Chapter 4 - The Truth About Daniel
We drove in silence for miles, the adrenaline slowly leaving my system and leaving me exhausted.
Daniel finally pulled the car into an abandoned parking lot near the edge of the city.
The rain beat relentlessly against the windshield, mimicking the pounding in my head.
"You need to tell me everything, Daniel," I said, turning to face him in the dim light of the dashboard.
"Three years ago, you sent me a text message ending our engagement, and now you are tangled up in cartel blackmail."
He closed his eyes, and for the first time, I saw the deep, exhausted lines etched into his face.
"I never wanted to leave you, Emily," he began, his voice thick with emotion.
"Three years ago, the cartel started investigating your hospital as a front for moving their people."
"I was recruited by the actual FBI to get close to their financial sector."
"The only way to keep you completely off their radar was to break your heart and sever all ties."
Tears pricked my eyes as I processed his words.
He had sacrificed our entire future together just to ensure I remained safe.
"But then Brooke started dating me to spite you," he continued, a bitter laugh escaping his lips.
"She used me to get close to the cartel's money, thinking she could outsmart professional killers."
"I tried to stop her, but she went rogue, stole your identity, and set up the exchange at your birthday dinner."
My heart ached with a complicated mixture of grief, anger, and lingering love for the man sitting beside me.
My sister had not only tried to ruin my life, but she had actively endangered the man who gave up everything to protect me.
"So what do we do now?" I asked, wiping a stray tear from my cheek.
"We cannot go to the local police, and we cannot trust the agents at the hospital," Daniel said grimly.
"We need leverage, and we need to find Brooke before they do."
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Suddenly, my phone vibrated in the cup holder.
It was an incoming video call from an unknown number.
