Chapter 5: The Person Closest To Me
The video ended.
Just like that.
No explanation.
No name.
No final message.
Only Daniel’s terrified face frozen on the screen.
I sat there staring at the laptop, waiting for something else to happen.
A second video.
A hidden message.
Anything.
But the screen remained black.
And the silence in the room became unbearable.
“The person standing closest to you right now.””
Daniel’s voice repeated inside my head.
Not Tara.
Not the stranger from the parking garage.
Someone close.
Someone I trusted.
Someone who had been beside me while my entire life fell apart.
My eyes slowly moved around the room.
Emma.
Marcus.
The two people who had been with me through everything.
My sister.
My husband’s brother.
The people I thought were protecting me.
The people who knew things I didn’t.
Emma noticed where I was looking.
And her expression changed.
“Misha.””
I looked away.
“I’m sorry.””
Her face tightened.
“What?””
“I don’t know what to think.””
The pain in her eyes was immediate.
“Do you think I had something to do with this?””
“No.””
But the answer came too quickly.
And we both noticed.
Emma looked down.
“Wow.””
“Emma…”
“No. It’s okay.””
“It’s not that I don’t trust you.””
She gave a sad smile.
“You literally just said you don’t know what to think.””
I hated that she was right.
I hated that Daniel’s final warning had poisoned everything.
Every relationship.
Every memory.
Every person.
Marcus stood up.
“We need to be careful.””
I looked at him.
“You keep saying that.””
“Because we do.””
“You knew about Tara.””
His jaw tightened.
“Misha…”
“No. Answer me.””
The room became tense.
“You knew my husband was cheating, and you said nothing. How do I know you’re not the person he was talking about?””
Marcus looked hurt.
But he didn’t look angry.
That almost made it worse.
Because anger would have been easier.
“I understand why you’re asking.””
“Do you?””
“Yes.””
He took a breath.
“But if I wanted to hide something, I wouldn’t have brought you here. I wouldn’t have shown you the video.””
“Maybe you didn’t have a choice.””
The words came out before I could stop them.
Marcus looked away.
And I immediately regretted saying it.
Because I saw something in his face.
Not guilt.
Pain.
“I loved my brother,” he said quietly.
I didn’t answer.
“He was my best friend before he was your husband.””
The room went silent.
“And that’s why this hurts.””
Marcus looked at the laptop.
“Because I spent months trying to understand what he was hiding. I thought it was Tara. I thought he was just a man who made a terrible mistake.””
He shook his head.
“But this…”
He pointed at the screen.
“This is something else.””
I looked back at the frozen image of Daniel.
My husband.
The man who promised I would never be alone.
The man who somehow managed to leave me with more loneliness than anyone ever could.
“I need to know who he was talking about,” I whispered.
Marcus nodded.
“Then we start with the people closest to him.””
I looked at him.
“Who?””
He hesitated.
That hesitation scared me.
“Marcus.””
“There was someone else.””
My heart sank.
“What do you mean?””
“Someone Daniel started meeting a few months ago.””
I stared.
“Another woman?””
“No.””
“Then who?””
Marcus rubbed his face.
“I don’t know exactly.””
“That’s not possible.””
“I only know Daniel was nervous after these meetings.””
“What meetings?””
“He never told me.””
I laughed bitterly.
“Everyone keeps saying that.””
“What?””
“He never told me.””
I looked around the room.
“He never told me. He never told you. He never told Tara.””
My voice cracked.
“Who did he tell?””
Nobody answered.
Then Marcus quietly said:
“Maybe nobody.””
I looked at him.
“That doesn’t make sense.””
“No.””
He looked at the flash drive.
“Unless Daniel was trying to protect everyone.””
I hated that possibility.
Because if Daniel had been hiding things to protect people, then I didn’t know whether to hate him or miss him.
And I was tired of feeling both.
The next morning, I woke up to a message.
Unknown number.
My heart immediately started racing.
I opened it.
You watched the video.
I froze.
My fingers went cold.
I typed:
Who are you?
The answer came.
Someone who knew Daniel before you did.
I stared at the message.
That sentence felt familiar.
Too familiar.
The man from the parking garage had said something similar.
I typed:
What do you want?
A few seconds passed.
Then:
To keep you alive.
I almost dropped my phone.
I called Marcus immediately.
He answered after one ring.
“What happened?””
“How did you know something happened?””
“Because you only call me this early when something is wrong.””
I ignored that.
“I got another message.””
There was silence.
“What did it say?””
I read it to him.
Marcus exhaled slowly.
“Don’t respond.””
“Why?””
“Because whoever this is knows you watched the video.””
“How?””
“I don’t know.””
“That’s the problem.””
I stood by the kitchen window.
The street outside looked normal.
Too normal.
“Marcus.””
“Yeah?””
“Did Daniel have enemies?””
Another silence.
Then:
“Yes.””
The answer surprised me.
“What?””
“I didn’t want to tell you yet.””
“Why?””
“Because I wasn’t sure.””
I closed my eyes.
“Tell me.””
Marcus sighed.
“Daniel worked with someone named Adrian Vale.””
The name meant nothing to me.
“Who is he?””
“Someone Daniel invested with.””
“Business partner?””
“More than that.””
I frowned.
“What does that mean?””
“Adrian was the person who helped Daniel build his company.””
I leaned against the counter.
“Was he dangerous?””
“I don’t know.””
Again.
That phrase.
I was starting to hate it.
“But Daniel was afraid of him.””
“Why?””
Marcus lowered his voice.
“Because Daniel found out money was missing.””
I stopped.
“How much?””
“Enough to destroy everything.””
The room felt colder.
“How much?””
“Almost two million dollars.””
I stared outside.
Daniel had never mentioned financial problems.
Not once.
“Our finances were fine.””
“I know.””
“Then why?””
Marcus didn’t answer.
“Marcus.””
“He wasn’t taking the money.””
The words surprised me.
“What?””
“He was trying to find where it went.””
I thought about Daniel’s letter.
The things he discovered.
The person close to me.
A hidden truth.
Everything started connecting.
Maybe Daniel wasn’t hiding an affair.
Maybe he was hiding a war.
Then my phone buzzed again.
Another message.
This time, there was a photo attached.
I opened it.
My blood froze.
It was Daniel.
Taken from a distance.
He was standing outside a restaurant.
But he wasn’t alone.
The person beside him made my heart stop.
Because I knew that person.
Everyone knew that person.
It was Emma.
My sister.
I stared at the picture.
No.
It couldn’t be.
I zoomed in.
Daniel was talking to her.
Emma looked upset.
And Daniel looked terrified.
The date was six months earlier.
The same time Marcus said he discovered Tara.
My hands shook.
Marcus was still on the phone.
“Misha?””
I couldn’t speak.
“Misha, what is it?””
I looked at the photo again.
Then at the woman sitting in my living room last night.
The woman who held my hand.
The woman who told me she would always be there for me.
My sister.
I finally whispered:
“Marcus…”
“What?””
“I think I know who Daniel was warning me about.””
A long silence.
Then:
“Who?””
I stared at the picture.
May you like
And the words came out like they belonged to someone else.
“Emma.””
