Chapter 2: The Secret Behind His Father's Death
For a moment, I couldn't hear anything except the blood rushing through my ears.
The street, the passing cars, even the faint sound of our neighbor calling her dog seemed to disappear.
All I could see was Danielle.
My wife.
The woman who had held me through my father's funeral, who had rubbed my back when I couldn't sleep, who had told me a hundred times that everything happened for a reason.
Now she stood in front of me, admitting that the story I'd believed for six years might have been a lie.
“What did you just say?”” I asked.
Danielle wiped her cheeks with both hands.
“Marcus, I wanted to tell you.””
“When?””
She lowered her eyes.
“When I had proof.””
I laughed once, bitterly.
“Proof of what? That my father didn't die in a car accident?””
Brianna interrupted.
“She's being dramatic. Your father was involved in a financial investigation before he died. Danielle knows that, and she's using it to distract you from what she's done.””
Danielle spun toward her.
“Shut up!””
Brianna lifted her phone and tapped the screen.
“You want me to show him the recordings?””
Danielle went completely still.
I noticed.
So did Brianna.
A small, satisfied smile returned to her face.
“That's what I thought.””
I stepped closer to Brianna.
“Show me.””
She hesitated.
“Marcus, you should hear everything before you make a decision.””
“I'm not asking for your advice. Show me the recordings.””
Brianna glanced at Danielle, then slipped her phone into her handbag.
“Not here.””
“Why not?””
“Because this is a family matter.””
“You stopped being family the moment you started threatening my wife.””
Her jaw tightened.
Then she looked past me at the front door.
“Fine. Let's go inside.””
“No,” Danielle said suddenly.
Both of us turned toward her.
She was gripping the edge of the porch railing so tightly that her knuckles had turned white.
“Don't let her inside,” Danielle whispered.
Brianna's expression sharpened.
“You really want to do this in front of the neighbors?””
“I'm not afraid of you anymore.””
“Really?”” Brianna asked.
“Then tell Marcus who paid for your mother's surgery.””
Danielle's face crumpled.
I looked between them.
“What does her mother have to do with any of this?””
Brianna smiled without warmth.
“Ask your wife where the money came from.””
“Brianna!”” Danielle shouted.
“Or should I tell him about the apartment?””
Danielle covered her mouth.
My stomach tightened.
“What apartment?””
Neither answered.
I stepped toward my wife.
“Danielle, look at me. What apartment?””
She shook her head, tears spilling over her fingers.
“It's not what you think.””
I was beginning to hate that sentence.
“Then tell me what it is.””
She looked at Brianna, then back at me.
“Your father found out that someone was taking money from his business before he died. He was going to report it. A few days before the accident, he called me.””
I stared at her.
“You spoke to my father about his business?””
“Yes.””
“Why didn't you tell me?””
“Because he asked me not to.””
“That makes no sense.””
“He said he didn't trust the police officer handling his case. He said he needed time to gather documents before he could expose what was happening.””
I felt the ground shift beneath me.
My father, Robert Williams, had owned a modest property management company before retiring. He had never mentioned a criminal investigation to me. When he died, the police report described a single-vehicle collision on a rainy highway.
I'd accepted it.
I'd mourned him.
I'd moved on.
Or at least I'd tried.
“What was stolen?”” I asked.
“Money from several properties,” Danielle replied.
“Money that was supposed to belong to your father and his partners.””
I looked at Brianna.
“Why would you know anything about that?””
She shrugged.
“Because your father was investigating people who had nothing to do with me.””
“Then why are you here?””
Her silence lasted only a second, but it was enough.
Danielle stepped forward.
“Tell him, Brianna. Tell him why you really came here today.””
Brianna's expression turned vicious.
“You ungrateful little liar.””
She reached into her handbag and pulled out a folded sheet of paper.
“Your husband should know that the woman he married has been secretly meeting someone behind his back.””
She thrust the paper toward me.
It was a photograph.
Danielle stood outside a small brick apartment building, talking to a man in a dark coat. The picture had been taken from across the street. The man held a brown envelope, and Danielle was reaching for it.
The date printed beneath the image was four months earlier.
I recognized the street.
It was less than two miles from my office.
“Who is he?”” I asked.
Danielle looked at the photograph.
Her shoulders sagged.
“His name is Thomas Reed.””
“Your boyfriend?””
“No!””
“Then why were you meeting him?””
“Because he was helping me find out what happened to your father.””
I stared at her.
“You expect me to believe you've been investigating my father's death behind my back?””
“Yes,” she whispered.
“Because I didn't know who I could trust.””
The words landed harder than she could have imagined.
“You could have trusted me.””
“I wanted to.””
“Then why didn't you?””
She took a step toward me, but I raised my hand.
“Don't.””
She stopped.
For several seconds, the only sound was the wind moving through the trees.
Then Brianna laughed.
“That's touching. Really. But there's one thing Danielle forgot to mention.””
She pulled another paper from her bag.
“This apartment was paid for with money from Marcus's company. The same account she claims she was investigating.””
I snatched the document.
It showed monthly rent payments from a business account I'd never seen before.
The account number matched the one on the bank statements.
My mouth went dry.
“Danielle, did you rent an apartment with stolen money?””
She shook her head desperately.
“I never lived there.””
“Then why pay for it?””
“Because Thomas needed somewhere safe to keep the documents.””
“What documents?””
“The evidence your father collected before he died.””
I felt a chill move through me.
“Where are they?””
Danielle opened her mouth.
Brianna answered first.
“Gone.””
I turned toward her.
“What?””
“Thomas disappeared two weeks ago. His apartment was emptied, his phone was disconnected, and the documents vanished. Convenient, isn't it?””
Danielle grabbed my sleeve.
“Marcus, I swear I didn't take them.””
I pulled away, unable to bear another promise.
Brianna watched me carefully.
“Now do you understand why I came here? Your wife has been using your company to fund a secret investigation, meeting strange men, and hiding evidence from you. You need to protect yourself.””
Something about her concern sounded rehearsed.
Then I remembered the forged signature.
The money transfers.
The words I'd heard when I arrived.
Once he signs this, everything belongs to us.
I looked at the document folder beside the suitcases.
“What's in there?””
Brianna stepped in front of it.
“Nothing you need to worry about.””
I moved around her.
She grabbed my arm.
“Marcus, stop!””
I tore free and opened the folder.
Inside was a stack of legal documents, including a proposed transfer of controlling interest in Williams Construction to a holding company called Northbridge Capital.
The signature line at the bottom bore my name.
The date was tomorrow.
And the person listed as the authorized representative of Northbridge Capital was Brianna Cole.
I looked up slowly.
“You were trying to take my company.””
Brianna's lips pressed together.
“It's a legitimate business transaction.””
“Using my forged signature?””
“You would have signed eventually.””
“Why?””
“Because you're a terrible businessman when it comes to people you care about!””
Her shout startled even her.
She took a breath and straightened her jacket.
“Your company is drowning in debt, Marcus. I found investors willing to save it. You should be thanking me.””
I stared at the documents.
My company wasn't drowning in debt. We'd had a difficult quarter, but our contracts were solid. Our accountant had assured me we were in a strong position.
Unless someone had been moving money.
Unless someone had been creating debts that didn't exist.
I looked at Brianna.
“How long have you been planning this?””
She didn't answer.
Danielle suddenly reached into her coat pocket.
“Marcus, I have something.””
She pulled out a small silver flash drive.
Brianna's eyes widened.
“Where did you get that?””
Danielle stepped backward.
“Thomas gave it to me before he disappeared.””
Brianna lunged.
I caught her wrist before she could reach Danielle.
“Don't you dare.””
She struggled against my grip.
“Give me that drive!””
Danielle held it against her chest.
“This contains copies of the records your father collected. Including the original company ledgers.””
Brianna stopped fighting.
Her face had gone pale.
I looked at the flash drive, then at the woman who had been my best friend for eight years.
For the first time, I saw genuine fear in her eyes.
And I understood something.
Whatever was on that drive, Brianna was more afraid of it than she was of losing my friendship.
I took the flash drive from Danielle.
“I'm going to look at this tonight.””
Brianna stepped away, smoothing her sleeve.
“You shouldn't.””
“That's not your decision.””
She looked at me with an expression I had never seen before.
“You have no idea what your father did to protect you.””
Then she turned and walked toward her car.
Before she opened the door, she glanced back.
“If you open that drive, Marcus, you may discover that the person you should be afraid of isn't me.””
She drove away.
I stood beside Danielle, holding the flash drive.
For a long moment, neither of us spoke.
Finally, I asked the question that had been eating at me since she'd mentioned Thomas.
“Why did you keep this from me?””
Danielle looked at the driveway where Brianna's car had disappeared.
“Because the first time I tried to tell you the truth, someone sent me a photograph of you leaving your office.””
She reached into her purse and handed me a second envelope.
Inside was a photograph of me standing beside my car.
May you like
On the back, someone had written six words in black ink.
*Tell Marcus, and he'll end up like Robert.*
