“No?””
“It’s bigger than Thomas.””
Daniel stepped closer.
I covered the phone slightly.
“Nathan says it’s bigger than Thomas.””
Daniel’s face became serious.
I returned to the call.
“Then who?””
Nathan whispered:
“The person who taught Thomas everything he knows.””
My mind searched.
Someone above Thomas.
Someone with influence.
Someone who could manipulate the entire company.
Then Nathan spoke again.
“Ethan, listen carefully.””
“What?””
“Do not trust anyone who says they’re protecting Claire’s legacy.””
I frowned.
“What does that mean?””
Before he answered, another sound came through the phone.
A door closing.
Nathan’s breathing changed.
“Nathan?””
No response.
“Nathan?””
Then he whispered.
“They found me.””
The call ended.
I immediately called back.
No answer.
Again.
Nothing.
Daniel looked at me.
“What happened?””
I looked at the phone.
“He’s in trouble.””
We returned to the hotel without telling anyone what happened.
Not the employees.
Not security.
Not even Thomas or Olivia.
Especially not them.
Daniel moved quickly.
He contacted a private investigation team he trusted and started reviewing all internal access records.
Meanwhile, I sat beside Lily.
She was still asleep.
Unaware that her family’s past had opened like a wound.
I watched her hold the rabbit.
The same rabbit Nathan bought for her first birthday.
I remembered that day.
Nathan had walked into our house carrying a huge stuffed animal.
Claire laughed.
“Nathan, she’s one year old. She can’t even hold that.””
Nathan smiled.
“Then I’ll help her.””
And he did.
He always did.
That was why this hurt.
Because no matter what happened, Nathan had loved Claire.
He had loved Lily.
He had loved our family.
Someone had turned him into a stranger.
A sound came from the hallway.
I looked up.
Daniel entered.
“We found something.””
I stood.
“What?””
He placed a tablet on the table.
“Robert Hayes.””
I looked at the screen.
Security records.
“Where is he?””
“He left the hotel twenty minutes ago.””
“Where did he go?””
Daniel hesitated.
“That’s the problem.””
“What?””
“He went to a location that isn’t connected to him officially.””
“Where?””
Daniel showed me.
An address.
My face changed.
Because I knew that place.
Everyone in my family knew it.
It was the old house Claire grew up in.
The house Nathan inherited after their parents died.
The house Nathan supposedly abandoned.
I looked at Daniel.
“Why would Robert be there?””
Daniel shook his head.
“I don’t know.””
My phone buzzed.
A message.
Unknown number.
I opened it.
One sentence.
*You’re finally looking in the right place.*
Then another message appeared.
A photo.
Not of Lily.
Not of the hotel.
This time, it was a photograph of Claire.
But not an old family photo.
A surveillance photo.
Claire standing outside her childhood home.
And beside her…
Nathan.
The date was three days before her death.
My hands went cold.
Because there was something else in the picture.
A third person.
Someone standing behind them.
Someone I recognized immediately.
Someone who had spent years pretending to be loyal to me.
The caption beneath the image appeared:
*Ask your general manager why he lied about that night.*
I slowly looked up.
Daniel was staring at me.
Because he knew exactly what I had seen.
The third person in the photo was him.
Daniel Harper.
And suddenly, the man helping me uncover the truth…
was also standing inside the mystery
The photo remained on the tablet screen.
Three people.
Claire.
Nathan.
Daniel.
Outside the Parker family home.
Three days before Claire’s death.
I stared at it until my eyes started to hurt.
The person I had trusted most after Claire was gone was standing beside the two people connected to her final days.
The man who helped me rebuild after losing my wife.
The man who stood beside me at the funeral.
The man who told me he would protect the Grand Regent no matter what.
Daniel Harper.
My general manager.
My friend.
My ally.
Or so I thought.
The room felt colder.
Even Lily’s quiet breathing from the bedroom seemed distant.
Daniel didn’t move.
He didn’t deny it.
That was the first thing I noticed.
A guilty person usually rushed to explain.
An innocent person usually demanded answers.
Daniel just stood there.
Like he had been waiting for this moment for two years.
“Ethan…”
I raised my hand.
“Don’t.””
His mouth closed.
I looked at the photo again.
“Tell me when this was taken.””
Daniel looked down.
“Two days before Claire’s accident.””
My chest tightened.
“Why were you there?””
Silence.
That silence hurt more than the answer.
“Daniel.””
He finally looked at me.
“Because Claire called me.””
“Why?””
“Because she was afraid.””
I laughed once.
Not because anything was funny.
Because the truth had become too painful.
“Everyone knew she was afraid except me.””
Daniel looked away.
“She didn’t want to worry you.””
“She was my wife.””
“I know.””
“Then why?””
His voice softened.
“Because she knew you would try to fix everything.””
I stared at him.
“That’s what I did.””
“Yes.””
“And that was wrong?””
“No.””
Daniel shook his head.
“But Claire knew you. She knew you would walk straight into danger if you thought someone you loved was threatened.””
The words hit because they were true.
I would have.
I still would.
Daniel sat down slowly.
For the first time since I had known him, he looked tired.
Not physically.
Emotionally.
Like he had been carrying something too heavy for too long.
“Claire found something in the foundation records,” he said.
I waited.
“She found money being moved through fake organizations.””
“The same thing we found tonight.””
“Yes.””
“Why didn’t you tell me?””
His eyes lowered.
“Because she made me promise.””
I froze.
“She made you promise?””
Daniel nodded.
“She said if anything happened to her, I had to keep you away from the investigation.””
I stared.
“That makes no sense.””
“It did to her.””
“Why?””
Daniel looked at Lily’s room.
“Because she was worried about what you would do.””
I felt anger rising.
“She thought I couldn’t handle the truth?””
“No.””
Daniel shook his head.
“She thought someone would use your anger against you.””
I didn’t speak.
Because that sounded exactly like Claire.
She always thought three steps ahead.
Even when I was too emotional to see the board.
“What exactly did she tell you?””
Daniel took a deep breath.
“She told me Thomas wasn’t acting alone.””
I looked at him.
“Who else?””
“I don’t know.””
“You met Nathan.””
“Yes.””
“You met Olivia.””
“Yes.””
“And you never told me?””
Daniel closed his eyes.
“Because Claire asked me not to.””
I stood.
“You let me believe Nathan abandoned us.””
“I know.””
“You let me think Olivia disappeared because she didn’t care.””
“I know.””
“You let me spend two years wondering if Claire died because of a random accident.””
His voice broke slightly.
“I know.””
The room went quiet.
I wanted to be angry.
I was angry.
But beneath the anger was something worse.
Pain.
Because Daniel wasn’t a stranger.
He was family.
At least, that was what I thought.
“Why now?”” I asked.
Daniel looked confused.
“What?””
“Why reveal anything now?””
He didn’t answer immediately.
Then he said:
“Because tonight changed everything.””
“What changed?””
“You came back.””
I frowned.
“That’s not an answer.””
Daniel looked at the photo.
“Claire’s plan was based on you never finding out.””
My heart stopped.
“Claire had a plan?””
“Yes.””
“What plan?””
Daniel reached into his jacket.
He pulled out a small envelope.
My name was written on it.
The same handwriting.
Claire.
I stared.
“You had this?””
Daniel nodded.
“For two years.””