Chapter 4 - Rachel’s SecretThe man’s name was Elias Grant.
He claimed he had known Rachel for years.
Daniel didn’t trust him.
Not for one second.
“Where is Maya?” Daniel demanded.
Elias looked toward the boxes.
“Safe.”
“Where?”
“She’ll come back when she knows she can.”
“That doesn’t answer my question.”
Elias sighed.
“You still have the same problem Rachel told me about.”
“What problem?”
“You think everything can be fixed by working harder.”
Daniel stepped forward.
“You knew my wife.”
“I knew her better than you did during the last six months of her life.”
The sentence hit like a slap.
Daniel nearly punched him.
Marcus intervened.
“Start explaining.”
Elias looked at Marcus.
“You’re Marcus Reed.”
“You know me too?”
“Rachel told me about you.”
Marcus’s expression changed.
“What did she say?”
“That you were the only cop she trusted.”
Marcus went still.
Daniel stared at him.
“You knew Rachel was afraid?”
Marcus nodded slowly.
“She called me two weeks before the accident.”
Daniel’s heart sank.
“You never told me.”
“She asked me not to.”
“Why?”
“Because she thought someone was watching you.”
Daniel looked at Elias.
“Who?”
Elias opened one of the cardboard boxes.
Inside were documents.
Bank statements.
Photographs.
Copies of emails.
And a folder labeled:
NORTHSTAR
Daniel recognized the name.
NorthStar Logistics.
A company Rachel had worked for.
Officially, she had been an accountant.
But the documents showed something different.
Money had been moved through shell companies.
Payments to city officials.
Bribes.
Fake insurance claims.
A network far larger than Daniel could understand.
Rachel had discovered it.
Maya had been involved somehow.
Daniel picked up another photograph.
Maya.
Rachel.
And a third woman Daniel didn’t recognize.
Elias pointed at the woman.
“Her name was Claire Bennett.”
“What happened to her?”
“She disappeared.”
Daniel felt the room tighten around him.
“Did Rachel know?”
“She helped Maya after Claire disappeared.”
“Why?”
“Because Claire left something with Maya.”
“What?”
Elias looked at him.
“The second phone.”
Daniel’s pulse jumped.
“The phone from the crash?”
Elias nodded.
“Rachel had it hidden.”
Daniel stared at the photograph.
“So why was Maya homeless?”
“Because someone found out.”
“Who?”
Elias hesitated.
Then said, “Michael Voss.”
Daniel’s chest tightened.
“You’re saying Rachel’s brother was involved?”
“Yes.”
“Why?”
“Because Michael didn’t believe Rachel had discovered corruption.”
Daniel’s face hardened.
“What did he believe?”
“That Rachel stole something.”
“What?”
Elias looked toward the empty doorway.
“An account number.”
“Which account?”
“The one containing eight million dollars.”
Daniel stared at him.
“Eight million?”
“Money stolen from NorthStar.”
Daniel shook his head.
“This is insane.”
“Not as insane as what happens if they find Lily.”
“What does the baby have to do with any of this?”
Elias didn’t answer.
Daniel grabbed his jacket.
“Tell me.”
Elias looked directly at him.
“Lily isn’t just Maya’s daughter.”
The room went silent.
Daniel felt his stomach drop.
“What does that mean?”
Elias lowered his voice.
“Her father is the reason people have been hunting Maya.”
Before Daniel could respond, a gunshot exploded outside.
Marcus shoved Daniel to the floor.
Another shot.
Glass shattered.
Elias crawled toward the back wall.
“Get down!”
Marcus pulled his weapon.
Daniel heard tires screech away.
For several seconds, nobody moved.
Then Elias crawled toward the storage unit door.
He looked outside.
“Gone.”
Daniel stood.
His hands were shaking.
“What were you about to tell me?”
Elias looked at him.
Then his expression changed.
“I was going to tell you Lily’s father is dead.”
Daniel frowned.
“Then why would anyone care about her?”
May you like
Elias swallowed.
“Because before he died, he left something inside his daughter’s birth certificate.”
