Chapter 11 - The Woman Who Knew Everything
Wade did not believe him.
Neither did Detective Brooks.
But Travis had brought evidence.
Emails.
Bank transfers.
Recorded calls.
According to Travis, Margaret had contacted him months earlier after discovering Kayla was pregnant.
She offered him money to disappear.
At first, he accepted.
That explained the emptied bank account.
Then Richard contacted him separately.
Richard claimed Margaret was manipulating the trust.
The family fortune was tangled in lawsuits and failing investments.
If Samuel remained alive, thirty-eight million dollars became permanently protected from the Collins estate.
If Samuel died before certain legal conditions were finalized, much of it returned to family-controlled holdings.
Travis saw an opportunity.
He decided that establishing paternity might give him leverage.
“You're admitting you came here for money,” Wade said.
Travis looked down.
“Yes.”
Kayla stood behind the observation glass listening.
Her face showed no surprise.
Only disappointment.
“Did you threaten her?” Wade asked.
“No.”
“Did Dean?”
“I told Dean to photograph you.”
“Why?”
“I needed evidence that Kayla had connected with you. My lawyer said it might matter.”
“And the text?”
“I didn't send it.”
“Richard?”
“I don't know.”
Travis looked toward Detective Brooks.
“But Margaret knew about Elizabeth.”
Everyone went quiet.
That mattered.
Very few people knew Wade's daughter had died.
Margaret certainly did.
Could she have sent the threat?
Brooks asked, “Why would Richard break into the medication area?”
“He wasn't breaking in.”
Travis shook his head.
“He told me he suspected someone on the hospital staff was being paid.”
I felt suddenly cold.
“Who?”
“He never told me.”
Brooks immediately contacted hospital security.
Employee records were reviewed.
Access logs examined.
Within hours, one anomaly appeared.
A temporary nursing assistant named Carla Reeves had accessed Samuel's chart nine times despite never being assigned to him.
Carla had not reported to work since the blackout.
Police went to her apartment.
Empty.
Her bank account showed a recent deposit.
Twenty-five thousand dollars.
The sender was hidden behind a shell company.
The company traced back to a Collins family holding corporation.
Margaret denied everything.
“I did not pay that woman.”
Brooks asked, “Who controls the company?”
“My brother's estate has dozens of entities.”
“Who can authorize transfers?”
“Several people.”
“Richard?”
“Yes.”
“You?”
Margaret hesitated.
“Yes.”
That hesitation changed the room.
Wade stood.
“You need to leave.”
“Wade—”
“Now.”
“I came here to protect Kayla.”
“You waited twelve years to tell me my wife was alive.”
Margaret flinched.
“You waited four months to give me Sarah's letter.”
“I honored her wishes.”
“And now thirty-eight million dollars depends on what happens to my grandson.”
Margaret's eyes filled.
“I would never hurt that child.”
Wade pointed toward the door.
“Then help police prove it.”
She left.
Kayla watched her go.
“Do you think she did it?”
Wade did not answer.
“Dad.”
He looked at her.
“I don't know.”
The word hurt him.
For decades, Wade had lived in a simple world.
Engines either worked or they didn't.
People stayed or left.
Promises were kept or broken.
Now every truth had another truth beneath it.
Samuel was the only uncomplicated thing in his life.
Small.
Fragile.
Needing nothing from him except presence.
Two days later, police found Richard.
He was dead inside an abandoned warehouse.
No graphic details.
No obvious explanation.
But inside his coat was a flash drive.
Detective Brooks opened it in the presence of attorneys.
It contained documents.
Trust records.
Emails.
And a video Richard had recorded forty-eight hours before disappearing.
His face filled the screen.
“If you're watching this, I probably failed.”
Wade leaned forward.
Richard continued.
“My sister Sarah spent her life running from what our father did. I spent mine pretending it had nothing to do with me.”
He looked directly into the camera.
“Margaret isn't trying to kill the baby.”
Kayla exhaled.
Then Richard said:
“But someone is.”
May you like
The video continued.
“And the person responsible has been inside that NICU every day.”
