Chapter 3 - The Man Everyone Buried Had Been Protecting Cassidy's Family for Six YearsDaniel survived the attack.
The bullet struck the wooden frame above his head.
No one was injured.
But the message was unmistakable.
Someone knew he had returned.
Ronan wanted to move immediately.
Daniel refused.
“No.”
“Dad.”
“We don't run.”
Ronan stared.
“You disappeared for six years.”
“Because running kept you alive.”
“And now?”
Daniel looked at Cassidy.
“Now she's here.”
Cassidy folded her arms.
“Everyone keeps looking at me like I'm the answer to a question nobody will explain.”
Daniel smiled sadly.
“You're not the answer.”
“Then what am I?”
“The person they were trying to protect.”
He sat at the table.
“Your sister Emily wasn't who you think she was.”
Cassidy's chest tightened.
“What does that mean?”
“She was investigating the Reed financial reserve.”
Ronan frowned.
“My brother was investigating our own family?”
“Yes.”
“Why?”
“Because your father had been stealing.”
Ronan froze.
“My grandfather?”
Daniel nodded.
“For years.”
The family had been built on land.
Railroad contracts.
Agricultural equipment.
Transportation.
Then investments.
But hidden beneath the legitimate businesses were accounts Daniel discovered.
Money had been diverted into private shell companies.
Millions.
Emily found the same trail.
She contacted Daniel.
Together they uncovered the truth.
Then someone found them.
“They staged the accident,” Daniel said.
“Your brother survived.”
“And Emily disappeared.”
Cassidy whispered:
“Where?”
“Colorado.”
She shook her head.
“She's alive.”
“Yes.”
“How do you know?”
Daniel looked at her.
“Because she's the one who called me two days ago.”
Cassidy froze.
“She called you?”
“She said the family wasn't safe.”
Ronan looked at Daniel.
“Who is after us?”
Daniel answered:
“Your uncle Victor.”
Ronan stared.
“My uncle died.”
“No.”
Daniel shook his head.
“He disappeared.”
Cassidy felt dizzy.
“Why does everyone in this family have a fake death?”
Ronan laughed bitterly.
“Good question.”
Daniel looked at her.
“Your grandmother invited you because she knew Emily trusted you.”
“But why the chair?”
“Because Daniel left instructions.”
Cassidy looked toward the empty chair.
“He wanted me to sit there?”
“Yes.”
“Why?”
“Because there is something underneath it.”
Ronan moved immediately.
He turned the chair upside down.
A small wooden panel had been attached beneath the seat.
He removed it.
Inside was a key.
A brass key.
And a photograph.
Cassidy picked up the photograph.
Daniel.
Emily.
And a younger Ronan.
All three together.
Ronan stared.
“When was this taken?”
“Seven years ago.”
“Before the accident.”
Daniel nodded.
“You were supposed to see this someday.”
Cassidy looked at the key.
“What does it open?”
Daniel answered:
“The old grain silo.”
Ronan's expression changed.
“That place burned.”
“Not all of it.”
They went that night.
The silo stood on abandoned Reed property.
The door opened with the key.
Inside was a hidden office.
Old files.
Computer equipment.
Photographs.
And one wall covered with names.
Cassidy stared.
“My name.”
Her name appeared twenty-three times.
Ronan's appeared twelve.
Emily's six.
Daniel's fourteen.
Then one name appeared more than all of them.
Victor Reed.
Cassidy looked at Daniel.
“What did he want?”
“Control.”
“Of what?”
“Everything.”
Daniel pointed toward a file.
“The family trust.”
Cassidy opened it.
The beneficiary page named her.
Not Emily.
Cassidy.
She stared.
“Why me?”
Daniel took a breath.
“Because Emily changed it.”
“Why?”
“She knew the only person Victor would underestimate was you.”
Cassidy felt angry.
“She used me.”
“No.”
Daniel shook his head.
“She trusted you.”
Cassidy closed her eyes.
Then a voice came from behind them.
“You should have listened to her.”
Everyone turned.
Victor Reed stood in the doorway.
Alive.
Smiling.
Ronan raised his weapon.
Victor laughed.
“You're too late.”
He pointed toward a screen.
A recording played.
Emily appeared.
Older.
Frightened.
But alive.
She said:
“Cassidy, I'm sorry.”
The recording ended.
Cassidy stared.
Victor smiled.
“The trust belongs to you.”
“What do you want?”
“Sign it over.”
“No.”
“You haven't heard the price yet.”
He looked at Ronan.
“You will.”
Then he left.
A fire alarm began screaming.
Smoke filled the room.
Ronan grabbed Cassidy's hand.
“Run!”
They escaped through a side exit.
Behind them, flames swallowed the office.
The evidence burned.
But one thing survived.
The brass key.
Cassidy held it tightly.
She looked at Ronan.
“I'm not giving him anything.”
Ronan nodded.
May you like
“Neither am I.”
And for the first time, they stood together against the same enemy.
Related Stories
