Chapter 6: The Mother's Secret
I stared at the photograph.
My mother, Margaret Hale, stood beside my hospital bed wearing the blue coat she had worn to my father's funeral.
I remembered her visiting me after the accident.
I remembered her crying.
I remembered her telling me that Sophia was the only person who had stayed by my side every single day.
What I didn't remember was her standing behind Sophia when the medical authorization documents were signed.
“Why is my mother in that photograph?”” I asked.
Marcus closed his briefcase.
“Because she was involved.””
Naomi stepped forward.
“Be careful, Mr. Vale. You're making serious allegations.””
Marcus smiled.
“I'm not making allegations. I'm presenting information.””
He pulled out another photograph.
This one showed my mother sitting across from Sophia in the hospital cafeteria.
A document lay between them.
“What is that?”” I asked.
“Your medical consent agreement.””
My stomach tightened.
“I was unconscious.””
“Exactly.””
Naomi examined the photograph.
“Where did you get these?””
“From someone who wants the truth to come out.””
Daniel laughed bitterly.
“You mean someone you paid.””
Marcus ignored him.
“Ethan, you've been surrounded by people who tell you what you want to hear. I thought perhaps seeing the truth would help.””
“What truth?””
Marcus leaned against the workbench.
“Your mother asked Sophia to manage your medical care. She believed Sophia would protect you.””
“Then why did Sophia block my calls? Why did she change my prescriptions?””
Marcus shrugged.
“You would have to ask her.””
“You approved the payments.””
“I approved security services.””
“Three hundred thousand dollars?””
“The company was under threat.””
“From whom?””
Marcus's smile disappeared.
“From people who wanted to destroy everything we built.””
I looked at Naomi.
She was quietly photographing the documents.
Marcus noticed.
“Still collecting evidence, Naomi?””
“It's what attorneys do.””
He gave a dismissive laugh.
“Then perhaps you should collect this too.””
He placed a final sheet on the table.
It was a board resolution.
The document proposed removing me as chief executive officer on grounds of prolonged medical incapacity.
It was dated yesterday.
My blood ran cold.
“You're trying to take my company.””
“I'm trying to protect it.””
“By declaring me incapable?””
“Six months, Ethan. Six months without meaningful executive participation. The board has responsibilities.””
“I'm still the majority shareholder.””
“And nobody intends to change that.””
“Then why are you doing this?””
Marcus leaned closer.
“Because your return would destroy the company.””
“Why?””
For the first time, he looked genuinely angry.
“Because there are things you don't understand. Things you shouldn't have investigated in the first place.””
“What things?””
Marcus straightened.
“Your father made some very expensive enemies.””
I felt a cold pressure spread across my chest.
“My father has been dead for eleven years.””
“His business arrangements weren't.””
Naomi immediately interrupted.
“That's enough. Any further communication can go through my office.””
Marcus laughed.
“You really think a lawyer can save him?””
She held his gaze.
“No. But the law can hold you accountable.””
Marcus picked up his briefcase.
Before leaving, he turned toward me.
“By the way, Ethan, your mother is coming home tonight. Perhaps you should ask her why she signed those papers.””
Then he walked out.
Nobody followed him.
For several seconds, I could hear only the rain against the metal roof.
Daniel finally spoke.
“He didn't come here to explain anything.””
“No,” Naomi replied.
“He came to see what we knew.””
She looked at the photographs again.
“And now we know he's frightened.””
That evening, I refused to return to the estate.
Naomi arranged for me to stay in a secure guesthouse owned by one of her former colleagues. Peter checked every entrance, inspected the windows, and changed the security codes.
Maya remained with me.
She sat beside the fireplace, quietly coloring in a notebook.
“Are you going to find my mom now?”” she asked.
Naomi knelt beside her.
“We're still looking.””
Maya looked down.
“Mr. Collins told me she got fired because she was stealing.””
Naomi's expression softened.
“Your mother was fired because she discovered something she wasn't supposed to see.””
Maya looked up.
“Something bad?””
“Yes.””
“About Mr. Ethan?””
Naomi glanced at me.
“Yes.””
The girl closed her notebook.
“Then she was only trying to help.””
I reached out and touched her shoulder.
“I know.””
My phone vibrated.
A message from an unknown number.
*I need to speak to you. It's about your mother.*
A second message appeared.
*I'm in the parking lot. Please come alone.*
Naomi noticed the screen.
“Who is that?””
“I don't know.””
“Don't answer.””
Another message arrived.
*My name is Margaret Hale.*
I stopped breathing.
My mother.
She was outside.
Peter immediately checked the security cameras.
A few seconds later, he returned.
“There's a woman near the east entrance. Older, wearing a blue coat.””
I looked at Naomi.
“Let her in.””
Naomi hesitated.
“Ethan, we don't know what Marcus told her or why she's involved.””
“She raised me.””
“And someone may be using that against you.””
I stared at her.
“She's still my mother.””
Naomi finally nodded.
Peter escorted her inside.
Margaret walked into the room slowly.
Her hair was more silver than I remembered, and she looked thinner. When she saw me, she stopped.
For several seconds, neither of us moved.
Then she covered her mouth.
“Oh, Ethan.””
I wanted to embrace her.
I wanted to ask where she had been.
Instead, the only question I could manage was the one that had been burning inside me since Marcus showed us the photographs.
“Did you sign those medical documents?””
Her eyes filled with tears.
“I'm sorry.””
The room went silent.
Naomi stood beside me.
“What exactly did you sign, Mrs. Hale?””
Margaret sat down.
“After Ethan's accident, Sophia told me the doctors needed someone to make decisions for him. She said he might not wake up for weeks.””
“That doesn't answer the question,” I said.
“I signed a temporary authorization.””
“Did you read it?””
Margaret looked down.
“No.””
My jaw tightened.
“Why not?””
“Because Sophia told me you had asked her to prepare everything before the accident.””
I stared at her.
“I never did.””
“I know that now.””
“Then why did you allow her to control my treatment?””
Margaret began crying.
“Because I thought she loved you.””
The words hung between us.
I looked at the photograph on Naomi's laptop.
“What did you know about my medication?””
“Nothing.””
“Did you ever see Sophia give me pills?””
“Yes.””
“Did you question her?””
Margaret shook her head.
“She told me the doctors had changed your prescriptions. I believed her.””
“And the company?””
She looked up.
“What about it?””
“Did you know Marcus had been paying people?””
Her face changed.
A long silence followed.
Then she reached into her handbag and removed a small envelope.
“I kept this because I was afraid.””
Naomi took it carefully.
Inside was a printed email.
The date was three days after my accident.
The sender was Marcus Vale.
The recipient was Margaret Hale.
Naomi read it aloud.
“Mrs. Hale, as agreed, the company will continue covering all expenses related to Ethan's private recovery. Please ensure that no outside physician interferes with the current treatment plan. Any changes must be approved through Sophia Reed.””
I looked at my mother.
“What agreement?””
Margaret wiped her eyes.
“He offered to help pay for your care. He said your medical expenses would be enormous and that the company could handle everything.””
“Why would he need you to keep outside doctors away?””
She shook her head.
“I didn't understand.””
Naomi turned the email over.
There was handwriting on the back.
A short note.
*The second payment is due when the board votes.*
Below it was a signature.
Margaret's.
I looked at her in disbelief.
“Mom?””
She started trembling.
“I didn't know what it meant.””
“How much money?””
“Twenty thousand dollars.””
Naomi's voice became cold.
“Why did you receive twenty thousand dollars from Marcus Vale?””
Margaret covered her face.
“I thought it was for your medical bills.””
“Where is it?””
“Still in my account.””
I leaned back.
My own mother had accepted money from the man who had paid to have my car sabotaged.
But before I could speak, she reached into her handbag again.
This time, she removed a photograph.
It showed my father standing beside a younger Marcus Vale, holding a document between them.
Margaret placed it on my lap.
“Ethan, there's something I never told you about your father's death.””
I looked at her.
“He died in a car accident.””
She shook her head.
“No. Before he died, he discovered that Marcus had been stealing from the company.””
My heart began pounding.
“What?””
“Your father confronted him. Two weeks later, his car went off a bridge.””
Naomi slowly stood.
“Mrs. Hale, are you saying Marcus was responsible for your husband's death?””
Margaret looked directly at me.
“I don't know who caused the accident.””
She took my hand.
“But I know what your father left behind.””
“What?””
“A recording.””
“Where is it?””
My mother started to answer.
Then her phone rang.
She looked at the screen.
The name displayed was *Marcus Vale*.
Before she could silence it, a message appeared beneath the incoming call.
*You promised to keep the past buried. Don't make the same mistake twice.*
Margaret's face went white.
And then she whispered:
“Ethan, your father didn't die because of the bridge.””
She looked toward Naomi.
“He was going to expose the people who wanted to take Hale Meridian from him.””
My phone vibrated.
An email had just arrived from the company's corporate secretary.
The subject line read:
*EMERGENCY BOARD MEETING — TOMORROW, 9:00 A.M.*
Attached was the proposed resolution to remove me as CEO.
At the bottom of the document was a list of directors who had already voted.
There were seven names.
Six had approved.
The seventh was Marcus Vale.
But the final line was what made my blood run cold.
*Notice of shareholder action: The transfer of voting authority is effective immediately upon confirmation of Ethan Hale's medical incapacity.*
May you like
Someone had already prepared a document declaring me legally incapable of running my own company.
And according to the signature attached to it, I had supposedly agreed.
