Chapter 4
Rebecca took me back to her house after Sophie was discharged.
Not my house.
Never my house.
Not while Elena knew every hallway and every lock.
Sophie slept in the guest room with Rebecca’s daughter, both of them curled under a pile of blankets.
I sat at the kitchen table across from my sister.
She placed an envelope between us.
“I should have given you this years ago,” she whispered.
I looked at it.
Claire’s handwriting was on the front.
Daniel, if I don’t get the chance.
My throat closed.
“You had this?”
“She made me promise to keep it unless something happened that involved a woman named Elena Voss.”
My pulse thudded.
“Elena’s maiden name.”
Rebecca nodded.
“I didn’t know until your wedding invitation came.”
“Why didn’t you tell me then?”
Her eyes filled.
“I tried. You said I hated seeing you move on.”
I remembered.
God help me, I remembered.
Rebecca had pulled me aside the week before the wedding.
She said Elena felt wrong.
I snapped at her.
I told her grief did not give her the right to punish me for surviving.
Now I could barely look at her.
“I’m sorry.”
She shook her head.
“Read it.”
My hands trembled as I opened the envelope.
Inside was a letter and a flash drive.
Claire’s letter was short.
Daniel,
If you are reading this, I was right to be afraid.
Voss Capital is targeting your company.
Arthur Voss has been hiding losses through shell investments.
A woman connected to him has been watching our family.
Her name is Elena.
I don’t know what they want yet, but I know this.
If anything happens to me, protect Sophie first.
Not the company.
Not the house.
Not your pride.
Sophie.
Always Sophie.
My vision blurred.
Rebecca reached across the table.
“I’m sorry.”
I pressed the letter to my mouth.
For two years, I had believed Claire died suddenly.
A heart event.
Unexpected.
Unfair.
But natural.
Now her words sat in my hands like a match.
Grace came over within the hour.
She took the flash drive and opened it on a secure laptop.
The files were organized.
Financial records.
Photos.
Dates.
Notes.
Claire had been a forensic accountant before Sophie was born.
I had forgotten how relentless she could be.
She had traced Arthur’s failing investments.
Found evidence of fraud.
And discovered that Elena had visited our neighborhood six times before Claire’s death.
There were photos.
Elena outside our house.
Elena near Sophie’s preschool.
Elena in a coffee shop across from Claire.
My stomach rolled.
Grace opened an audio file.
Claire’s voice filled the kitchen.
“If this file is found, I believe Arthur Voss or someone working with him is attempting to silence me. I have experienced dizziness, nausea, weakness, and irregular heartbeat after meetings where food or drinks were provided.”
I gripped the table.
Claire continued.
“I sent blood samples to a private lab. If the report disappears, look at Dr. Howard Mills.”
Grace paused the recording.
“Who is Mills?”
I swallowed.
“Claire’s cardiologist.”
Rebecca covered her mouth.
Grace made two calls.
By midnight, she had requested Claire’s medical records and lab archives.
By morning, we knew.
A private lab had found traces of digitalis in Claire’s blood.
The report vanished from her official file.
Dr. Mills signed the death certificate.
And one week after Claire died, Voss Capital transferred two hundred thousand dollars to a shell company tied to Dr. Mills.
I walked outside because I thought I might break apart in front of Sophie.
The cold air hit my face.
I leaned over the porch railing and tried to breathe.
Rebecca came out behind me.
“She knew,” I whispered.
“Claire knew.”
“She tried to protect you.”
“And I married the woman she warned me about.”
Rebecca put her hand on my back.
“You were grieving.”
“I was blind.”
“No,” she said softly.
“You were hunted.”
That evening, Sophie came downstairs holding her stuffed bear.
Her face was pale.
“Daddy?”
I turned.
“What is it, sweetheart?”
She held the bear out.
“Elena put something in Mr. Bear.”
Grace took it carefully.
Inside the zipper pocket was a tiny tracker.
May you like
And a folded note.
If Daddy gets sick, tell them he took too many pills.
