Chapter 11 — One Key, Turns the Whole Family Over

Chu Duc Minh was pulled out by two policemen. When passing by his mother-in-law, he suddenly stopped. He stared at her, with a strange smile on his face that sent chills down people's spines.

“Trieu Tu Lan, don't be too quick to be complacent.” He lowered his voice, each word hissing through his teeth.

“Do you think you won? Do you dare to tell the police about that year?”

The mother-in-law's body stopped for a moment, as if frozen.

“I forbid you to speak nonsense.” I shouted, my voice sharp.

But Chu Duc Minh didn't even look at me, his eyes like a poisonous snake were only fixed on her.

“The fire twenty years ago, how my younger brother died, have you forgotten?”

He burst out laughing maniacally, his shrill laughter echoing throughout the room.

"You pretend to be crazy, you fool everyone, you have a devil in your heart, you will never be at peace in this life."

Those words were like a poisoned knife, stabbing straight into my heart. The fire twenty years ago, his younger brother, it was all like a terrible secret being dug up. I turned to look at my mother-in-law, her lips were trembling, her face was pale and bloodless. I held her in my hand, clearly feeling her cold fingers trembling. That's not acting. That is a true fear from the depths of the soul. The police pulled Chu Duc Minh away, Chu Hao and sister Luu were also put in another car. Lawyer Truong walked over and gently patted her shoulder as if to reassure her.

"Uncle Trieu, don't worry, he's just struggling and talking nonsense."

But she didn't seem to hear. She turned to look at me, her eyes were as weak as I had ever seen.

“To Van…” her voice was hoarse, “what he said… is true.”

My heart fell straight to the bottom.

“Twenty years ago there was a fire, his younger brother, your uncle, died in it.”

She stopped, each word she uttered with difficulty as if cutting into her flesh.

"Everyone thought it was an accident, only Chu Duc Minh believed... I set the fire."

I stood still, my mind blank. This truth hit me like lightning, leaving me unable to react. Could it be that she really carries a terrible secret? Or Chu Duc Minh still holds a card enough to overturn everything. We were taken to the police station to take statements. My mother-in-law and I were in the same room, lawyer Truong sat next to us. Chu Hao, sister Luu and Chu Duc Minh were separated into another room. The space was so quiet that there was only the sound of a ticking clock. The mother-in-law bowed her head, clasped her hands together, and remained silent. Those words just now are still like a dark cloud weighing heavily on our hearts. Lawyer Truong poured me a cup of warm water.

“Don't worry too much, what he said was probably just to cause psychological confusion.”

I nodded but still felt uneasy. Her reaction was so real, it was like a wound being torn open again. A moment later, a female police officer entered.

“Ms. Trieu, we need to take your personal statement.”

She raised her head, her eyes gloomy.

"Okay." She stood up, turned to us, "wait a minute, you two."

Looking at her thin back disappearing behind the door, my heart sank. The waiting time seemed endless. I couldn't sit still, my mind was full of images of Chu Duc Minh laughing hysterically. Words like fire, death, arson wrapped tightly around my mind. I don't dare to imagine what the consequences would be if it were all true. Even though the statute of limitations has expired, that past is still a stain that cannot be erased.

“To Van.” Lawyer Truong's voice brought me back to reality in.

“No matter what happens, you must stay calm, you are her only support.”

I nodded vigorously, forcing myself to calm down. About an hour later, the mother-in-law was brought back. Her eyes were red but her expression was calmer than before. It's like letting go of a heavy burden for a long time.

“Mom…” I was about to ask.

She shook her head, signaling not to say anything. Half an hour later, the older police officer and lawyer Truong walked in. His expression was complicated and unpredictable, his eyes alternately looking at her and then at me.

"To Van, your mother-in-law has already told all about that year."

My heart immediately tightened, each beat resounded in my chest.

“Twenty years ago, there was a fire at the Chu family's house.” the old policeman spoke slowly, his voice low.

“Chu Duc Minh's younger brother, who was mentally disabled, died in that fire.”

"At that time, all evidence showed that it was an accident, because he was playing with fire and causing the bed to catch fire, so the case ended very quickly."

“But…” he stopped, the atmosphere in the room suddenly felt heavy.

"According to your mother-in-law's testimony, that is not the case at all."

He took a deep breath and continued to explain every detail.