Dad’s silence confirmed more than words could.
“There was a building collapse,” he admitted. “Three workers died.”
My knees weakened.
Julian handed me a faded newspaper clipping.
WOMAN SUSPECTED IN DEVELOPMENT SCANDAL MISSING AFTER INVESTIGATION.
My mother’s photograph stared back at me from the page.
I could barely breathe.
“You told me she abandoned us.”
Dad looked shattered.
“That’s what everyone believed publicly.”
Julian’s voice lowered.
“My mother helped her disappear before Leonard could turn her into the scapegoat.”
I looked between them desperately.
“What happened to her?”
Neither answered.
That silence terrified me more than anything.
“Dad?”
His eyes filled with tears.
“She died six years later.”
I almost collapsed, but Julian caught my arm before I hit the floor.