Chapter 9 - THE MAN WHO WAS SUPPOSED TO DIEMy name was on the death certificate.
Date of death:
Three weeks from now.
I stared at it until the letters blurred.
"This is fake."
"Yes."
"Then why make it?"
Reyes closed the file.
"That's what Ethan claims he knows."
I demanded to see him.
Hours later, I sat across from my supposedly dead brother in a secure interview room.
He looked older.
Thinner.
But it was him.
"You're alive."
He smiled without humor.
"Apparently."
"Why didn't you tell me?"
"Because you would've stopped digging."
"You've been working with Claire."
"Yes."
I wanted to punch him.
Instead I asked:
"Why did she hurt Noah?"
Ethan looked away.
"She was testing something."
"What?"
"Whether your medical history could be manipulated."
"What does that mean?"
He explained.
Claire and her financial contacts had been building a case that I was unstable, violent, and medically irresponsible.
The baby injuries weren't only about insurance.
They were part of a custody strategy.
"If Noah had been injured repeatedly while Claire appeared to be the concerned mother, she could eventually accuse you of negligence."
I felt sick.
"The cake?"
"A staged incident."
"She was choking him."
"She underestimated how fast you'd react."
My fists tightened.
"Why would she risk killing him?"
"Because she needed a major medical event."
"For what?"
"To make the earlier injuries look like part of a larger pattern."
I understood.
If Noah were hospitalized repeatedly, Claire could position herself as the caretaker.
If I objected, I would look controlling.
If I reacted violently, like in the kitchen, she could accuse me of abuse.
Then she could use the combined records to destroy me.
"And the money?"
Ethan sighed.
"The trust was only part of it."
"What else?"
"Your father's company."
I stared.
"There are hidden assets."
"Where?"
"Overseas."
"How much?"
"Enough to make people disappear."
The room went silent.
"Did you know Claire wanted to marry me?"
"Yes."
"Did you know she planned to have my child?"
"I knew she wanted access to your life."
I looked down.
"Why didn't you warn me?"
"Because I was trying to expose her network."
"By letting her hurt my son?"
His face tightened.
"I didn't know."
That answer barely changed anything.
Then Ethan leaned forward.
"There is one thing you need to understand."
"What?"
"Claire wasn't working alone."
"I know."
"No."
He shook his head.
"You're still thinking about money."
He pushed a photograph across the table.
It showed my father.
Standing beside Claire.
At the hospital.
Two months before Noah's birth.
"How?"
I whispered.
Ethan said:
"Your father knew she was targeting you."
My chest tightened.
"Then why did he let it happen?"
"Because he thought he could use her."
"For what?"
"To find me."
I stared at him.
The entire family had been playing a game around me.
And Noah had been caught in the middle.
"Your father wanted Ethan found," Reyes said from the doorway.
I turned.
"Why?"
Ethan laughed quietly.
"Because I have the original files from the company."
"What files?"
"The ones proving who started the fire."
My mouth went dry.
"Who?"
Ethan looked directly at me.
"Your father."
The room went silent.
My father had ordered the fire.
He had framed Ethan.
He had buried the truth.
And Claire had entered my life because of him.
But then Ethan said something that changed everything again.
"There's more."
I waited.
"The fire wasn't meant for me."
My stomach dropped.
"Who was it meant for?"
May you like
Ethan looked at me.
"You."
Related Stories
