Chapter 4 - The Accident That Wasn't
We reopened the accident file.
Ethan contacted a retired investigator.
I contacted a private forensic team.
The original police report had one strange detail.
Lena's car had been tampered with.
The brake system showed signs of interference.
The report called it inconclusive.
I called it murder.
The investigator found something else.
A security camera from a gas station had captured Lena's vehicle thirty minutes before the crash.
A black SUV followed her.
The license plate was obscured.
But the driver was visible.
We enhanced the footage.
Victor.
I stared at the screen.
“That's him.”
The investigator nodded.
“We believe so.”
My hands shook.
“Why didn't anyone investigate this?”
“Because someone made sure the footage wasn't included in the original evidence.”
“Who?”
He showed me the chain-of-custody records.
One signature.
Daniel Brooks.
My attorney.
The man I had just trusted with the investigation into Victor.
I called him.
“Daniel.”
“Yes?”
“I need to see you.”
“Of course.”
“Now.”
He arrived forty minutes later.
I sat behind my desk.
Ethan stood near the door.
Daniel smiled.
“What's this about?”
I pushed the photograph across the desk.
His face changed.
Only slightly.
But enough.
“Where did you get this?”
“My wife.”
Silence.
He sat down.
“Daniel, how long?”
He looked at me.
“I don't know what you're talking about.”
“You knew.”
“No.”
“You knew about the payroll theft.”
“No.”
“You knew about Victor.”
“No.”
“You knew about Lena.”
His face went pale.
I leaned forward.
“Did you kill my wife?”
He stood.
“Absolutely not.”
“Then tell me why you hid evidence from the police.”
He couldn't answer.
Finally, he whispered:
“Because Victor threatened my family.”
I stared.
“That's your excuse?”
“No.”
“Then what?”
“He had evidence against me.”
“What kind?”
“Illegal transactions.”
I understood.
“You were laundering money.”
He closed his eyes.
“Yes.”
“Did Lena know?”
“Yes.”
“Did Victor kill her?”
Daniel looked at me.
“I don't know.”
“You're lying.”
“I don't know!”
His voice cracked.
Then he said:
“I wasn't there.”
I believed him.
But that didn't mean he was innocent.
“Who was?”
He hesitated.
“Marcus Vane.”
The name meant nothing to me.
“Who?”
“Victor's security contractor.”
“Where is he?”
“Dead.”
“When?”
“Two years ago.”
The same year Lena died.
My stomach dropped.
“Convenient.”
Daniel looked at me.
“Victor doesn't leave loose ends.”
Then he whispered:
“Neither will he leave you alive once he knows what you've found.”
May you like
I stood.
“Then we'll make sure he finds out.”
