Chapter 9: The Truth About Daniel Hartwell
The official story of my father’s death had always been simple.
A heart attack.
A tragic accident.
A brilliant man taken too soon.
For years, I never questioned it.
Why would I?
Doctors confirmed it.
The company confirmed it.
Everyone around me accepted it.
But now I understood something.
The easiest lies to believe are the ones wrapped in grief.
I found my father’s medical records the next morning.
Or rather, Daniel found them before he disappeared.
A backup file had been sent to my encrypted account.
A final act of loyalty.
The records showed something impossible.
The medication my father was given was not the medication prescribed.
Someone had changed it.
Someone with access.
Someone who knew his medical history.
I sat in my office staring at the documents.
My father had not been betrayed after his death.
He had been betrayed before it.
The question was:
Who had the opportunity?
The answer came faster than I wanted.
Thomas.
Marcus.
Vivian.
Ethan.
But there was another name.
The doctor.
Dr. Alan Pierce.
My father’s personal physician.
I found him at his private clinic.
When he saw me, his face changed.
Not surprise.
Fear.
“You know,” he whispered.
I stepped inside.
“Tell me everything.””
He sat down.
“I tried to stop it.””
“Who?””
He looked at the floor.
“Thomas.””
My heart sank.
“My uncle?””
Dr. Pierce nodded.
“Your father discovered the financial fraud. He was going to expose everyone.””
“Everyone?””
“Thomas wasn’t working alone.””
I already knew the answer.
“Marcus.””
“Yes.””
I closed my eyes.
“And Ethan?””
Dr. Pierce shook his head.
“No.””
That surprised me.
“Ethan was recruited later.””
“So my father knew?””
“Yes.””
“Why didn’t he tell me?””
The doctor looked at me.
“Because he believed you would be safer if you hated him.””
I frowned.
“What?””
“Your father knew Ethan was dangerous. He tried to separate you from him slowly.””
I remembered every argument.
Every moment my father questioned Ethan.
Every time Ethan told me my father didn’t respect him.
He wasn’t jealous.
He was afraid.
The doctor handed me an envelope.
“He left this.””
Another letter.
I almost laughed.
My father had become a ghost full of warnings.
I opened it.
“Claire,
If you are reading this, then I failed to protect you in person.
I need you to understand something.
The people who betrayed me were never strangers.
They were people I helped.
People I trusted.
That is why they were dangerous.””
My eyes filled.
The final paragraph shook me.
“But there is one person I trusted completely.
The person who helped me prepare everything after my death.
The person who knows the entire truth.””
I held my breath.
The name was written below.
Daniel Reed.
I froze.
No.
Impossible.
I read it again.
Daniel.
My attorney.
My ally.
The man who helped me.
The man who disappeared.
A new message appeared on my phone.
From Daniel.
*Meet me alone. I owe you the truth.*
I arrived at the abandoned warehouse where he sent the location.
Daniel stood waiting.
He looked exhausted.
Older.
Broken.
“I know what you’re thinking.””
I stayed silent.
“Your father asked me to investigate Thomas and Marcus.””
I frowned.
“Then why did he write your name?””
“Because I was the person he trusted.””
“Why did you hide everything?””
Daniel looked away.
“Because I was scared.””
“Of what?””
He looked directly at me.
“Of the person who killed your father.””
The warehouse seemed colder.
“Who?””
Daniel swallowed.
Then whispered:
“It wasn’t Thomas.””
A pause.
“It wasn’t Marcus.””
My heart started racing.
“Then who?””
Daniel reached into his coat.
He pulled out a file.
And placed it in my hands.
“Your father’s final investigation.””
I opened it.
The first page had a photograph.
A person.
Someone I had known my entire life.
Someone who had cried at my father’s funeral.
Someone who had held my hand.
May you like
The name at the top of the file made my breath disappear.
*Vivian Cross.*
