Chapter 7 - THE BOY WHO HEARD TOO MUCH
Adrian had been twenty-one when my father died.
Young.
Angry.
Already trapped inside a family business built on fear.
He remembered his uncle Vincent standing in a warehouse office, shouting at two men.
He remembered a stack of safety reports.
He remembered a fire in a metal barrel.
And he remembered asking why the documents had to disappear.
Vincent had answered:
"Because accidents are expensive."
Adrian told Detective Bell everything.
The date.
The location.
The names he remembered.
I listened in silence.
Part of me wanted to hate him.
Another part understood he had been young and frightened.
But understanding wasn't forgiveness.
Not yet.
When the interview ended, Adrian approached me.
"Sophie."
I looked up.
"Yes?"
He swallowed.
"I should have spoken up years ago."
I stared.
"Yes."
He nodded.
"I know."
For several seconds, neither of us spoke.
Then he said:
"I can't change what happened."
"No."
"But I can tell the truth now."
I looked at him.
"Then do that."
May you like
He nodded.
And for the first time, I believed he might.
