THE LAST PROMISE PART FOUR — THE LAST NIGHT

PART FOUR — THE LAST NIGHT My father had been dead for eight years. Which meant there was no one left to confront. Except the truth. The old man told me everything. My father had been involved in a business deal with Elena's family. Millions were involved. People had lied. People had stolen. And when Elena discovered what was happening, she threatened to expose everyone. That night, she and I were supposed to leave together. We were eighteen. Stupid. Young. In love. We believed love could solve everything. It couldn't. Someone followed us. The crash happened on a deserted road. I survived. Elena survived. Her brother survived. But someone wanted the world to believe Elena had died. So she disappeared. And I… I was taken away before I could remember anything. The old man looked at me. “Your father wasn't the one who ordered the crash.” “Then who?” He didn't answer. He simply handed me another photograph. My blood went cold. It was Elena. Standing beside the man who had called me. Her brother. Except the photograph wasn't old. It had been taken three days ago. I looked at the old man. “Where is Elena?” He looked toward the door. “Too late.” I ran outside. A black car was disappearing down the road. I jumped into mine and followed. For nearly twenty minutes, I chased it through the darkness. Then it stopped. The man stepped out. Elena was beside him. I got out of my car. “ELENA!” She looked at me. Her face broke. She ran toward me. I held her so tightly I almost forgot how angry I was. “You left me.” “I had to.” “You lied to me.” “I had to.” “You let me think you were dead.” She looked at me. “I was trying to keep you alive.” Her brother stepped forward. “Daniel, there's one thing you still don't know.” “What?” He looked at Elena. Then back at me. “She didn't choose you randomly.” I stared at him. “What does that mean?” Elena's eyes filled with tears. She reached into her bag and pulled out a letter. “Read it.” I opened it. It was addressed to me. But the handwriting wasn't Elena's. It was my father's. The first line said: Daniel, if you're reading this, I've already failed you. My hands began to shake. The letter explained everything. The crash. The lies. The years. But the final paragraph was the one that destroyed me. My father had known Elena survived. He had protected her. He had erased my memories because someone inside our family was hunting her. Someone he couldn't expose. Someone he trusted. I looked at Elena. “Who?” She didn't answer. Her brother did. “Your mother.” I couldn't speak. Elena took my hand. “Daniel…” Then headlights appeared behind us. Another car. The doors opened. My mother stepped out. She looked at me. And smiled. Not the smile of a mother seeing her son. The smile of someone who had just realized her secret was finally out.

The Last Promise

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