Chapter 5: The Truth Behind The Fire
The old Croft house stood at the edge of the city like a forgotten grave.
Adeline had never been there.
At least, she didn’t think she had.
But when the black car stopped outside the gates, something inside her reacted.
A strange pressure.
A memory trying to return.
The house was nothing like the stories.
She had heard about the fire.
The accident.
The night her childhood ended.
Everyone had told her the same thing.
The Croft estate burned.
Her parents were gone.
Her old life disappeared.
But the building standing before her was not destroyed.
It was abandoned.
The windows were broken.
The garden had grown wild.
But the structure remained.
Alive.
Waiting.
Enzo stood beside her.
“You don’t have to go inside.””
Adeline looked at him.
“You said someone broke in.””
“Yes.””
“And you think they were looking for something.””
His silence confirmed it.
She turned toward the house.
“Then I need to know what.””
Julian approached behind them.
“Adeline.””
She looked at him.
“What?””
His expression was serious.
“When we enter, stay close to me.””
She almost laughed.
“Why?””
“Because whoever came here wasn’t searching randomly.””
He looked at Enzo.
“They knew exactly what they wanted.””
The three of them entered.
The smell hit her first.
Dust.
Old wood.
Rain.
And something else.
Smoke.
Even after all these years, the house still carried the memory of fire.
Adeline walked slowly through the hallway.
Her fingers brushed against the wall.
Then she stopped.
A sudden image flashed through her mind.
A child hiding.
A woman crying.
A man shouting.
She grabbed the wall.
“Adeline?””
Enzo reached for her.
She pulled away.
“I’m fine.””
But she wasn’t.
Because she had seen something.
Something impossible.
A memory.
A real one.
Julian noticed.
“You remembered something.””
She looked at him.
“A little girl.””
His face changed.
“What?””
“She was hiding.””
Julian went completely still.
“What else?””
“A woman.””
Her voice shook.
“She told me not to make a sound.””
Julian closed his eyes.
For one second, he looked broken.
“That was your mother.””
Adeline stared.
“You were there.””
It wasn’t a question.
Julian didn’t answer.
“You were there.””
“Yes.””
“Then why did you leave me?””
The question finally escaped.
Years of confusion.
Years of loneliness.
Years of wondering why nobody stayed.
Julian looked away.
“Because I thought leaving you alive was better than staying and getting you killed.””
Adeline felt anger rise.
“You don’t get to decide that.””
“I know.””
His voice was quiet.
“I know every day.””
Before she could respond, Enzo found something near the fireplace.
A hidden compartment.
Inside was a small metal box.
Adeline approached.
“What is that?””
Julian’s face changed.
“No.””
Enzo looked at him.
“You know this?””
Julian stepped forward.
“Don’t open it.””
That was exactly why Enzo opened it.
Inside were documents.
Photographs.
And a small audio recorder.
Adeline stared.
“Someone hid this here.””
Enzo picked up the first document.
His expression darkened.
“What?””
Adeline asked.
He didn’t answer immediately.
Then he handed it to her.
She read the page.
Her blood turned cold.
It was a contract.
A business agreement.
Between the Croft family and the Marchetti family.
But the date was impossible.
The agreement had been signed fifteen years after her father supposedly died.
Adeline looked at Julian.
“You were alive.””
“Yes.””
“And Enzo’s family knew.””
Julian looked at Enzo.
“Some of them.””
The answer created another question.
“Some?””
Enzo looked toward the dark hallway.
“My father.””
Silence.
Adeline understood.
This wasn’t just about her.
It was about a war between families.
A war that had started before she even knew she was part of it.
Then the audio recorder clicked.
The three of them froze.
A voice played.
A woman’s voice.
Adeline’s breath stopped.
Because she recognized it.
She had heard it only in dreams.
“Julian, if you’re hearing this, it means they found her.””
Julian grabbed the recorder.
“No…”
The woman continued.
“Do not trust the Marchetti heir.””
Enzo’s face became unreadable.
Adeline looked at him.
The recording continued.
“Especially not Enzo.””
The room went silent.
Adeline stared at the man beside her.
The man who had protected her.
The man who had helped her.
The man whose family might have destroyed hers.
Then the recording ended.
Julian whispered:
“She knew.””
Adeline looked at him.
“Knew what?””
Julian looked toward Enzo.
“That one day you would come here.””
A sound came from upstairs.
A floorboard creaking.
Someone was inside.
Enzo immediately moved in front of Adeline.
“Stay behind me.””
A shadow crossed the second-floor hallway.
Then a voice spoke.
“Still protecting her, Enzo?””
Everyone froze.
Because the voice belonged to someone who should have been dead.
May you like
And Adeline recognized the name Julian whispered next.
“Matteo Marchetti.””
