Amanda took a deep breath as she pushed open the door to James' office when she arrived. Her heart was beating fast, and she couldn't stop thinking about the strange message she had received.
As she stepped inside, she knew she had to search every corner of the office, to find whatever James was hiding so she started to look around carefully.
She walked over to James' big wooden desk, running her fingers over the smooth surface.
The drawers slid open with a soft creak, and she began to search through the papers and folders inside. Her hands trembled as she tried to be quiet, listening for any sound in the quiet office.
After looking through the drawer and the desk, Amanda turned her attention to the tall metal filing cabinets standing against the wall.
They were cold to the touch, and she felt a shiver run down her spine. She opened the drawers one by one, filtering through the files and documents inside.
Time seemed to slow down as she discovered a tattered manila folder tucked away in the bottom drawer of James' desk.
Her heart skipped a beat as she opened it, revealing a stack of old papers with her family's name and her father's familiar stamp on them.
With shaking hands, Amanda began to read the documents, her eyes filling with tears as she uncovered the terrible secrets they held.
The articles and papers told a heartbreaking story of a tragic fire that had taken her father's life, her mother's overwhelming sadness which led her to take her life, and her younger brother's sudden disappearance.
But the most shocking revelation was that James' family had done awful things to her family to take control of their business.
One article from a newspaper that was no longer in print even accused James' family of being responsible for her parents' tragic fates and her brother's mysterious disappearance.
Amanda felt sick to her stomach as she realized that the newspaper had gone out of business shortly after publishing a story about James' family doing bad things to people who tried to tell the truth.
It was clear to her now that they had tried to silence anyone who dared to uncover their dark secrets.
Tears streamed down Amanda's face as she thought about all the pain and suffering her family had gone through.
Anger and sadness filled her heart, and she knew she couldn't let them get away with what they had done.
Wiping her eyes, Amanda carefully gathered up the incriminating documents and placed them back.
As she stood up and looked around the office one last time, she knew that everything had changed from that moment.
Putting more of the stacks of documents back together, a paper fell out of one of them which held the address of the man who had published the magazine and Amanda sighed in relief. It was like the heavens were working with her.
Grabbing her car keys as she placed everything back in order, she decided to go find the man at the address which was on the outskirts of the town and didn't seem far away.
She wanted to learn everything that happened and know the truth. She was ten years old when the tragedy befell her family, and her brother who had gone missing since then was eight. She had to believe he was dead after long years of searching for him.
Amanda drove down the dusty road, her mind racing with questions. The discovery of her family's tragic past had left her reeling, and she knew she had to find out more.
As she pulled up to a small, run-down house when she finally got to the address, Amanda could feel her heart pounding in her chest. She stepped out of the car and approached the front door, her hands trembling as she knocked.
The sound of limping feet echoed from inside, and the door slowly creaked open to reveal a frail, elderly man with a weary expression.
"Mr. Turner?" Amanda asked, her voice barely above a whisper. "My name is Amanda Watson.
I need to talk to you about my family."
The man's eyes widened in recognition, and he hesitated for a moment. "How did you find me? I have nothing to say to you,” the man said and then was about to shut the door when Amanda held onto it.
“Please Mr Turner, you have to tell me everything you know. This means a lot to me,” Amanda pleaded, a tear sliding down her cheek which she quickly wiped off.
Mr Turner stood at the door watching her for some seconds before he opened the door wide open, letting her in.
“I wouldn't lie that I've been waiting for this day to reveal everything and finally let it off my chest although I knew it would cost me my life. I won't regret dying at this point," he said, his voice heavy with sorrow.
Amanda followed him into his dimly lit living room, her eyes scanning the faded newspaper clippings and old photographs that covered the walls.
"I found some articles from your magazine about my father's death and my family's tragedy having a connection to the Watson family," she explained, her voice trembling with emotion. "I need to know the truth."
Mr. Turner sank into a worn-out armchair and sighed deeply. "I used to be friends with your father and I tried to warn him about the danger he was in when he decided to pull the support he had been giving the Watson family’s company but it was too late,
The Watson family planned together to eliminate him and take over his company because, without him, they would go bankrupt." Mr Turner revealed and Amanda took a deep bitter breath as she tried to sink what Mr Hitler said in.
“How could her husband’s family be that cruel and even when her husband found out, he couldn't tell her, because he was protecting his family, Amanda was devastated.
“Are you the one who's been sending me the anonymous messages?" She asked, her eyes searching his face for answers.
"No, I'm not," the old man replied, shaking his head. "But whoever it is, must care about you finding the truth,” Mr Turner replied and Amanda stood up to leave.
“Thank you,” she said and turned around walking out of the door as she broke down in tears. She had been trying to hold it in but it was too much for her fragile heart.
She leaned against her car, crying her eyes out before she remembered Kendall was all alone at home, and entered her car to leave thinking about the next decision to take which was what she was dreading the most- divorce.
Although she had never wanted it because of Kendall, it seemed like she had to put herself first this time. She couldn't continue staying married to a man who tried to hide the truth from her about his family being responsible for her father’s death and her family’s ruin.
