Chapter 2 - The Woman Who Helped Him Heal Was the Woman Who Hid the TruthNathan did not sleep that night.
Not because he was angry.
Anger was simple.
This was worse.
Confusion.
For six years, Vanessa had been the person who helped him survive losing Claire.
She held him when he cried.
She helped raise Lily.
She was there when Ethan was born.
How could someone who shared his home hide something so enormous?
At 3:17 AM, Nathan received another message from Daniel.
A photograph.
A security image.
A black SUV parked near Claire’s accident site.
Nathan zoomed in.
The license plate was visible.
It belonged to Vanessa.
The next morning, Nathan acted normal.
That was the hardest thing he had ever done.
Vanessa kissed him before leaving.
“Have a good day.”
Nathan smiled.
“You too.”
But inside, something had died.
Not love.
Trust.
At his office, Daniel arrived with documents.
“Before we talk about Vanessa, there is something else.”
Nathan looked up.
“What?”
“Claire knew something was wrong before she died.”
Daniel placed a folder on the table.
Inside were copies of emails.
Messages.
Financial documents.
Claire had been investigating money transfers inside Nathan’s company.
Nathan frowned.
“Why?”
“She found unusual payments.”
“How much?”
Daniel looked serious.
“Over twelve million dollars.”
Nathan stared.
“What?”
“Your company lost money for years because someone was moving funds through fake vendors.”
Nathan slowly sat back.
“Who?”
Daniel slid another paper forward.
A name.
Nathan’s expression changed.
Because he knew the person.
Someone close.
Someone trusted.
Someone who had attended Claire’s funeral.
Someone who had comforted him while secretly helping destroy his family.
Nathan whispered:
“My brother-in-law.”
Daniel nodded.
“Vanessa’s family.”
Nathan looked at the documents.
The two mysteries connected.
Claire’s death.
The missing money.
They were never separate.
They were the same story.
Then Daniel revealed something worse.
“Your daughter wasn’t the only witness.”
Nathan looked up.
“What?”
“There was another person at the accident scene.”
“Who?”
Daniel hesitated.
“A security employee.”
“Where is he?”
“He disappeared six years ago.”
Nathan felt cold.
“Find him.”
Daniel nodded.
“I already did.”
Nathan looked surprised.
“And?”
“He agreed to talk.”
“Where?”
Daniel placed another document down.
“He’s been hiding under a different name.”
Nathan looked at the address.
Then his heart stopped.
May you like
Because the location was only twenty minutes away.
And the person who knew what happened to Claire had been living close enough to see Nathan every day.
