Chapter 10: The Name Inside the Folder
For several seconds, neither of us spoke.
Ethan stood in my apartment like a ghost from a life I thought was gone.
The last time I saw my brother, he was walking away from my hospital room.
Now he was standing in front of me, holding the answer to the question that had haunted me for a year.
Who destroyed my life?
I stared at the folder on the table.
“Open it,” Ethan said.
My eyes moved from the folder to his face.
“You disappeared because of this?””
He nodded.
“I disappeared because of what was inside.””
“Then tell me.””
His expression tightened.
“I tried.””
I frowned.
“What does that mean?””
Ethan walked toward the window and looked outside.
“Daniel, do you remember the night before your accident?””
I thought back.
The memory was blurry.
I remembered being angry.
I remembered arguing with someone.
I remembered getting a call.
“Yes,” I said slowly.
“I was supposed to meet you.””
“I know.””
“No,” Ethan said.
“You don’t.””
He turned around.
“I wasn’t meeting you to talk about Marcus.””
I waited.
“I was meeting you because I found out someone close to you was helping him.””
My stomach tightened.
“Who?””
Ethan looked at the folder.
“That’s why you need to see it yourself.””
I opened it.
The first pages were copies of emails.
Financial records.
Photos.
The same kind of evidence I had already seen.
But then I reached the last section.
And everything changed.
There was a document with a signature.
A name.
A name that made my hands go numb.
*Daniel Carter.*
I stared.
“No.””
Ethan watched me carefully.
“Keep reading.””
The document was a transfer agreement.
A legal authorization allowing Marcus to take control of certain company assets if I became “unable to continue leadership duties.””
My signature was there.
But I never signed it.
“This is fake.””
“Yes.””
“Then why is my signature on it?””
Ethan didn’t answer.
Because he knew the truth would hurt.
Someone had access to my personal documents.
Someone who could copy my signature.
Someone close enough to know how I signed my name.
I turned the page.
A security report.
A building entry log.
A visitor record.
My blood ran cold.
The person who accessed my office two weeks before the accident was listed clearly.
*Claire Bennett.*
I dropped the paper.
Ethan immediately spoke.
“Daniel.””
“No.””
“She wasn’t stealing from you.””
“She had access.””
“Yes.””
“She had the documents.””
“Yes.””
I looked at him.
“Then explain.””
Ethan sat down.
“She was trying to find the original agreement.””
“What original agreement?””
“The one Marcus used to trap your father.””
I stared.
“Wait.””
Ethan nodded.
“Your father made a mistake years ago. Marcus found out. He used that information to control him.””
“So my father helped Marcus?””
“Not willingly.””
I looked back at the papers.
“Then why was Claire searching my office?””
“Because she knew Marcus was hiding evidence there.””
I laughed quietly.
“So everyone was lying to me.””
Ethan looked away.
“Yes.””
That answer hurt because it was true.
My entire world had become a collection of secrets.
My father.
My brother.
Claire.
Marcus.
Everyone knew something.
Everyone except me.
I stood up.
“Where is Marcus now?””
Ethan looked at me.
“You’re going after him.””
It wasn’t a question.
“Yes.””
“Daniel, that’s what he wants.””
“What?””
“He wants you angry.””
I frowned.
“He wants you reckless.””
I looked at the wheelchair beside me.
“I spent a year being careful.””
Ethan’s expression softened.
“And that’s why you survived.””
The words stopped me.
For a moment, I saw my brother again.
The kid who used to follow me everywhere.
The kid who believed I could do anything.
“Why didn’t you tell me you were alive?””
His eyes became wet.
“Because Marcus found me.””
“How?””
“Because someone gave him my location.””
I froze.
“Who?””
Ethan looked at me.
“That’s the problem.””
“What?””
“We don’t know.””
A strange feeling moved through me.
“Then how did you get here?””
Ethan looked toward the door.
“I didn’t.””
I frowned.
“What?””
“I was brought here.””
My heart started beating faster.
“By who?””
Before he could answer, my phone buzzed.
A message.
From Claire.
*“Daniel, please don’t trust Ethan.””*
I looked at the screen.
Then at my brother.
Another message appeared.
*“He’s the reason Marcus found us.””*
My blood went cold.
I slowly lowered the phone.
Ethan saw my face.
“What happened?””
I didn’t answer.
May you like
Because for the first time…
I wondered if my brother was the person I should fear.
