Chapter 4
The Secret
2 min read
I couldn't stop thinking about Ayla's last words.
“There is something I never told you.”
What secret could possibly be so important that she had hidden it from me?
I barely slept that night.
The next morning, I received a message from an unknown number.
We need to talk.
I stared at the screen.
“Who is this?”
The reply came seconds later.
Someone who knows the truth about Ayla.
My heart started beating faster.
I wanted to ignore the message.
But curiosity took over.
I agreed to meet.
An hour later, I found myself sitting across from a man I had never seen before.
He looked serious.
“You loved Ayla, didn't you?”
I nodded.
“Then you deserve to know why she left you.”
I leaned forward.
“What happened?”
He took a deep breath.
“Ayla didn't leave because she stopped loving you.”
I froze.
“Then why?”
“Because she was trying to protect you.”
“Protect me from what?”
He looked around before answering.
“From her past.”
I didn't understand.
“What does that mean?”
He placed a small envelope on the table.
“This belongs to you.”
I looked at the envelope.
My name was written across it.
My hands started shaking.
“Who gave you this?”
“Ayla.”
I opened it slowly.
Inside was a photograph.
It showed Ayla standing beside the same man sitting in front of me.
On the back of the photograph was a date.
A date from years before I had ever met her.
I looked at him.
“Who are you?”
He remained silent for several seconds.
Then he finally said,
“My name is Daniel.”
I waited.
“Ayla is my sister.”
I stared at him in disbelief.
“Sister?”
He nodded.
“And the reason she left you is because someone from our past came back.”
My heart sank.
“Who?”
Daniel looked directly into my eyes.
“The man who destroyed our family.”
Before I could ask another question, his phone rang.
He answered.
His expression changed immediately.
“What happened?”
He listened for a few seconds.
Then he stood up.
“We have to go.”
“Where?”
He looked at me.
“They found Ayla.”
My blood ran cold.
“Who found her?”
Daniel didn't answer.
He simply grabbed his jacket and walked toward the door.
I followed him.
Because whatever had happened to Ayla, I knew one thing for certain.
I wasn't going to lose her again without knowing the truth.