
I felt my stomach twist.
"What happened next?"
My mother looked at me.
"I tried to stop them."
"Mom, what did you do?"
She shook her head.
"I was terrified."
Victor interrupted.
"She shot him."
My eyes widened.
"Who?"
My mother began crying.
"Richard."
"No."
I stepped backward.
"You killed my biological father?"
"No!"
Her voice broke.
"I didn't kill Richard."
Victor laughed.
"She fired the gun."
My mother nodded.
"I did."
Adrian looked at her.
"Where did you shoot?"
"The ceiling."
Silence.
I stared at her.
"You didn't shoot him?"
"No."
She covered her face.
"I fired because I wanted everyone to stop."
Victor's expression became darker.
"And then the fire started."
My mother nodded.
"I saw smoke."
She looked at my uncle.
"You were the one who started it."
My uncle didn't answer.
Victor shook his head.
"Don't put all of it on him."
My mother looked at Victor.
"You locked the doors."
My heart stopped.
"What?"
Victor looked at me.
"The doors were locked because nobody was supposed to leave."
"Why?"
"Because there was something inside that warehouse worth more than all of you."
"The money?"
"The original trust documents."
Adrian's eyes narrowed.
"And the money."
Victor smiled.
"Exactly."
My uncle stepped forward.
"You're lying."
Victor turned the gun toward him.
"Am I?"
My uncle stopped.
Victor continued.
"Your father had hidden the original fortune records inside that warehouse. The trust documents were there too. Richard discovered them. Samuel discovered them. Your father discovered them."
He looked at me.
"And eventually, you inherited everything."
I felt dizzy.
"So all of this…"
"Yes."
"The marriage…"
"Yes."
"Adrian being targeted…"
"Yes."
"Daniel…"
Victor smiled.
"Daniel was useful."
Adrian's fists tightened.
Victor continued.
"Everyone thought the marriage was about revenge between families."
He shook his head.
"It was about control."
I looked at my mother.
"And you knew?"
She shook her head.
"I knew about the fire. I knew about Lily. I knew Richard was your father."
She looked at me through tears.
"But I didn't know about the trust."
Victor laughed.
"Your mother was never part of the business."
My mother whispered,
"I was only trying to protect my children."
I moved closer to her.
"Then why didn't you tell me?"
"Because every time I tried, someone threatened you."
"Who?"
She looked at Victor.
My blood ran cold.
"Victor?"
He smiled.
"For years."
Adrian suddenly noticed something.
"Wait."
Everyone looked at him.
He pointed at Victor's document.
"That isn't the agreement."
Victor's expression changed.
Adrian stepped closer.
"The seal is wrong."
Victor looked down.
"You're lying."
"No."
Adrian took the document from Victor's hand when Victor's attention shifted for a second.
He examined it.
"This is a copy."
My uncle's eyes widened.
"Then where is the original?"
I slowly turned toward my uncle.
He looked at me.
Victor's face changed.
"You…"
My uncle smiled.
"I never said I had lost it."
He reached inside his coat.
Victor immediately raised his gun.
"Don't!"
My uncle pulled out a small envelope.
The original agreement.
Victor's face twisted with rage.
"Give it to me."
"No."
"You have no idea what you're holding."
My uncle looked at me.
"I know exactly what I'm holding."
He extended the envelope toward me.
"This belongs to you."
I reached for it.
A gunshot exploded through the church.
I screamed.
The envelope fell to the floor.
Adrian pulled me behind him.
My mother cried out.
Victor stood frozen.
My uncle slowly looked down at his chest.
Blood spread across his shirt.
Another figure stood behind him.
A man I thought I would never see again.
Samuel Morgan.
Alive.
He lowered the gun.
Then he looked directly at me.
"You have five minutes."
I stared at him.
"Five minutes for what?"
He looked toward Victor.
"Before everyone who wants you dead arrives."
And suddenly—
the church doors began shaking.
Someone was trying to get inside.