That is why we installed the cameras..
Charlotte's POV
A wave of acid rose from my stomach as it tightened into a knot. I turned my head and looked around the room, trying to take in everything Luther had just said. I did not know if I should keep crying, scream, run to my mother for answers, or just sit there, numb.
“Sanders.” I said the name out loud, testing how it sounded. Had I heard it before? Then my eyes landed on the driver’s card in Luther’s hand, and everything made sense. Every doubt I had, every small hope that the woman in the photo was not my mother, disappeared when Luther explained her past.
Like Loveth, a part of me had hoped maybe the woman in the photo was just my mother’s twin, someone I had never known about.
“Marya Sanders,” I said quietly, blinking quickly as a strange chill ran down my spine.
“How?” I asked again, feeling my head throb. I closed my eyes, trying to calm down.
“She managed to hide her past all these years,” Luther answered, while I bent over and put my hands on my knees, trying to fight the wave of nausea that had come over me.
“She knew the police would come after her, not just for stealing from her husband, but also for being involved with someone underage.”
My eyebrows came together. Another shock. I wondered how many more were waiting for me. It felt like I was uncovering a life my mother had lived that I had never even imagined.
“Underage?” I asked, standing straight again.
“Yes. Matthew was only seventeen when your mother was already married to Sanders in her early twenties. That is what the husband told Mateo.”
I began pacing even though my legs were shaking.
“Typical of her,” I said with a bitter laugh. “She called Luther a paedophile, and yet she did the same thing. She even had the nerve to question our relationship while she had been married to a much older man.”
“I cannot believe all this. I mean, it is hard to deny now, but at the same time, I just do not understand how she managed to keep it all hidden for so long.” I spoke quietly while pacing back and forth. I wondered if my dad had ever found out, or if he had been kept in the dark like me.
“Mateo and I believe there is more we need to learn about your mother. That is why we installed the cameras, to keep an eye on her. Plus…” he stopped and covered his face with his hands.
“You do not know how to tell Stanley, and you are afraid she might hurt him or even kill him, just like she did to my dad,” I said. That seemed to be the truth. My heart beat faster. She was still my mother, the woman I had loved and looked up to all my life. Until she decided to rent the house, I had never once questioned her love.
“He really loves her, Charlotte. Where do I even begin? What if he thinks I am trying to ruin his marriage?” Luther’s voice was full of pain and conflict.
“Just the same way you told me. Hiding the truth from him will hurt even more once he finds out later, because he will. Yes, it will break his heart, but it has to be done.” I paused, placing my hand on my chest as another sharp ache hit me.
“And with all the proof, he cannot deny it. I mean, I would not have believed it either if I had not seen the photo, the licence, and the Property Safe Agreement.” I let out a long breath, and my mother’s face appeared in my mind again. If I could strangle her, I would. But there were memories in that house I had to protect before letting her lies destroy everything.
If she really killed my father just to take everything from him, then I was more determined than ever to stop her. I could see it clearly now, she was after money, and she was dangerous.
“You are right. I will call him. Although, he said you had plans,” Luther said.
“I lied. It was just a way to make sure they were not home when we went in. But how did you know?”
It was strange how I could still talk, even with everything I was feeling inside. Luther’s presence helped ease the pain. Just knowing he was there for me gave me the strength to keep going.
"Same reason. I did not want to risk sending my team over there only for someone to be home," he said, scratching his head while I sat down.
Everything that happened after the night my dad was shot was starting to make sense. My mind drifted back.
"Like how she pulled the case from the detectives, saying they were not working hard enough. Then suddenly marrying Stanley, pretending to be a grieving widow in need of comfort."
I could list more things, but I did not have the strength.
"She has to pay," I said after a while.
"Of course, baby," Luther replied, taking my hand in his.
No matter what it takes, she cannot go free after taking my father away from me. I had nightmares, reliving that night again and again, while she acted like she cared. All the while knowing she was the reason he was gone.
How could she look me in the eyes and not feel even a little guilt?
My lips started shaking, and tears filled my eyes. I could not hold them back anymore.
"I am so sorry you have to go through this," Luther said, trying to comfort me. But what I wanted more than anything was for him to tell Stanley, to stop history from repeating itself. Stanley deserved to know who he had married.
"Call him," I said.
He nodded and did as I asked. He invited Stanley to dinner and told him I had cancelled my plans. After the call, I stood again. Something told me to look through the documents once more.
"Are you sure you want to go through them?" Luther asked as I began flipping through the pages.
"Do I even have a choice?" I answered quietly. He came up behind me and wrapped his arms around my waist.
"I know what you really need right now, and it is not more stress. You have not eaten lunch, have you?"
Food was the last thing on my mind.
"I do not want to eat," I mumbled.
But my attention shifted when I felt Luther's hands gently rub my stomach.
"You will eat," he said, making it clear he was not giving me a choice. He turned me so I was sitting on the edge of his desk.
"Your eyes are red and swollen. Your head must be hurting. Your voice sounds dry. You need a bath, a proper meal, and a drink," he said while brushing his hand along my cheek.
I smiled at his touch. "The only reason I am not falling apart or storming into the hospital to confront her is because of you. I would have done it already if Loveth and Loveth had not brought me here."
"They did the right thing. If you had confronted her, she would know we are watching her."
"She will still know something is wrong when she finds those documents missing," I pointed out.
"We will deal with that when the time comes. For now, let me drive you home so you can freshen up."
Even in the middle of everything, I felt cared for. I felt loved.
Just as we were about to leave, a thought popped into my head.
"What is it?" Luther asked when I stopped walking.
"Did Sanders ever divorce my mum?" I asked, nervously twisting my fingers together.
"No. They are still married, at least, on paper. The state believes Marya is dead."
"Yes!" I jumped, feeling a wave of relief wash over me.
Luther raised an eyebrow. "What was that for?"
"If she is still married to Sanders, that means her marriage to my dad was never legal," I said. It made me sick to think she had pulled my father into a fake marriage, but now, it was finally working against her.
Luther nodded. "That means she has no legal right to his property. She cannot sell his house."
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