CHAPTER TWENTY
Aisha was reviewing documents at work when Daniel's message arrived.
We need to talk. My father finally admitted something.
Her stomach tightened.
She called him immediately.
"What did he say?"
"That Grace never betrayed him."
Aisha went silent.
For years, her mother had lived with the shame of an accusation she had denied. Now Richard himself had admitted that the accusation was false.
"Daniel, why would your father allow everyone to believe that?"
"He says he was afraid to admit he was wrong."
Aisha shook her head, even though Daniel couldn't see her.
"Fear ruined my mother's life. And it ruined ours too."
"I know. I'm sorry."
She closed her laptop.
"Where are you?"
"Outside your office."
Aisha hurried to the reception area and found him waiting. He looked troubled, and she immediately understood that his conversation with Richard had hurt him too.
She led him to a quiet corner.
"Are you okay?" she asked.
Daniel gave a humourless laugh.
"I spent my whole life believing my father was an honest man. Now I'm wondering how many other things he has hidden from me."
Aisha touched his arm.
"You don't have to become like him."
He looked at her.
"What if I make the same mistakes?"
"You won't be perfect, Daniel. Nobody is. But you can choose to tell the truth even when it's difficult."
He studied her face.
"You always knew how to make things sound simple."
"I'm not saying it's easy."
For a moment, he covered her hand with his.
"Thank you for being here."
Aisha felt the familiar warmth between them, but this time she didn't pull away.
"I told you we'd face this together."
Daniel smiled faintly.
"Does that mean I can ask you to dinner?"
She raised an eyebrow.
"Are you asking me out while we're investigating a family scandal?"
"I'm trying to bring some normality into our lives."
Aisha pretended to consider it.
"Fine. Dinner. But don't choose somewhere ridiculously expensive just to impress me."
"I was thinking of somewhere with good food and better company."
"And who is the better company?"
He smiled.
"You, obviously."
She laughed, and the tension between them eased.
That evening, Daniel took her to a small restaurant overlooking the water. They talked for hours, sharing stories about their lives during the six years they had spent apart.
Aisha told him about her first major project at work and how nervous she had been when she presented it. Daniel told her about the loneliness he rarely admitted to anyone.
"I dated someone briefly after school," he confessed. "But it never became serious. I think a part of me was still waiting for a conversation we never had."
Aisha looked down at her glass.
"I tried to move on too."
"Did you?"
She looked back at him.
"I thought I had."
Their eyes met, and the truth between them felt impossible to deny.
When Daniel drove her home, they remained inside the parked car for a few moments.
"I had a wonderful evening," Aisha said quietly.
"So did I."
He hesitated before asking, "Can I see you again? Not because of our families or the investigation. Just because I want to spend time with you."
Aisha's heart raced.
"Yes," she whispered. "You can."
Daniel smiled, but before either of them could say more, Aisha's phone rang.
It was her mother.
"Aisha," Grace said, her voice shaking. "You need to come home immediately."
"What happened?"
"Someone has been here. They left something for you."
Aisha sat upright.
"What did they leave?"
Grace paused.
"An old photograph of you as a baby. And there's a message written on the back."
Aisha's blood ran cold.
"What message?"
Her mother's voice broke.
"YOUR DAUGHTER DESERVES TO KNOW WHO HER FAMILY REALLY IS."
Aisha slowly turned towards Daniel.
The investigation had taken another unexpected turn.
And whatever the photograph revealed, it threatened to change everything they thought they knew about the past.