Chapter 4: The Price of My Accident
Vanessa didn't look surprised to see me standing.
That was the first thing I noticed.
She looked frightened, yes. Her eyes moved briefly toward my legs, then toward Daniel, but there was something else beneath her expression.
Calculation.
She was deciding what to say.
I knew that look. I'd seen it across boardroom tables when competitors realized they had underestimated me.
“Marcus,” she said, stepping into the conference room.
“We need to talk.””
I glanced at the folder in her hand.
“About my mother?””
Her fingers tightened around it.
“Who told you?””
“That's an interesting question. Considering you seem to know more about my family than I do.””
Derrick stood up.
“Vanessa, don't say anything.””
She ignored him.
“Marcus, please. This isn't the place.””
I pointed toward the empty chair.
“Sit down.””
For several seconds, she didn't move.
Then she placed the folder on the table.
“I didn't know about the accident,” she whispered.
The room became completely silent.
I stared at her.
“What did you just say?””
Her eyes filled with tears.
“I didn't know the truck would hit you.””
Daniel immediately stepped forward.
“Mrs. Hayes, I suggest you choose your words carefully.””
Vanessa covered her mouth.
Derrick grabbed her arm.
“Stop talking.””
I looked at him.
“Let her finish.””
Vanessa pulled away from him.
“I only wanted you frightened. I wanted you to understand that you couldn't keep controlling everything.””
I felt my heartbeat in my throat.
“Who wanted me frightened?””
She lowered her eyes.
“Derrick.””
I looked at the man wearing my father's watch.
He slowly placed both hands on the conference table.
“She's lying.””
Vanessa shook her head.
“You told me the driver would make you stop the car. You said there would be a minor accident. You promised nobody would get hurt.””
Derrick's expression hardened.
“Vanessa, think about what you're doing.””
“I've spent months protecting you!””
“And I've spent months protecting you!””
Their argument continued over my head.
I barely heard them.
My mind had returned to that rainy highway.
The headlights.
The horn.
The violent impact.
I remembered waking up in the hospital and asking whether anyone else had been hurt.
I remembered Vanessa crying.
I remembered her whispering that she was grateful I was alive.
All that time, she had known something.
“Who was the driver?”” I asked.
Vanessa looked at me.
“I don't know his real name.””
“Don't lie to me.””
“He was called Ray.””
“Ray what?””
She shook her head.
“Derrick arranged everything.””
I turned toward Derrick.
He laughed once.
A dry, humorless sound.
“You're going to believe her? She's the one who wanted the money. She's the one who wanted you out of the way.””
Vanessa slapped the table.
“You told me Marcus would never recover!””
“And you believed me!””
The words escaped before Derrick could stop them.
Daniel immediately took out his phone.
“I'm documenting this conversation.””
Derrick pointed at him.
“Put that away.””
“No.””
“You have no right.””
“Then you should have called your attorney before discussing a possible criminal conspiracy.””
Derrick's face turned red.
He looked at Thomas.
“Get security.””
Thomas remained seated.
“I'm not doing that.””
Derrick stared at him.
“What?””
Thomas swallowed.
“I've done enough.””
He reached into his briefcase and removed a small flash drive.
“Marcus, there's something you need to see.””
Derrick moved toward him.
“Don't you dare.””
Thomas stood, holding the drive tightly.
“I've kept copies of the transactions since January.””
I stared at him.
“Why?””
“Because I knew something wasn't right.””
“Then why didn't you tell me?””
His shoulders dropped.
“Because Derrick threatened my daughter.””
Nobody spoke.
Thomas opened his briefcase again.
“He knew where she went to school. He knew her schedule. He sent me photographs of her walking home.””
Vanessa looked away.
Thomas continued.
“I was afraid. I approved payments because I thought I could keep him satisfied until I found a way to expose everything.””
I took the flash drive.
“How much?””
“More than the accountant found.””
“How much, Thomas?””
He looked at me.
“Eleven million dollars.””
My knees weakened.
Daniel pulled out a chair.
I sat down carefully.
“Where did it go?””
Thomas hesitated.
“Some of it went through DC Strategic Solutions. Some went to Northbridge Capital. But the largest transfer went into an account controlled by Eleanor Hayes.””
My mother's name again.
I stared at the flash drive.
“Why would my mother take eleven million dollars?””
Thomas shook his head.
“I don't know. But I have the original instructions.””
He handed Daniel another envelope.
Inside was a printed email.
The sender was Derrick.
The recipient was an address registered to Eleanor Hayes.
The son will be out of the picture soon. Once the medical incapacity declaration is finalized, we can complete the acquisition. Vanessa will receive her portion, and you will receive the remaining shares.
At the bottom was a reply.
Make certain he does not recover before the transfer.
I read it three times.
Then I looked at Vanessa.
“What does this mean?””
She began crying.
“I thought your mother was helping us.””
“Helping you do what?””
“Take control of the company.””
“Why?””
Vanessa wiped her face.
“Because she said you had taken something from her.””
I frowned.
“My father left me the company.””
Vanessa nodded.
“That's what she told me. But Eleanor said your father had promised her half of everything.””
My chest tightened.
My father had never mentioned such an arrangement.
He had built the company with me from the ground up. He had taught me how to negotiate, how to hire, how to recognize dishonesty.
He had also warned me about one person.
My mother.
I had always thought it was because of their divorce.
Now I wasn't so sure.
Daniel's phone rang.
He answered, listened for a few seconds, then walked toward the window.
When he returned, his expression was grim.
“Marcus, the police have located the truck driver.””
“Ray?””
“Yes.””
“Where?””
Daniel hesitated.
“He was found dead this morning in a motel outside Columbus.””
Vanessa gasped.
Derrick closed his eyes.
Daniel continued.
“But before he died, he sent a recorded statement to the authorities.””
He placed his phone on the table.
The screen displayed a video file.
The title was simple.
The Hayes Accident.
I looked at Vanessa.
Then at Derrick.
“Play it.””
Daniel pressed the screen.
A man's frightened voice filled the conference room.
“My name is Raymond Cole. I was paid to cause the accident involving Marcus Hayes.””
I stopped breathing.
Then the man said the name of the person who had paid him.
May you like
And it wasn't Derrick.
It was someone I had trusted with my life.
