The Silent Witness Chapter 9

The moment those words left her mouth, Mr. Reed's pupils dilated.

The officer stepped closer to Lily, his tone serious. "Miss, what do you mean? There was something suspicious about your biological parents' deaths?"

Lily stared at Mr. Reed, tears streaming down her face, but her voice was steady—steadier than I'd ever heard it.

I knew this was a question she'd been holding inside for years.

And it was the key to unraveling everything.

"You're the one who killed them!"

"You and my dad were business partners. Then, because of competition, you set him up. You made his company go bankrupt and forced him to sign off on massive debts! My parents had nowhere to turn—that's why they killed themselves!"

Mr. Reed's face turned ashen. He lunged forward, trying to cover Lily's mouth, but the police blocked him.

"You're lying!"

He was practically screaming, his eyes wild.

"Your father's business failed because he made bad decisions—it had nothing to do with me! Stop slandering me!"

Mrs. Reed rushed over and slapped Lily hard across the face.

Lily's cheek flushed red instantly.

"Lily! How can you be so heartless?"

"Your father used his own savings to help pay off your family's debts back then! And now you're making up lies to accuse him? How can you do this after everything he's done for you?"

Lily's head snapped to the side from the force of the slap, but she didn't cry. She just slowly turned back to look at Mrs. Reed, her eyes full of disappointment.

"Mom, do you really not know anything? Or have you been helping him lie to me this whole time?"

Mrs. Reed faltered, then hardened her expression. "All I know is that your father is a good man. You're the one who's lost your mind!"

The officer stepped in front of Lily, his tone firm. "Lily, you're saying your parents were killed by your adoptive father. Do you have proof?"

Lily's body went rigid. Then, slowly, she shook her head, her voice dropping. "No... I can't find any proof. He got rid of everything from back then."

I stood nearby, listening, my chest tight.

I remembered last summer, that night in the guesthouse in the small town.

Lily had been lying in my arms when she suddenly started crying.

She held me close and told me about her past.

She asked if I would think less of her.

That was when I learned that beneath her seemingly happy life, there was so much pain.

For so long, Lily hadn't dared to speak up. She hadn't dared to fight back.

After all, she had no family, no one to rely on. All she could do was endure.

Then one night, Mr. Reed got drunk and let something slip. He admitted that her parents' deaths had been his doing.

After that, Lily started secretly searching for evidence.

But Mr. Reed was too careful. He'd destroyed anything that could have left a trail.

All Lily could do was keep it buried inside.

I knew that without evidence, even if Lily told the truth, no one would believe her.

Everyone would just assume it was the ramblings of someone who'd lost her mind.

Mr. Reed knew this. That's why he'd felt safe enough to accuse me, to pin everything on me.

When Mr. Reed heard that Lily had no proof, a smug smile crept across his face.

He turned to the doctor and shouted, "Doctor! Take her back to the hospital! She's emotionally unstable. If she keeps going like this, there's no telling what else she'll say!"

Then he turned to the police, pointing at me. "Officers, arrest him! He's the one who told Lily to say all this. He's the one who hurt her and drove her to this! I'm sure there's more evidence on his phone. You need to check it thoroughly!"

The doctor walked over, reaching for Lily.

She immediately shrank back behind me, clutching my shirt, her eyes full of fear.

But I took her hand, giving her a reassuring look. Then I slowly lifted my gaze to Mr. Reed and spoke coldly.

"I didn't have any real evidence before."

"But the moment you grabbed my phone, the evidence started piling up."