Chapter 10: The Night My Father Died
Daniel couldn't stop staring at the photograph.
Brielle stood beside Thomas Pierce, one hand resting on his shoulder, her face turned toward the camera. She looked younger, but there was no mistaking her eyes.
The date on the back was the same date his father had died.
For eight years, Daniel had believed his father's death was a terrible coincidence of timing. His father had gone to bed complaining of exhaustion, and by morning, he was gone. The doctor had called it sudden cardiac failure.
Now Daniel was learning that his father had spent his final hours confronting a man who might have stolen his fortune—and that the man's daughter had eventually married him.
“Mom,” Daniel said, struggling to keep his voice steady, “why didn't you tell me about the girl outside our house?””
Evelyn sat with her hands folded in her lap.
“Because your father made me promise not to speak about it until I understood what was happening.””
“And you never understood?””
“I tried. I called Thomas the next day, but he told me his daughter had been sent away years earlier. He said I must have mistaken someone else for her.””
Daniel shook his head.
“You knew he was lying.””
“I suspected it. But suspicion isn't proof, sweetheart. Your father was dead, and I had you to think about.””
He turned away.
For years, he had remembered his mother's silence as grief. He had never considered that she might have been frightened.
Eleanor Shaw closed the folder in front of her.
“We need to establish whether Brielle is Thomas Pierce's daughter and whether the property agreement was forged. We also need to understand why your father believed she posed a threat.””
Daniel looked at her.
“What if she had something to do with his death?””
“Then we need evidence before making that allegation. The circumstances are concerning, but they don't establish that anyone caused his death.””
“I understand.””
But his expression said he wanted more than an investigation. He wanted someone to explain why his father had died believing he couldn't trust the people around him.
Evelyn reached into her purse and removed a second envelope.
“There is something else,” she said.
Daniel turned.
“Another letter?””
“No. A receipt.””
She unfolded the paper with trembling fingers.
It was from a private medical clinic, dated the morning after his father's death. The document recorded an emergency consultation that had been canceled.
Daniel frowned.
“Why would Dad have a medical appointment the morning after he died?””
“He didn't. I did.””
Evelyn took a breath.
“The night before he died, your father complained of chest pain. He insisted it was indigestion, but I wanted him examined. He promised me he would see a doctor in the morning.””
Daniel's eyes filled.
“You never told me he was in pain.””
“I didn't want you to remember his last night that way.””
“Mom, I was his son.””
“I know.””
Her voice was almost inaudible.
“And I have regretted that decision every day since.””
Daniel sat beside her.
For several seconds, neither of them spoke.
Then he asked the question that had haunted him since reading his father's letter.
“Did Dad seem afraid?””
Evelyn nodded.
“He kept checking the front windows. He told me someone had been following him. When I asked who, he said he wasn't certain.””
“Did he mention Thomas?””
“Yes.””
“Did he mention Brielle?””
Evelyn hesitated.
“He said Thomas had brought his daughter into the business dispute. He told me the girl knew things she shouldn't have known.””
Daniel looked toward Eleanor.
“Can we find out whether my father made any calls that night?””
“Potentially,” she replied.
“We would need to identify the relevant records and determine what is still available. Given the time that has passed, some records may no longer exist.””
Martin, who had been quietly reviewing the financial files, looked up.
“There's another possibility. Your father's company archived its old correspondence before it was dissolved.””
Daniel turned.
“What correspondence?””
“Emails, meeting schedules, and scanned documents. I helped your father transition some of the records into storage when he was winding down the business. Some of those files were transferred to your current company's archive.””
Daniel stared at him.
“You never told me that.””
“I didn't know they were relevant. We retained them for legal and accounting purposes.””
Martin opened the archive system.
The search took several minutes.
When the results appeared, he found an email from Thomas Pierce sent at 8:43 p.m. on the night before Daniel's father died.
The subject line read: *Final Meeting — No Witnesses*.
Daniel's hands tightened.
“Open it.””
The email contained only three sentences.
You have until midnight to reconsider.
If you bring outsiders into this, everyone will lose.
Your son will pay for your stubbornness.
Daniel read the final sentence again.
“My father received a threat involving me.””
Eleanor leaned closer to the screen.
“We need to preserve this record and verify its authenticity. Don't send it around or confront Thomas based on an archived email alone.””
“Thomas is dead,” Martin said quietly.
“He died five years ago.””
Daniel's expression hardened.
“Then we need to speak to his son.””
Adrian Pierce agreed to meet them that afternoon.
He chose a private conference room at his attorney's office, away from the press and the business community that had followed his family's collapse.
When Daniel entered, Adrian stood.
He was taller than Daniel remembered, with tired eyes and a faint scar running along his jaw.
“Mr. Mercer,” Adrian said.
“Daniel is fine.””
Adrian nodded.
Then his gaze moved to Evelyn.
“Mrs. Mercer. I'm sorry for what happened at the wedding.””
Evelyn studied him.
“Did your father hurt my husband?””
Adrian looked down.
“I don't know.””
Daniel pulled out the photograph of Brielle beside Thomas.
“Is she your sister?””
Adrian stared at the image.
For several seconds, he seemed unable to speak.
“Yes,” he finally said.
“At least, that's what my father told me.””
“What do you mean?””
“My father claimed Brielle was his daughter from a relationship he had before he married my mother. He said she had been sent away as a child.””
“Did you know her?””
“I met her when she was eighteen. She appeared at my father's estate and demanded money. He refused. She told him she knew what he'd done to Daniel's father.””
Daniel leaned forward.
“What had he done?””
Adrian rubbed his face.
“He had altered the property agreement. I saw the documents myself. My father had changed the ownership percentages and used the amended agreement to claim the profits.””
Eleanor spoke sharply.
“Did you witness him forging the document?””
“No. But I heard him admit that he had changed it. He said Daniel's father would never discover the difference.””
“Why didn't you report him?””
Adrian's eyes hardened with self-loathing.
“Because I was working for him. Because I was young and frightened. Because I thought protecting my family was more important than telling the truth.””
He looked at Daniel.
“Then my own company collapsed, and Brielle used the same tricks against me. By the time I understood what she was doing, I had already helped her move money.””
Daniel's voice was cold.
“You helped her steal from me.””
“Yes.””
Adrian didn't look away.
“I won't excuse it. I thought the transfers were repayments of legitimate debts. When I realized she was using your credentials, I refused to continue. I have records proving that.””
“Why didn't you come forward sooner?””
“Because she threatened to expose my involvement. I was ashamed, and I was afraid I'd lose everything.””
Daniel gave a bitter laugh.
“You were afraid of losing everything, so you let me risk losing mine.””
Adrian lowered his head.
“You're right.””
For a moment, nobody spoke.
Then Adrian reached into his briefcase and removed a small black notebook.
“My father kept this in his private study. I took it after he died because I was afraid someone would destroy it.””
He placed it on the table.
Inside were dates, payments, names, and references to several companies connected to the property dispute.
Near the back was a handwritten entry from the week Daniel's father died.
*E.M. — trust papers secured. Daughter to handle remaining matter.*
Daniel stared at the initials.
“E.M. Who is that?””
Adrian turned another page.
The next entry contained a full name.
*Evelyn Mercer.*
Daniel looked at his mother.
Evelyn's face had gone white.
“I have never seen that notebook,” she whispered.
Adrian closed it.
“Then someone may have used your name without your knowledge.””
Daniel looked at the date again.
His father's death had not merely coincided with a financial dispute.
Someone had been tracking his mother's movements, his father's documents, and the family trust.
And Brielle had inherited the trail.
Then Adrian leaned forward.
“There is one more thing you need to know about Brielle.””
Daniel's expression hardened.
“What?””
“Her father didn't send her to you because he wanted money.””
Adrian took a breath.
“He sent her because he believed your father had hidden the original agreement somewhere your mother could find it.””
May you like
He looked at Evelyn.
“And he believed you still had it.””
