Chapter 3: The Secret Plan
The message on Ethan’s phone destroyed the last excuse Vanessa had.
I watched my father scroll through the conversation.
The room was so quiet I could hear the clock on the wall ticking.
Every second felt like a countdown.
“What is this?”” Dad asked.
Vanessa stepped forward.
“Daniel, give me the phone.””
“No.””
The word was simple.
But it stopped her.
Dad continued reading.
The messages were between Vanessa and Ethan.
They weren’t about my scholarship.
Not only that.
They were about me.
Plans.
Conversations.
Decisions made without me.
“She was going to leave anyway,” Vanessa had written.
Ethan had replied:
“What if Dad finds out?””
Vanessa:
“He won’t. He trusts me.””
I felt sick.
Dad looked up.
“You planned this?””
Vanessa shook her head.
“You’re taking things out of context.””
“Explain the context.””
She opened her mouth.
Nothing came out.
Dad handed the phone back to Ethan.
“Go upstairs.””
Ethan looked relieved.
But before he left, he stopped beside me.
“I’m sorry.””
It was quiet.
Almost impossible to hear.
I looked at him.
For years, I thought Ethan was the reason Vanessa treated me differently.
But standing there, seeing the guilt on his face, I realized something.
He had been trapped too.
After he left, Dad sat down across from Vanessa.
I had never seen him look so tired.
“Why?””
Vanessa crossed her arms.
“Because I’m protecting my son.””
“And destroying my daughter.””
“She isn’t your only child.””
The words hung in the air.
Dad looked hurt.
“She is my daughter.””
Vanessa looked away.
“You always choose her.””
“No.””
Dad shook his head.
“I always tried to love both of you.””
I stood near the doorway, holding the torn pieces of paper.
I didn’t know whether to cry or scream.
Dad noticed me.
He walked over.
“I’m sorry.””
That was the sentence I had wanted to hear.
But somehow it hurt more.
“You didn’t know,” I whispered.
“No.””
He looked at the scholarship pieces in my hands.
“But I should have.””
The next morning, Dad took me back to the university website.
We requested a new official copy.
The scholarship was still valid.
The damage Vanessa caused was only emotional.
Not permanent.
But I still couldn’t stop thinking about one thing.
Why would someone go that far?
That afternoon, I found the answer.
I was walking past the kitchen when I heard Vanessa talking on the phone.
I wasn’t trying to listen.
But then I heard my name.
“I told you, Ethan was supposed to get that recommendation,” she said.
I froze.
Recommendation?
What recommendation?
She continued.
“No, Daniel doesn’t know about the transfer application.””
My heart started racing.
Transfer application?
I stepped closer.
“He doesn’t need to know until it’s approved.””
I pushed the door open.
Vanessa turned.
The phone slipped slightly in her hand.
“What transfer application?””
Her face changed.
“Get out.””
“No.””
For the first time, I wasn’t afraid.
“What are you hiding?””
She stared at me.
Then smiled.
A small, cruel smile.
“You really think that scholarship was the only thing I stopped?””
I felt cold.
“What does that mean?””
She hung up the phone.
Then she walked toward me.
“You should ask your father why he never told you about the money.””
I frowned.
“What money?””
She leaned closer.
“The money your mother left.””
My breath stopped.
“My mother?””
Vanessa smiled.
And I knew immediately.
Whatever she was about to reveal was something she had been saving for a long time.
May you like
“She didn’t leave you with nothing,” Vanessa whispered.
“She left you a fortune.””
