Chapter 4 - I met Julian in an underground parking garage at midnight.I went alone.
That was the condition he demanded.
No Samuel.
No security.
No lawyers.
I hated the idea.
But I needed answers.
Julian stood between two concrete pillars, his tuxedo replaced by jeans and a gray coat.
He looked exhausted.
For the first time in years, he looked like my son again.
Not the ambitious executive.
Not Vanessa's polished companion.
Just Julian.
“Dad.”
“Start talking.”
He swallowed.
“I didn't know about all of it.”
“All of what?”
“The money.”
“You knew enough to hide your daughter.”
His eyes dropped.
“Yes.”
“Why?”
“Because Marcus threatened me.”
I stared at him.
“What kind of threat?”
“He said if the investment collapsed, my career would be over.”
“That isn't a threat.”
Julian's voice cracked.
“He knew about Elsie.”
I went still.
“What?”
“He knew Mara had a child.”
“Your daughter.”
“Yes.”
“He said Vanessa's family would never approve the deal if they found out Mara was your wife and Elsie was your daughter.”
I stared at him.
“So you denied her.”
Julian nodded.
“I told myself it was temporary.”
“You told me she was your nanny's child.”
“I know.”
“You let Vanessa call her the maid's daughter.”
“I know.”
“You watched her cry.”
Julian closed his eyes.
“I know.”
I stepped closer.
“How could you?”
He looked at me.
“I thought I could fix it after the deal closed.”
I shook my head.
“You can't fix what you destroy while trying to build your career.”
His eyes filled with tears.
“Dad…”
“Where was Mara going the night she died?”
Julian's face changed.
“She was meeting Ethan.”
“Why?”
“To exchange evidence.”
“What evidence?”
“I don't know.”
“You expect me to believe that?”
“I never saw it.”
“Then why did Marcus threaten you?”
Julian hesitated.
“Because I helped them.”
My stomach dropped.
“Helped them do what?”
“Move the money.”
The words hung in the garage.
I waited.
Julian continued.
“They used my approval codes.”
“Your codes?”
“Yes.”
“Did you personally authorize the $1.4 million?”
“Yes.”
“Were the invoices fake?”
“I don't know.”
“Where did the money go?”
He looked at me.
“Some of it came back.”
“What does that mean?”
“The vendors returned portions to accounts I didn't control.”
“Whose accounts?”
“Marcus's.”
I stared at him.
“And you did nothing?”
“I was scared.”
“Of losing your career?”
“Of losing my daughter.”
That caught me.
Julian looked toward the ground.
“Mara had started asking questions. Marcus told me if I spoke, Elsie would disappear.”
I felt a cold wave run through me.
“He threatened to take my granddaughter?”
Julian nodded.
“Through what authority?”
“Family court.”
“He had no legal right.”
“He had lawyers.”
I understood.
Money didn't need to own the law.
It only needed to terrify people into surrendering.
“Why didn't you come to me?”
“Because I thought I could handle it.”
“You were twenty-nine when you became a father. You thought you could fight an empire alone?”
Julian said nothing.
“Where is Vanessa?”
“I don't know.”
“Where is Ethan?”
“I don't know.”
“Where is Marcus?”
“Probably already in motion.”
I stepped closer.
“What does that mean?”
“He knows you found the flower.”
My eyes narrowed.
“How?”
“Because Ethan called him.”
“After attacking me?”
Julian nodded.
“Then he knows about the invoices.”
“Yes.”
“And about Mara?”
“Yes.”
I looked at my son.
“Then tell me the truth.”
Julian's breathing changed.
“What?”
“Did you know Mara was going to die?”
He looked horrified.
“No.”
“Did you meet her that night?”
A pause.
“Yes.”
My blood ran cold.
“Why?”
“She gave me a file.”
“What file?”
“I don't have it.”
“Where is it?”
Julian looked around the garage.
“It was stolen.”
“By whom?”
“I don't know.”
“Then what did you see?”
He stared at me.
“Names.”
“Whose names?”
“Marcus. Ethan. Vanessa.”
My heart stopped.
“And one more.”
“Who?”
Julian whispered:
“Mara.”
I frowned.
“What does that mean?”
He shook his head.
“I don't know.”
Before I could ask again, headlights appeared at the end of the garage.
A black SUV turned the corner.
Julian's face drained.
“Dad, get down.”
The SUV accelerated.
We dove behind a concrete barrier.
A gunshot cracked through the garage.
Then another.
Julian grabbed my arm.
“Run!”
We sprinted toward the emergency exit.
Behind us, tires screamed.
Someone shouted.
We made it through the stairwell and slammed the door.
I leaned against the wall, breathing hard.
Julian looked at me.
“They're trying to kill us.”
“No.”
I looked toward the garage.
“They're trying to scare us.”
He stared at me.
“How do you know?”
I pulled the paper flower from my jacket.
Because they could have taken it.
They didn't.
They wanted us to keep digging.
They wanted us to know we were close.
And suddenly I understood the real purpose of the flower.
It wasn't evidence.
It was a message.
Someone had deliberately hidden it where Elsie would find it.
I turned to Julian.
“Who gave Elsie that flower?”
He stared.
“I don't know.”
“Think.”
“She was at the children's table.”
“Who was working there?”
Julian hesitated.
“Mara's old nanny.”
My heart stopped.
“What?”
“Her name is Clara.”
“Where is she?”
Julian shook his head.
“I haven't seen her in months.”
My phone rang.
A text message.
One sentence.
CHECK THE OLD NURSERY.
I looked at Julian.
Then at the message.
The old nursery was the room in my estate where Elsie had stayed during her first year.
Nobody used it anymore.
I called Samuel.
“Wake the entire security team.”
“Why?”
“We're going home.”
“Why?”
May you like
I looked at Julian.
“Because someone wants us to find something.”
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