Chapter 2: The Secret My Father Left Behind
The phone kept ringing.
No one moved.
The sound echoed through the dining room, sharp and unnatural, like a warning cutting through the silence.
My eyes stayed fixed on the screen.
*Thomas Bennett.*
My father’s name.
A name that had not appeared anywhere for eight years.
A name that belonged to a grave, a framed photograph in my office, and memories I had tried to keep buried.
My mother stared at the phone like it had betrayed her.
“Hannah,” I whispered.
“What is going on?””
She looked terrified.
Not confused.
Not surprised.
Terrified.
My mother reached for the phone.
I grabbed it first.
“Marcus,” she snapped.
For the first time that day, I heard panic in her voice.
“Give me that.””
I ignored her.
The phone continued vibrating in my hand.
I looked at Hannah.
“Tell me why my dead father is calling your phone.””
Nobody answered.
Then the call ended.
The room became silent again.
My mother slowly reached toward me.
“Your father’s number was transferred to me years ago.””
I stared at her.
“That’s impossible.””
“Why?””
“Because Dad’s number was disconnected after his funeral.””
Her eyes shifted.
Just for a second.
But I saw it.
A hesitation.
And I knew my mother was hiding something.
“You knew something,” I said.
She straightened her shoulders.
“Be careful with your accusations.””
“No.””
My voice grew louder.
“I came home expecting to surprise my wife. Instead, I found her scrubbing floors while you sat there ordering her around. Then your dead husband calls your phone, and now you want me to be careful?””
Hannah stepped closer.
“Marcus…”
I turned toward her.
“Why didn’t you tell me?””
Her eyes filled with tears.
“Because I promised I wouldn’t.””
My heart stopped.
“Promised who?””
She looked at my mother.
And that answer was enough.
I felt something inside me break.
“My own mother made you promise?””
Hannah swallowed.
“After your father died, she came to me.””
My mother’s expression changed.
“Hannah, don’t.””
But Hannah finally looked different.
The fear was still there.
But underneath it was exhaustion.
Like she had been carrying a weight for too long.
“She told me things about your family that you didn’t know.””
I looked at my mother.
“What things?””
Eleanor stepped forward.
“That’s enough.””
“No.””
I pointed at her.
“You don’t get to decide that anymore.””
Her face hardened.
“You’re speaking to your mother.””
“And you’re treating my wife like she’s beneath you.””
The words hung between us.
My mother looked offended.
But Hannah looked like she had been waiting years to hear someone say it.
She sat down slowly on the edge of the chair.
“I tried to tell you before.””
I walked toward her.
“Tell me now.””
She looked at her hands.
“I was scared.””
“Of my mother?””
She nodded.
“Yes.””
I couldn’t believe what I was hearing.
“Hannah, my mother has always been difficult. She’s controlling. She’s stubborn. But scared?””
Hannah gave a painful laugh.
“You don’t know what she’s capable of.””
My mother’s eyes narrowed.
“Watch your words.””
Hannah flinched.
That reaction told me more than any explanation could.
I looked at my mother.
“What did you do?””
She said nothing.
“Hannah.””
My wife took a deep breath.
“The day your mother came to stay with us, she found something in my room.””
“What?””
“A letter.””
My forehead creased.
“What letter?””
Hannah looked toward the staircase.
“The letter your father left before he died.””
My entire body went cold.
My father’s final letter.
I remembered it.
At least, I remembered being told about it.
My mother had said Dad wrote something personal before his heart attack.
She said it was private.
She said he didn’t want anyone reading it.
Not even me.
I had believed her.
Because why wouldn’t I?
She was my mother.
“What did the letter say?”” I asked.
My mother answered immediately.
“Nothing important.””
I looked at her.
“You read it?””
Silence.
That was all I needed.
“You read my father’s last words?””
Eleanor looked away.
“I was his wife.””
“And I was his son.””
Her expression tightened.
For a moment, the woman who always seemed impossible to challenge looked smaller.
Then she recovered.
“You have no idea what your father was like.””
My fists clenched.
“Then explain it.””
She didn’t.
Instead, she looked at Hannah.
“This is what you wanted, isn’t it?””
Hannah frowned.
“What?””
“You wanted to turn my son against me.””
I stepped between them.
“Don’t.””
My mother looked at me.
“She’s manipulating you.””
“No.””
I shook my head.
“I saw what happened with my own eyes.””
“You saw one moment.””
“One moment where my wife was on the floor.””
“She offered to help.””
Hannah’s eyes closed.
“She’s lying.””
My mother’s face changed.
“Excuse me?””
Hannah stood.
“I never offered.””
The room went quiet.
My mother stared at her.
“You should think carefully before you continue.””
Hannah’s voice trembled.
“But I’m tired of thinking carefully.””
That sentence shocked me.
Because Hannah was the calmest person I knew.
She avoided conflict.
She forgave too easily.
She always looked for the good in people.
But now she was standing across from my mother with tears in her eyes and anger in her voice.
“She told me if I wanted to stay in this family, I needed to prove I was worthy.””
I looked at my mother.
“Worthy?””
“She said Bennett women don’t sit around doing nothing.””
My stomach twisted.
“Hannah…”
“She made me clean every morning before you woke up.””
My mother scoffed.
“Routine builds character.””
“Routine?””
I looked at the cuts on Hannah’s hands.
“That’s what you call this?””
My mother looked away.
“You’re exaggerating.””
Then Hannah said something that made the room freeze.
“She took my wedding ring.””
I turned.
“What?””
Hannah’s fingers wrapped around her empty ring finger.
“She said I hadn’t earned the right to wear it.””
My breathing stopped.
“When?””
“Three weeks ago.””
Three weeks.
The exact amount of time I had been away.
I looked at my mother.
“You took her ring?””
“She gave it to me.””
Hannah shook her head.
“No. You forced me.””
My mother’s face turned cold.
“I warned you what would happen if you disrespected me.””
My voice dropped.
“What would happen?””
Neither of them spoke.
Then my mother smiled.
A small, cruel smile.
“She didn’t tell you everything.””
I felt a chill.
“What does that mean?””
Eleanor walked toward the cabinet near the wall.
She opened a drawer.
Inside was a small black box.
She placed it on the table.
“This.””
She looked at Hannah.
“Is what your wife has been hiding.””
Hannah’s face went pale.
I stared at the box.
“What is it?””
My mother pushed it toward me.
“Open it.””
I looked at Hannah.
She whispered my name.
“Marcus, don’t.””
That only made me more afraid.
I opened the box.
Inside was a stack of papers.
At the top was a document with my name.
I picked it up.
The first line made my blood run cold.
*BENNETT FAMILY ASSET TRANSFER AGREEMENT*
I looked at my mother.
“What is this?””
She said nothing.
I read further.
Then my hands started shaking.
Because the signature at the bottom wasn’t mine.
But it looked exactly like mine.
And beneath it was a date.
A date from two months ago.
The day before I left for my business trip.
I slowly looked up.
“Hannah…”
She was crying now.
“I didn’t do it.””
My mother stepped closer.
“Maybe you should ask your wife why she signed papers giving herself control of your company.””
I looked back down at the document.
My name.
My signature.
My company.
My marriage.
Everything suddenly felt like it was falling apart.
Then my phone buzzed.
A message appeared from an unknown number.
One sentence.
One photograph.
And the moment I saw it…
May you like
I knew my mother wasn’t the only person keeping secrets.
*The photo showed my father standing alive… three days after the funeral everyone attended.*
