Chapter 2 - The Man Who Told Him Not to LookDaniel stared at the bedroom door.
“What are you doing here, Victor?”
No answer.
Only another knock.
“Daniel, open the door.”
Sophie clung to her father's shirt.
“Daddy…”
Daniel put one finger to his lips.
He did not trust the silence.
Victor Hale had represented the Vale family for twenty-six years.
He had handled Eleanor Vale's estate.
He had prepared the family trust.
He had been present when the first accusations about missing money surfaced.
And now he was standing outside Daniel's daughter's bedroom.
Daniel slowly opened the door.
Victor stepped inside.
The older man's normally polished appearance was gone.
His tie was crooked.
His forehead was damp with sweat.
His eyes went immediately to the envelope in Daniel's hand.
“You found something.”
Daniel said nothing.
Victor swallowed.
“Where?”
“Why?”
Victor looked at Sophie.
“Is she safe?”
Daniel stiffened.
“What happened to the money?”
Victor lowered his voice.
“The trust is not what your mother told you it was.”
Daniel felt the floor tilt beneath him.
“What does that mean?”
Before Victor could answer, the house alarm sounded.
Three sharp beeps.
Victor looked toward the hallway.
“They know.”
“Who?”
Victor grabbed Daniel's arm.
“You need to take Sophie out of this house.”
“I'm not leaving until you tell me what is going on.”
Victor stared at him.
“Your mother created the Eleanor Vale Family Trust twelve years ago. She placed almost twenty-eight million dollars into it.”
Daniel already knew that.
“What I didn't know,” Victor continued, “was that someone had been withdrawing money for years.”
“How much?”
Victor looked at Sophie again.
“More than twelve million.”
Daniel's jaw tightened.
“Mara?”
“I don't know.”
“You were the trustee's attorney.”
“I said I don't know.”
That was when Daniel noticed something strange.
Victor was lying.
Not about Mara.
About himself.
The man was afraid.
And Victor Hale was not a man who frightened easily.
Daniel closed the bedroom door.
“Start talking.”
Victor looked at the security camera above the hallway.
Then he lowered his voice.
“Your mother kept a private ledger separate from the official trust records.”
“The red ledger.”
Victor went pale.
“So you know.”
“Only because Sophie knows.”
Victor looked at the little girl.
“Your mother trusted her more than anyone realized.”
Sophie whispered, “Grandma said the red book tells the truth.”
Victor closed his eyes.
“She shouldn't have told you.”
“She told me to hide it.”
“Where?”
Sophie looked down.
Victor stepped closer.
“What did she tell you?”
Daniel immediately moved between them.
“Don't pressure her.”
Victor nodded.
“Of course.”
Then he reached into his coat and pulled out a small photograph.
He handed it to Daniel.
The picture showed Eleanor standing beside four people.
Victor.
Mara.
A man Daniel recognized as the family accountant, Richard Bell.
And another man Daniel had not seen in years.
His mother’s financial adviser.
Thomas Wren.
Daniel stared.
“Why is Thomas here?”
Victor hesitated.
“Because he was the last person your mother accused of stealing from the trust.”
Daniel looked at the photograph again.
Thomas had disappeared from the family's affairs five years ago.
Officially, he had retired.
Unofficially, Daniel remembered hearing that Eleanor had fired him after a bitter argument.
“Where is he now?”
Victor's expression changed.
“We don't know.”
Daniel's phone buzzed.
A notification from the security system.
REMOTE CAMERA ACCESS DETECTED.
Daniel looked toward the hallway monitor.
Someone was accessing the mansion's camera network.
He opened the live feed.
The screen showed the basement.
A figure moved through the darkness.
Daniel zoomed in.
The person was wearing a black coat.
Then the figure stopped.
Looked directly into the camera.
And lifted something red.
A book.
Victor stared at the screen.
“No.”
Daniel's heart pounded.
“That's the ledger.”
The figure turned and disappeared down the basement corridor.
Daniel grabbed his keys.
Victor caught his shoulder.
“Daniel, don't go down there.”
Daniel turned.
“Why?”
Victor's voice broke.
“Because your mother wasn't hiding the ledger from thieves.”
May you like
He looked toward Sophie.
“She was hiding it from someone in this house.”
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