Chapter 2 - The House of Secrets
The security guard, a kind-faced older man named Thomas who had always looked at me with silent pity but had been too afraid of Evelyn to speak up, helped me stand. My knees were stiff, bruising rapidly from the hours spent on the hard stone.
"Come along, Miss Maya," Thomas whispered softly, guiding me away from the war zone in the foyer. Behind us, I could hear Evelyn screaming obscenities, accusing my father of destroying their family, while Richard calmly dialed his personal legal team and the local precinct.
When we reached the top floor, Thomas didn't take me to my old bedroom—the beautiful, sunlit room filled with my mother's paintings. Evelyn had taken that over for Chloe’s walk-in shoe closet two years ago. Instead, he led me toward the small, windowless attic space above the garage where I had been forced to sleep on a thin cot.
Richard followed us up a few minutes later. When he stepped into the cramped, freezing room, he stopped. He looked at the single threadbare blanket, the broken lamp, and the stacks of textbooks Evelyn had claimed I was studying, which were actually just old catalogs.
"My God," Richard breathed, covering his mouth with his hand. He sank onto the edge of the cot, his shoulders shaking. The powerful billionaire was weeping. "What have I done? Maya, I am so sorry. I thought I was providing for you. I thought Evelyn was giving you a mother's love while I was building our future."
"She told me you knew, Dad," I said quietly, sitting beside him. The maid’s apron felt heavier than ever. "She said you agreed that I was a disappointment. She said you didn't want a daughter who reminded you of Mom, so you gave her total authority over me."
Richard looked up, his eyes bloodshot and fierce. "She told you what? Maya, I swear on your mother's grave, I never knew a single thing. Every time I called from Tokyo or London, Evelyn told me you were asleep, or out with friends, or too busy studying. She sent me edited videos of you smiling, photos of you in beautiful dresses. She fabricated an entire life!"
"She used a green screen and old photos," I explained, a dull numbness settling over me. "Chloe is good with video editing. They made me film clips in the backyard during the few minutes they let me outside, forcing me to read scripts. If I didn't, they withheld food."
Richard stood up, his grief instantly transforming into a cold, calculating desire for absolute destruction. He pulled out his phone and made a single call. "Arthur? It's Richard Vance. Cancel all my meetings for the next month. Initiate a full forensic audit on my wife’s personal accounts. Every penny she spent, every credit card charge. Then, call the District Attorney. Tell him I want to file charges for human trafficking, child abuse, and unlawful confinement. I don't care about the press. I want her ruined."
May you like
He hung up and looked at me, his expression softening into a solemn promise. "They took your childhood, Maya. They took your dignity. But I swear to you, I will take everything they have ever touched, and I will make them watch it burn."
But as Richard led me out of the attic and toward the master suite to rest, I saw Chloe slipping past the security guards in the chaos below, a flash drive clutched tightly in her hand. Evelyn’s faction wasn't going to go down without a fight.
