Chapter 3: The Secret Behind The Recording
The room felt smaller when the second image appeared on the screen.
Everyone’s attention was fixed on the monitor.
I stood near the corner of the office, still wearing the same borrowed sweater Mrs. Parker had given me after the pool incident. My hands were clasped together so tightly that my fingers hurt.
I expected the video to prove Victoria had lied.
I expected Alexander to finally understand what happened.
But I never expected to see another person standing inside the villa while Victoria was outside pushing the stroller.
The security director zoomed in.
A figure appeared near the hallway entrance.
Alexander stepped closer.
“Stop the video.””
The director froze the frame.
Alexander stared at the image.
His face lost all color.
“Who is that?””
Nobody answered.
Victoria looked away.
That was when I knew.
She recognized the person too.
“Victoria,” Alexander said slowly.
“You knew about this?””
She remained silent.
“Answer me.””
Victoria lifted her chin.
“I didn’t think it mattered.””
Alexander laughed once, but there was no humor in it.
“Someone was inside my house while my son nearly drowned, and you don’t think it matters?””
Victoria crossed her arms.
“You’re making this bigger than it is.””
I couldn’t believe what I was hearing.
A baby had almost died.
I had nearly drowned trying to save him.
And she was still acting like it was an inconvenience.
Alexander looked back at the screen.
“Who is he?””
Victoria’s silence became her answer.
The security director spoke quietly.
“Mr. Whitmore, the person in the footage is Daniel Cross.””
Alexander’s eyes narrowed.
“Daniel?””
The name clearly meant something.
I looked between them, confused.
“Who is Daniel?””
Nobody responded immediately.
Then Alexander placed Noah carefully in Mrs. Parker’s arms and walked toward the desk.
“Daniel Cross used to work for me.””
“Used to?”” I asked.
Alexander nodded.
“He was my financial advisor.””
The room became tense.
“What happened?””
Alexander’s jaw tightened.
“He was fired three months ago.””
Victoria suddenly stepped forward.
“Alexander, this is exactly why we shouldn’t jump to conclusions.””
He turned toward her.
“Funny. You didn’t have a problem jumping to conclusions about her.””
His eyes moved toward me.
For the first time since the pool incident, I felt like he was seeing me.
Not as a suspect.
As a person.
The security director continued.
“There’s something else.””
He pressed play again.
The footage showed Daniel entering the villa before the party ended.
He moved carefully through the hallway.
Then he stopped outside Alexander’s office.
“He wasn’t there by accident,” the director said.
Alexander watched silently.
“What was he looking for?””
The director shook his head.
“We don’t know yet.””
Victoria suddenly grabbed her purse.
“I think I should leave.””
Alexander looked at her.
“No.””
The single word stopped her.
“You’re staying.””
Her expression changed.
“You can’t keep me here.””
“I’m not keeping you anywhere,” Alexander said.
“I’m asking questions.””
Victoria stared at him.
Then she looked at me.
And for a brief second, her eyes became cold.
Not nervous.
Not scared.
Angry.
Like she blamed me for everything falling apart.
I noticed it.
Alexander noticed it too.
“What were you planning?”” he asked.
Victoria’s lips parted.
“I was trying to protect you.””
“By accusing my son’s rescuer?””
“By exposing someone who shouldn’t be trusted.””
She pointed at me.
My heart sank.
Again.
“You still think I did it?”” I asked.
Alexander looked uncomfortable.
“No.””
The answer came faster than I expected.
“No, I don’t.””
Those words should have made me feel better.
But they didn’t.
Because I realized something.
He believed me now because of a camera.
Not because he believed my voice.
Not because he believed the person who had cared for his son every day.
The security director suddenly looked at the screen.
“Wait.””
Everyone turned.
“What is it?”” Alexander asked.
The director rewound the footage.
“There’s a missing section.””
“What do you mean?””
“The camera recorded everything outside.””
He pointed at the timeline.
“But someone deleted five minutes from the internal system.””
Alexander’s expression darkened.
“Can you recover it?””
The director hesitated.
“Maybe.””
“How long?””
“Not long.””
A few minutes later, the director’s computer made a sound.
A recovered file appeared.
He opened it.
The video started.
The office camera showed Daniel entering the room.
Then another person walked in behind him.
My breath caught.
Because I knew that person.
Everyone in the room knew.
Alexander stepped closer to the screen.
“No…”
His voice was barely a whisper.
The person standing beside Daniel wasn’t Victoria.
It wasn’t a stranger.
It was someone from his own family.
Someone who had been smiling beside Noah only hours earlier.
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And that was when Alexander realized the pool incident had never been about a baby stroller.
It had been about something much bigger.
