Chapter 12 They knew she's alive
Justin stopped directly in front of Daniel.
The proud elder who had spoken with authority only moments ago was now on both knees with his forehead striking the marble again and again until streaks of blood stained the floor beneath him.
“Please, Master… please forgive me,” Daniel begged desperately. “I swear I’ll cut all ties with the Lawsons. I’ll leave this city. I’ll disappear completely. You will never see me beside them again.”
Justin looked down at him without changing expression.
“You served them for years,” Justin said calmly. “You carried out their orders. You protected their crimes. You helped them bury bodies and silence anyone who stood in their way.”
He paused for a brief moment.
“And now you suddenly want redemption?”
Daniel lowered his head further.
“I know I messed up. I’m not denying that. Punish me if you want… just not this. Please. Give me one chance. I swear I’ll make it right.”
Justin crouched down until they were face to face.
“Anything?” he asked.
Daniel nodded repeatedly without hesitation.
“Yes. Anything.”
Justin slowly stood and looked him directly, “give me a reason not to kill you.”
Daniel’s breathing grew uneven as his eyes moved restlessly, searching for something valuable enough to buy his life.
Several seconds passed.
Then his expression changed like someone making a final decision.
“Your sister…” he said quietly.
Justin’s gaze sharpened instantly.
Daniel swallowed before forcing the words out.
“Your younger sister… Christy.”
Justin did not speak.
The hall remained completely silent.
Daniel lifted his head slightly.
“She didn’t die.”
Justin’s hand tightened around the dagger.
For the first time since entering the estate, his body went completely still.
“…What did you say?” Justin asked in a low voice.
Daniel rushed to continue before losing courage.
“Christy is alive,” he said quickly. “She survived that night. The records were fake. The death report was fake. She never died.”
Justin kept his eyes on him.
Around them, the guests exchanged uncertain looks. Nobody seemed sure what this confrontation was about.
Daniel spoke again, this time quieter.
“I’m telling the truth. Your sister is alive.”
Justin's hand stayed on Daniel's collar.
He hadn't forgotten.
Not the night his mother died. Not Christy lying there unconscious. Not being taken away before he could do a damn thing.
He searched afterward.
Years passed.
He kept looking after that. Year after year.
He searched during training.
He searched after missions.
He used connections, money, military intelligence, underground networks, and every resource he could reach, but every search ended the same way.
Nothing.
No records.
No hospital files.
Nothing.
No trail. No proof she had ever been there at all.
He spent years looking.
Names. Places. Rumors.
Nothing.
After a while, he stopped letting himself hope every new clue would be the one.
By then, believing she was gone hurt less.
"You're lying," Justin said.
The words came out low.
Daniel shook his head at once. "No. I'm telling the truth. Just listen to me first."
Justin caught Daniel's collar and yanked him upward.
Daniel's shoes scraped against the floor.
"Look at me," Justin said.
Daniel did.
“Think carefully,” Justin said. “Are you really sure?”
His hand tightened on Daniel’s collar again.
“If this is a game…”
Daniel nodded rapidly. "I'm sure! I am! I'll explain everything— just don't kill me!"
Justin watched him for a long moment.
Then he released a slow breath.
"Talk."
Daniel wasted no time.
“That day, after your parents were killed, the police arrived much faster than the killers expected,” he said. “Your sister was still alive when they got there. She was taken away immediately and placed under protection.”
Justin’s hand slowly tightened around his collar.
Daniel continued without stopping.
Later, a couple with no children came forward, asking the authorities to hide her identity completely because they feared the people behind the massacre would come back if she was exposed.
Justin remained silent.
“That’s why you found nothing all these years,” Daniel said. “The records were hidden on purpose. Her identity was sealed. The people handling the case made sure there was nothing easy to trace.”
“The Lawsons knew she survived,” he added quietly, “but she wasn’t a threat to them—just a child with nothing, no power, no money, nobody behind her—so they left her alive.”
Justin’s expression slowly changed.
Daniel lowered his head before speaking again.
“She was adopted by the Mendel family. They’re not rich or powerful, just normal people who raised her quietly and kept her away from trouble.”
He looked up carefully.
“Your sister didn’t die, Justin.”
“She’s alive.”
