Chapter 76: Chapter 76

The sight of Ella stealing my father's painting crushes my heart. Of all the people out there, why does it have to be her? And of all the things in the house, why does it have to be that painting? It's one of my precious possessions because it belongs to my father!

Going back to the dining room in slow strides, Ara raises her brows at me.

"You were just fine when you left a while ago. But what's that face means?"

I slump in my seat and bury my face in my palms. "Ella stole my painting."

"What?! she exclaims, her eyes darting wide.

"Yes. Ella tricked you into believing she wanted to know how I am. That she misses me," I sneer.

"But there has to be a reason, Zed. Ella isn't short of money."

"You better ask her that and let her return the painting if she doesn't want me to report her to police."

Ara throws her hands on her chest, clenching them tightly. "Can you do that, Zed?"

I feel my eyes darkening as I look at Ara. "If she has the heart to shame me by exposing my secret to the public, why can't I report her stealing to the police?"

Ara shakes her head vigorously, drops of tears gathering at the corners of her eyes.

"Is it really her? No, Zed. Ella truly loves you. She can't afford to hurt you like that."

I clench my hands at my side and take a deep breath, trying to calm the raging fire within me. Pain, anger, and the sense of betrayal flood inside me blending into an excruciating emotion.  Part of me also believes that Ella still loves me, but seeing her betraying me with the painting, I no longer know what to think.

I spin around and storm out of the door. Heading towards my secret room, my thoughts fly back to the day my father died…

_______

"Your father is gone, son!" says my mother in between her sobs.

I got a call telling me to come immediately to the hospital. However, my father was already tucked under a white sheet, his face turning ashen. Several cords were still attached to him, but the flat line on the monitor showed that my father's heart had already stopped beating.

I stared at him, my heart refusing to accept that he's already gone. Thinking that my mother was drawing strength from me, I didn't cry in front of her.

"Let go, mom," I tell her, gathering her in my arms. "Let's allow him to rest from his worries."

"But he has not seen his son yet. That's all he is asking for," she wailed louder, her bitter cry piercing into the innermost part of my heart.

After my mother calmed down, I went to see the doctor. I didn't know what happened to my father, and my mother was too incoherent to say anything about the incident, so he was the best person to explain the situation to me.

"According to the rescue team, somebody called and informed them about your father lying lifeless on the road. However, we declared him dead upon arrival," the attending physician explained.

"What's the cause of his death?"

"He got a deep contusion in the heart – probably a stab injury."

I shook my head. That couldn't happen. My dad was a good man, and he had no known enemy. If his perpetrator came from his other son's maternal family, so be it. However, there was no way to prove my suspicion.

"You need to report this to the authority," advised the doctor. "A stab wound is enough to prove that someone is after him."

He's right. And that person should wait until I make him rot behind the prison bars.

I thanked the doctor and left. But as I passed by the nurses' station, a nurse ran after me to inform me that they had my father's phone. Two police officers came in behind her.

"We found it under his underwear. Other than that, the police didn't find anything."

Looking at the phone, I was almost convinced that the perpetrator's motive was only his money. But hiding his phone in his underwear sounded odd to me. Yes, taking his wallet and other valuables in the car could rule in robbery, but I saw a loophole in it.

_______

" Zed, are you alright?" Ara's voice floats in my ear, disrupting my thoughts.

I sat behind my working table, holding my father's phone. "Yes."

"Who are you texting?" she asks, peering at the phone in my hand.

"None. This is dad's phone."

"Oh." Ara pulls out a chair and sits next to me.

"It's sounds odd that the investigation team didn't find anything suspicious in this," I say, twirling the phone in my hand.

"Why? Do you find one?" Ara looks at me, her eyes sparkling with anticipation.

Ara already knows why I took up criminology. And it's because I had wanted to avenge my father. However, I realized later that I wouldn't get something good out of hatred and revenge, so I stopped the investigation. I also understood  that there's more to life than dwelling over your misfortune.

"Yes. Look at this." Ara also pulls closer as she stares into the phone.

"It was my brother's birthday when dad left that day, taking with him the portrait that he wanted to give him as a birthday surprise."

"Portrait?"

"Yes. The one that Ella stole."

"Then?" she asks, glints of curiosity written on her face.

"Look here," I raise the phone higher so that Ara can see it better. "Do you see this name?"

"Yes. It's a pen name, "Little Heart."

Out of the names listed on my father's inbox, the name Little Heart stands out. His profile picture is not a tiny heart but a heart pierced by an arrow.

"Look at the message," I say, tracing it with my finger.

Giant Heart: Son, no one could ever tell how much I want you to see you and take you with me.

Little Heart:(replies with a red rose that soon withers, its petal blown by the wind)

Giant Heart: Son, you must have grown into a handsome young man. I can't wait to see you."

Little Heart: (replies with a heart, now pierced by an arrow)

Giant Heart: Son, dad never meant to hurt you. So, please allow me to meet you. You have a brother who keeps asking me about you. He also can't wait to have you here at home.

Little Heart: (replies with a heart, now laying at the ground, crushed by a stone)

Giant Heart: Please know that I always think about you. Do you want me to paint your portrait?

Little Heart: (replies with a picture of a father with a boy on his lap, but there is a black arrow that pierces into the father's heart.)

Giant Heart: Son, I don't understand what you mean by all these paintings. All I know is that you're a good artist like dad. Just wait a little. On your birthday, you will receive a gift from me. I'm on my way to deliver it."

"Gosh, Zed. Those are terrifying," Ara blurts, rubbing the goosebumps on her arms.

"Do you get what I mean?"

Tears gather in Ara's eyes. I can't tell if she's scared or moved by the meaning those exchanges between my father and my brother convey.

"Zed, he hates your father. He blames him for breaking his heart, for living a lonely life, and for depriving him the sunshine of his life."

"What else?" I smile weakly, amused that Ara has grasped the meaning I want her to see.

"He didn't want his gift. And I think he threatened to kill your father if he insists."

I pat Ara's shoulder. "Good, Ar. That's exactly how my father died. The killer shot him with an arrow, and it landed right into his heart."

Ara's eyes widen more than ever before. She tugs my arm, her face reflecting a horrified look.

"Wait, Zed! Why do I feel I have seen some paintings similar to these?"

I scoff, shaking my head slowly. "You do."

"In Ella's office! OMG!"

I let out a mirthless laugh. "So, what do you think is happening now?"

Ara rises to her feet and wipes her face with her hands.

"No, Zed. No, I can't believe this. Mr. D is taking revenge on you."