Chapter 3 - The Brother Who Was Supposed to Be Dead
Julian Holay had died in a car accident six years earlier.
That was the story.
Mercer had attended the funeral.
He had seen the coffin.
He had delivered the eulogy.
He had cried until he couldn't speak.
For six years he had carried guilt over the last argument they'd had.
Now he stood in an abandoned Chicago warehouse watching a man step out of the shadows.
Julian.
Alive.
Older.
Thinner.
A scar ran along his jaw.
But it was him.
Mercer's body reacted before his mind could.
He crossed the room and punched him.
Julian stumbled backward.
Mercer grabbed his coat.
“You let me bury you.”
Julian didn't fight back.
“You're right.”
“You let me believe you were dead.”
“I had to.”
“You let me grieve you.”
“I know.”
“You stayed alive while I buried you.”
Julian's eyes filled.
“I know.”
Mercer shoved him away.
“Why?”
Julian looked toward the doorway.
“Because Father was still alive.”
Mercer froze.
“Our father died before you.”
“No.”
Julian shook his head.
“That was the lie.”
Mercer's world shifted.
“Then whose funeral was it?”
“A body no one would identify properly.”
Mercer felt sick.
“Why?”
“Because Father was running something much bigger than the company.”
Julian sat.
“He had a private intelligence network.”
Mercer stared.
“Why would he?”
“Because he was paranoid.”
“That doesn't explain you.”
Julian looked at him.
“I found evidence that he had people watching Tavlin.”
Mercer's jaw tightened.
“Why?”
“Because she knew too much.”
“What did she know?”
“The accounts.”
Mercer remembered Tavlin's work.
She had been the financial analyst on a merger investigation inside Holay Global.
She had discovered irregularities.
She had brought them to Mercer.
He had dismissed them.
Then the photograph appeared.
He had believed she was manipulating him.
Julian continued.
“She found money being moved through shell foundations.”
“Whose?”
“Father's.”
Mercer stopped.
“That was impossible.”
“It wasn't.”
Julian leaned forward.
“The photograph you saw was staged.”
“What photograph?”
“The one of Tavlin with me.”
Mercer's stomach dropped.
“You?”
“I wasn't with her.”
“Then who was?”
“Someone using my identity.”
Mercer stared.
The photograph had shown Tavlin holding a man's arm outside a hotel.
The man looked exactly like Julian.
Same jaw.
Same hair.
Same posture.
Mercer had believed it was him.
Julian explained.
A private investigator had digitally altered the image.
The purpose was simple.
Convince Mercer that Tavlin was cheating with his brother.
Convince him to cut her off.
Remove Tavlin from the company.
Then access the accounts through someone else.
Mercer's voice dropped.
“Who hired them?”
Julian looked at him.
“Your mother.”
Mercer closed his eyes.
“No.”
“Yes.”
“She loved me.”
“That's why she did it.”
Julian's voice softened.
“She thought she was saving you.”
“From Tavlin?”
“From the truth.”
Mercer shook his head.
“What truth?”
Julian opened a file.
Inside was a list of payments.
Holay Foundation.
Offshore trusts.
Political donations.
Private security contracts.
And one recurring payment.
Bennett Protection Services.
Mercer stared.
“Tavlin's family?”
“No.”
Julian pointed to the account.
“Tavlin was being protected.”
Mercer looked confused.
“By whom?”
“Your father.”
Silence.
“Why?”
Julian sighed.
“Because your father knew Tavlin's father.”
Mercer's mind raced.
Her father had died when she was young.
A respected financial auditor.
His death had been classified as accidental.
But the file showed otherwise.
He had been investigating Holay Global.
“He found something.”
“What?”
“The original ownership structure of Holay Global.”
Mercer stared.
“You mean the company wasn't always ours?”
“No.”
Julian leaned closer.
“It belonged to someone else.”
“Who?”
“The Mitchell family.”
Mercer felt a chill.
“Tavlin's family owned part of Holay?”
“More than part.”
Julian explained.
Thirty years ago, Mercer and Tavlin's fathers had founded the company together.
Then money disappeared.
Legal documents were altered.
Ownership transferred.
Tavlin's father was pushed out.
Her family lost everything.
Mercer's father became sole owner.
Tavlin grew up believing the Caruso family had destroyed hers.
But she never knew the whole truth.
Mercer did not either.
“Why would Father protect her?”
Julian handed him another file.
Because he was trying to undo what he had done.
Mercer sat.
“This whole time…”
“He regretted it.”
“Then why didn't he tell me?”
“Because by the time he was ready, your mother had already taken control.”
Mercer's hands tightened.
“And Michael?”
Julian looked at him.
“Your father's personal assistant.”
Mercer knew the name.
Michael Graves.
He had disappeared twelve years earlier.
Julian nodded.
“He helped uncover everything.”
“Is he alive?”
Julian hesitated.
“No.”
Mercer closed his eyes.
Another person lost.
Another secret.
Another lie.
Then Julian said:
“There's one thing you don't know.”
“What?”
“Tavlin didn't disappear because she was afraid for herself.”
Mercer's voice dropped.
“Then why?”
Julian looked directly at him.
“She disappeared because someone tried to kill Lennox before he was born.”
Mercer's blood ran cold.
“What?”
“An overdose.”
Mercer stood abruptly.
“What?”
“They tampered with her medication.”
Julian's expression hardened.
“They wanted the baby gone.”
“Who?”
Julian looked toward the door.
“We need to leave.”
“Why?”
“Because he knows you're here.”
Mercer heard a car outside.
Headlights swept across the warehouse.
Then the power went out.
May you like
Julian whispered:
“They found us.”
