Chapter 9: The Man Behind Every Lie
The emergency lights flickered on.
Agent Hayes pushed me behind the marble staircase.
“Stay here!””
I heard boots pounding across the entrance hall.
Then another gunshot.
A security alarm began screaming.
I crouched behind the staircase, clutching my wedding ring.
Through the gap between the balusters, I saw a tall figure enter the room.
Thomas Reed.
My godfather.
The man who had taught me to drive.
The man who had stood beside Daniel's grave.
He wore a dark overcoat and held a pistol.
Two men followed him.
One carried a black duffel bag.
The other dragged someone by the arm.
A woman.
My mother.
“Mom!””
Catherine stumbled forward.
Thomas tightened his grip.
“Don't move, Elena.””
Agent Hayes raised her weapon.
“Thomas Reed! Drop the gun!””
Thomas laughed.
“Rebecca, you always were terrible at following instructions.””
“You're surrounded.””
“Am I?””
He glanced toward the entrance.
A third man appeared behind the investigators.
Then a fourth.
Thomas had brought his own security team.
Adrian slowly stood from the sofa.
“Thomas.””
Thomas looked at him.
“Still alive, I see.””
Adrian's jaw tightened.
“You said this was under control.””
Thomas gave him a cold smile.
“It was. Until you decided to slap your wife in front of two hundred witnesses.””
I stared at Adrian.
Even now, he seemed more concerned about the humiliation than the crime.
Thomas turned toward me.
“Elena, sweetheart. Come here.””
I didn't move.
“Let my mother go.””
Thomas sighed.
“Your mother has been making things difficult for a very long time.””
Catherine struggled against his grip.
“Don't listen to him!””
Thomas tightened his hand around her arm.
“Quiet.””
I felt my blood turn cold.
Agent Hayes moved slightly.
Thomas noticed.
“Don't.””
His gun shifted toward Catherine.
Agent Hayes froze.
Richard Bennett stepped forward.
“Thomas, this is over.””
Thomas looked at him with disgust.
“Richard. Still pretending you care about the family?””
“I care about Elena.””
Thomas laughed.
“You cared about her when it was convenient. You left Catherine to raise a child alone.””
Richard's face tightened.
“I made mistakes.””
“You made one very expensive mistake.””
Thomas pulled a folded document from his coat.
“Do you know what this is, Elena?””
I shook my head.
“Your mother's original trust assignment.””
He held it up.
“For twenty-three years, I've controlled the estate. I have the authority to transfer the funds. But I need your signature to release the final portion.””
I looked at the document.
There was my name.
Again.
My identity had become a weapon.
“You want me to sign?””
“I want you to stop making this difficult.””
“And if I refuse?””
Thomas glanced at Catherine.
“Then your mother and I will have a very unpleasant conversation.””
Catherine shook her head.
“Don't sign, Elena.””
Thomas struck her across the face.
I gasped.
Richard lunged forward.
One of Thomas's men raised his weapon.
“Stay back!””
Richard stopped.
I looked at Thomas.
“You said you loved me.””
He almost smiled.
“I do.””
“No. You love what my name can unlock.””
His expression hardened.
“You're being emotional.””
“I'm being honest.””
I took one step forward.
“You used Daniel.””
Thomas shrugged.
“Daniel was useful.””
“You lied about my mother.””
“She was unstable.””
“You forged documents.””
“Business requires flexibility.””
“You helped steal money from women who were escaping abusive husbands.””
Thomas's face remained perfectly calm.
“Those women were never going to receive the money anyway.””
The words were so casual that I almost didn't understand them.
Then he added:
“People donate because they want to feel important. They don't care where the money goes.””
I remembered the women whose names I had seen on the rejected assistance lists.
Women who had written desperate letters.
Women who had been promised shelter.
Women who had waited.
I looked at the man who had called himself my godfather.
“You're disgusting.””
Thomas sighed.
“I was hoping you'd be more reasonable.””
He held out the document.
“Sign.””
I glanced toward Agent Hayes.
She gave the smallest shake of her head.
Don't.
I understood.
I needed time.
“Before I sign, I want to know what happened to Daniel.””
Thomas smiled.
“Daniel was a good man.””
“Did you kill him?””
“No.””
“Did Adrian?””
Thomas looked toward my husband.
Adrian was watching him carefully.
For the first time, I noticed that they weren't looking at each other like partners.
They looked like enemies.
Thomas continued.
“Daniel discovered the trust records. He threatened to expose me. I arranged for him to be taken somewhere safe until the investigation was over.””
“Then why did he die?””
“Because he refused to cooperate.””
Richard stepped forward.
“You ordered the attack.””
Thomas turned.
“Careful, Richard.””
“You killed him.””
Thomas's eyes narrowed.
“Daniel died because he wouldn't understand that some secrets are worth keeping.””
I felt tears running down my cheeks.
My father had died trying to protect me.
And the man responsible was standing ten feet away, holding my mother hostage.
Then Adrian spoke.
“Thomas, you're making a mistake.””
Thomas turned slowly.
“What?””
“You should have told her everything.””
Thomas's expression changed.
“Shut up.””
Adrian looked at me.
“Elena, he didn't arrange your father's death.””
I stared at him.
“What?””
“He arranged the medical report. He arranged the cover-up. But Daniel's death was ordered by someone else.””
Thomas raised his weapon.
“Adrian!””
My husband continued.
“Your father was killed because he found the original trust certificate. And the person who gave the order was—”
A shot rang out.
Adrian collapsed.
Catherine screamed.
Agent Hayes shouted, “MOVE!””
The room erupted.
Two investigators tackled Thomas's men.
Richard pulled Catherine behind the marble pillar.
I dropped to the floor.
Another gunshot shattered a window.
Then the lights went completely out again.
I heard someone running.
A door slammed.
When the emergency lights returned, Thomas was gone.
So was the man with the duffel bag.
Agent Hayes rushed toward Adrian.
He was lying beside the sofa, blood spreading across his white shirt.
“Call an ambulance!””
I crawled toward him.
“Adrian?””
His eyes opened.
He grabbed my wrist.
“Listen…”
“Don't talk.””
His fingers tightened.
“Your father…”
I leaned closer.
“Which one?””
His lips trembled.
“Daniel…”
He coughed.
Then he whispered something that made my heart stop.
“Daniel knew I was going to marry you.””
I stared at him.
“What?””
“He arranged it.””
I shook my head.
“No.””
Adrian struggled to breathe.
“He wanted you inside the Whitmore family.””
“Why?””
His eyes shifted toward the staircase.
“Because he knew…”
A paramedic rushed into the room.
Adrian's grip weakened.
I leaned closer.
“Because he knew what?””
He forced out his final words before the paramedic pulled me away.
“Your mother wasn't the only person who disappeared.””
I stood frozen.
Agent Hayes turned toward me.
“What did he say?””
I looked at the blood on my hands.
“He said Daniel arranged my marriage.””
“That doesn't make sense.””
I shook my head.
Then I noticed something near Adrian's fallen jacket.
A small photograph.
I picked it up.
It showed Daniel standing beside a woman I had never seen before.
The woman was holding a little girl.
On the back, in my father's handwriting, were the words:
Elena's sister. Keep her away from Thomas.
I stared at the photograph.
A sister.
I had a sister?
And if Daniel had known about her, why had he never told me?
My phone vibrated.
A new message appeared.
*Your father left one final instruction. Find the girl in the photograph before Thomas does.*
May you like
Then another message arrived.
*Because she's the only person who can prove who really ordered Daniel's murder.*
