Chapter 6: The Face in the Recording
The video froze on the worst possible moment.
The person standing beside Thomas was only half visible. A shoulder. A hand. The edge of a face hidden by the poor camera angle.
But I knew.
I knew before the image fully loaded.
My fingers went numb around the laptop.
“No,” I whispered.
Maya looked at me.
“Mom?””
I couldn’t answer.
Because the person in the video was not Daniel Voss.
It was someone much closer.
Someone who had been sitting beside me while I cried after Thomas’s funeral.
Someone who had brought casseroles to our house.
Someone who had told me, over and over, that I needed to move on.
My own brother.
Ethan.
I pushed away from the laptop.
“That’s impossible.””
Mrs. Patterson stared at the screen.
“You recognize him.””
I looked at her.
“You knew?””
Her silence was enough.
“You knew Ethan was involved?””
“I suspected.””
My anger exploded.
“You suspected my brother was involved in whatever got my husband killed, and you said nothing?””
Mrs. Patterson flinched.
“I didn’t know who to trust.””
“You had no problem trusting my thirteen-year-old daughter with this.””
“She was the one Thomas chose.””
Maya stepped between us.
“Mom, please.””
I looked at my daughter.
She looked exhausted.
Not like a rebellious teenager.
Like someone who had been carrying an adult-sized secret for too long.
I softened immediately.
“Tell me everything.””
Maya sat down.
“Dad knew Uncle Ethan was helping Daniel move money.””
I stared at her.
“My brother?””
She nodded.
“He didn’t start out helping him. Dad said Ethan was desperate. He had gambling debts.””
I closed my eyes.
Ethan.
My younger brother.
The person who had promised me after my divorce that he would always protect me and Maya.
“How did you know?””
Maya swallowed.
“I heard them arguing.””
“When?””
“Before Dad died.””
The room went quiet.
I felt like the floor had disappeared.
“Why didn’t you tell me?””
“Because Dad made me promise.””
“What exactly did he say?””
Maya looked down.
“He said, ‘If something happens to me, don’t tell your mother until you know who is safe.’”
A tear rolled down her cheek.
“I thought he meant Daniel.””
My stomach twisted.
“But he meant Ethan.””
Mrs. Patterson closed the laptop.
“We need to leave.””
I looked at her.
“Why?””
“Because if Daniel knows you found the recording, he knows you found Ethan.””
Before I could respond, headlights flashed across the basement window.
Everyone froze.
A car had stopped outside.
Mrs. Patterson moved toward the curtain.
Then she stepped back.
Her face turned pale.
“What?””
She whispered:
“It’s Ethan.””
My heart stopped.
“No.””
But there was no mistaking the car.
The same black SUV my brother drove.
Maya grabbed my hand.
“Mom, what do we do?””
I didn’t know.
For years, I had believed family meant safety.
Now I wasn’t sure if my own family was the reason we were in danger.
A knock came from the front door.
Three slow knocks.
Not a neighbor.
Not a friend.
A warning.
“Renee,” Ethan called.
His voice sounded calm.
Too calm.
“I know you’re in there.””
Nobody moved.
Then he spoke again.
“I know about the video.””
My breath caught.
Maya looked at me.
How did he know?
Ethan placed his hand against the door.
“You need to hear the truth before Daniel gets to you.””
Mrs. Patterson whispered:
“Don’t open that door.””
But Ethan continued.
“Renee, I’m not the person you think I am.””
A pause.
Then he said something that made my blood run cold.
“Because Thomas wasn’t murdered by Daniel.””
The room went silent.
May you like
Ethan’s next words came through the door.
“He was murdered by someone who wanted you to blame Daniel.””
