Chapter 12 - Someone We Trusted
The question was no longer whether Daniel had been murdered.
The question was who helped Damian.
And the answer terrified me.
Someone we already knew.
Robert gathered everyone connected to the case.
Katherine.
Evelyn.
Maria.
The investigators.
Even my old friend Susan.
We sat around a conference table.
Robert placed Daniel's letter in the center.
“Who had access to Daniel before his death?”
Katherine raised her hand.
“Richard.”
“Damian?”
“Yes.”
“Anyone else?”
She hesitated.
“His accountant.”
“What was his name?”
“Thomas Reed.”
The name meant nothing to me.
But Robert froze.
“What?”
He looked at me.
“Do you know Thomas Reed?”
I shook my head.
“No.”
Susan suddenly spoke.
“I do.”
Everyone turned.
Susan looked uncomfortable.
“He worked with Daniel.”
My heart stopped.
“What?”
“He was one of his closest business contacts.”
“Why didn't you tell us?”
“Because I didn't think it mattered.”
Robert asked:
“Where is he now?”
Susan swallowed.
“He moved to Georgia.”
Silence.
“Where in Georgia?”
She looked at Chloe.
“Atlanta.”
My stomach dropped.
Robert immediately searched his records.
Thomas Reed had been an accountant for several businesses.
One of them was connected to The Hearth.
Another belonged to Prescott Holdings.
And a third had received money from Chloe's trust.
“He's the missing link,” Robert said.
We found Thomas that evening.
He was living in a luxury condominium outside Atlanta.
When federal agents knocked, he didn't answer.
They entered legally.
The apartment was empty.
But his computer was still running.
And on the screen was an email.
From Damian.
If anything happens to me, release the Miller file.
Robert opened it.
There were hundreds of documents.
One was labeled:
DANIEL MILLER — FINAL NIGHT.
We opened it.
It contained surveillance photographs.
Daniel leaving his office.
Daniel getting into his car.
Daniel arriving home.
Then another photograph.
His car.
Parked outside a pharmacy.
And behind it…
Thomas Reed's vehicle.
My hands shook.
“He followed him.”
Robert nodded.
Then we found a bank transfer.
Thomas had received $250,000 from Richard Prescott.
The date?
The day after Daniel died.
I covered my mouth.
Then a final file appeared.
A video.
Thomas sitting across from Damian.
Damian was younger.
Maybe twenty-seven.
Thomas looked nervous.
Damian said:
“Your job is simple.”
“What?”
“Make sure Margaret believes Daniel died naturally.”
Thomas nodded.
“And Chloe?”
“Leave her alone.”
“Until when?”
Damian smiled.
“Until she's old enough to inherit.”
The video ended.
Nobody spoke.
Then Chloe stood.
“He waited for me.”
Robert nodded.
“For twenty-six years.”
She looked at the screen.
“Why?”
“Because your trust became accessible when you turned thirty.”
She closed her eyes.
“I was thirty-two when I met Damian.”
“Yes.”
“So he knew exactly when.”
“Yes.”
The realization broke something inside her.
Their entire relationship had been planned.
Not love.
Not fate.
A financial operation.
Then the investigators found something even worse.
Damian had a document titled:
MARRIAGE TERMINATION CONTINGENCY.
It contained plans to make Chloe appear mentally unstable.
Evidence had been planted.
False medical records were being prepared.
And if Chloe attempted divorce, Damian planned to accuse her of theft.
Robert stared at the document.
“He intended to destroy her credibility before she could expose him.”
I looked at my daughter.
She was staring at the floor.
Then she raised her head.
“No more.”
Her voice was quiet.
But firm.
“No more hiding.”
She looked at Robert.
“I want everything released.”
“What do you mean?”
“Every contract.”
“Chloe—”
“Every recording.”
“Are you sure?”
“Yes.”
“Some of it will become public.”
“I don't care.”
She looked at me.
“I spent years protecting his reputation.”
She took a breath.
“Now he can live with the truth.”
Robert nodded.
“We'll do it.”
But before he could make the call, the office door opened.
A federal agent stepped inside.
He looked serious.
“Mr. Vance.”
“What happened?”
“We found Thomas Reed.”
“Where?”
The agent paused.
“Dead.”
My blood ran cold.
“Who killed him?”
“We don't know.”
The agent placed a photograph on the table.
Thomas's body had been discovered inside his car.
And on the windshield was one message written in red:
THE MILLER FAMILY SHOULD HAVE STAYED QUIET.
Chloe stared at it.
Then she whispered:
“He's still out there.”
Robert shook his head.
“No.”
May you like
He looked at the message.
“Someone else is.”
