Nobody spoke.<\/p>\n
Even Gavin, who had spent years beside Brenda, looked as if he had been introduced to a stranger.<\/p>\n
\u201cYour uncle.\u201d<\/p>\n
His voice was flat.<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDaniel Reeves is your uncle.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou told me your uncle Daniel died when you were a teenager.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI lied.\u201d<\/p>\n
Celia turned away, furious.<\/p>\n
I felt something colder.<\/p>\n
Not shock exactly.<\/p>\n
Recognition.<\/p>\n
This was what secrets did.<\/p>\n
They survived not because they were perfectly hidden, but because people built ordinary explanations around them.<\/p>\n
Gavin sat.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy?\u201d<\/p>\n
Brenda's voice shook.<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause I wanted nothing to do with him.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThen how did you end up involved in his accounts?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI didn't know they were his at first.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cExplain.\u201d<\/p>\n
She took several seconds.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen I was twenty-four, Daniel helped me after my father died.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHelped how?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cMoney. Rent. Legal paperwork.\u201d<\/p>\n
Gavin looked at the phone.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou told me your family had no money.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWe didn't.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThen where did his come from?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI didn't know.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBrenda.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI didn't.\u201d<\/p>\n
Her voice sharpened for the first time.<\/p>\n
\u201cI thought he was a successful attorney.\u201d<\/p>\n
Celia sat again.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat part is plausible.\u201d<\/p>\n
Gavin looked at her.<\/p>\n
She shrugged.<\/p>\n
\u201cReeves had money.\u201d<\/p>\n
Brenda continued.<\/p>\n
\u201cYears later, when I started working near Gulfport, Daniel contacted me.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou didn't work for my company.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou worked for Bellmore Consulting.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
I remembered.<\/p>\n
That was where Gavin met her.<\/p>\n
A vendor conference.<\/p>\n
At least, that was the story I knew.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe asked me to open an account,\u201d Brenda said.<\/p>\n
\u201cFor him?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe said it was for a client escrow structure.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou weren't an attorney.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI know.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy would you agree?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause he had helped my family for years.\u201d<\/p>\n
Gavin shook his head.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat isn't an answer.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIt was enough for me then.\u201d<\/p>\n
I understood that better than Gavin did.<\/p>\n
People rarely began participating in a bad decision while thinking, I am choosing wrongdoing.<\/p>\n
They began with loyalty.<\/p>\n
Gratitude.<\/p>\n
Convenience.<\/p>\n
A small favor.<\/p>\n
Then another.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat account?\u201d Ethan asked.<\/p>\n
Brenda hesitated.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe Graywick account.\u201d<\/p>\n
Dad had said Brenda was beneficiary of Graywick.<\/p>\n
That fit.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou opened it?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIn whose name?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cA trust.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWho controlled it?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDaniel.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThen why were you beneficiary?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI didn't know I was.\u201d<\/p>\n
Gavin closed his eyes.<\/p>\n
\u201cSame structure as Ellen.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
I leaned forward.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen did you meet Marcus?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBefore Gavin and I became involved.\u201d<\/p>\n
Gavin's eyes opened.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n
The hurt in that single word silenced everyone.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou told me Marcus introduced us.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe did, officially.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cOfficially?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI had already met him twice.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDaniel sent me.\u201d<\/p>\n
Gavin stood.<\/p>\n
Celia swore.<\/p>\n
I asked, \u201cSent you to do what?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDeliver documents.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cTo Marcus?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat documents?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cLoan agreements.\u201d<\/p>\n
Gavin stared at the table.<\/p>\n
\u201cReeves was working through you.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI didn't understand that then.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen did you understand?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAfter I started seeing you.\u201d<\/p>\n
The room went very still.<\/p>\n
Gavin looked at me once.<\/p>\n
Then back at the phone.<\/p>\n
\u201cHow long after?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cA few months.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBefore I left Nora?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
I watched his face close.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat did you discover?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cMarcus showed me copies of transfers.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThe trusts?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy show you?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause my name was on one.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cGraywick.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe thought you knew.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe thought I was helping Daniel.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWere you?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAt first, without understanding.\u201d<\/p>\n
Gavin sat again.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat changed?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI saw a transfer from one of your largest clients.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThe four hundred eighty.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cInto Larkspur.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
I asked, \u201cWith my mother listed as beneficiary.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cEventually.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat does eventually mean?\u201d<\/p>\n
Brenda inhaled.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen I first saw the account, there was no beneficiary.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThen someone added Mom.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWho?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI don't know.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDaniel?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI assumed.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou assumed?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI never saw him do it.\u201d<\/p>\n
Celia leaned toward the phone.<\/p>\n
\u201cMarcus wrote that you agreed to remove Ellen.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI did.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause Nora had nothing to do with any of it.\u201d<\/p>\n
I stared at the speaker.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou were sleeping with my husband.\u201d<\/p>\n
Silence.<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou were helping him leave me.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBut you objected to my mother's name being used.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy?\u201d<\/p>\n
Brenda\u2019s answer came quietly.<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause hurting you personally didn't mean I wanted you accused of financial crimes.\u201d<\/p>\n
Gavin flinched.<\/p>\n
I almost did too.<\/p>\n
The honesty was brutal.<\/p>\n
Not noble.<\/p>\n
Not redeeming.<\/p>\n
Simply honest.<\/p>\n
\u201cThank you,\u201d I said.<\/p>\n
Gavin looked at me, surprised.<\/p>\n
\u201cFor what?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cFor saying exactly what it was.\u201d<\/p>\n
Brenda started crying.<\/p>\n
\u201cI am sorry, Nora.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI believe you.\u201d<\/p>\n
The words surprised me.<\/p>\n
I continued before she misunderstood.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat doesn't erase anything.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI know.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIt doesn't make what you did with Gavin acceptable.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI know.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBut I believe you regret it.\u201d<\/p>\n
She was quiet.<\/p>\n
Then, \u201cI do.\u201d<\/p>\n
I looked at Gavin.<\/p>\n
He seemed unable to meet my eyes.<\/p>\n
\u201cContinue,\u201d I said.<\/p>\n
Brenda steadied her breathing.<\/p>\n
\u201cMarcus and I began comparing records.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBehind Gavin\u2019s back?\u201d Celia asked.<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy not tell him?\u201d<\/p>\n
Brenda hesitated.<\/p>\n
Then said, \u201cBecause Gavin had already decided Marcus was the problem.\u201d<\/p>\n
Gavin closed his eyes.<\/p>\n
Nobody challenged her.<\/p>\n
She continued.<\/p>\n
\u201cEvery time Marcus questioned Daniel\u2019s restructuring plans, Gavin thought Marcus was resisting oversight.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat sounds like me,\u201d Gavin said.<\/p>\n
There was no humor in it.<\/p>\n
\u201cDaniel knew how to frame it.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat did he tell me?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat Marcus was hiding losses.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe was hiding something,\u201d Brenda said. \u201cEvidence.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cFrom me.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause he thought I would go straight to Daniel.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
Gavin put his head in his hands.<\/p>\n
Celia looked away.<\/p>\n
I wondered whether Marcus had died believing Gavin hated him.<\/p>\n
Some regrets were irreversible.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat happened with the client payment?\u201d Ethan asked.<\/p>\n
Brenda continued.<\/p>\n
\u201cDaniel redirected it.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHow?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe changed the remittance instructions using authorization documents connected to the restructuring.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cForged?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSome signatures were real.\u201d<\/p>\n
Gavin looked up.<\/p>\n
\u201cMine?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
His face drained.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou signed blank authorizations?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNot blank,\u201d Brenda said.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou signed packets without reading every page.\u201d<\/p>\n
Gavin did not deny it.<\/p>\n
That, too, sounded like the man I had known.<\/p>\n
Confidence made careless people feel efficient.<\/p>\n
\u201cDaniel moved the money into Larkspur,\u201d she continued.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy my mother?\u201d I asked.<\/p>\n
\u201cI don't know for certain.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cGuess.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cShe was already investigating.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThrough Dad.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSo Daniel knew?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHow?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cMarcus mentioned Arthur had been retained.\u201d<\/p>\n
Celia interrupted.<\/p>\n
\u201cMarcus told Daniel?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo. Daniel found an invoice.\u201d<\/p>\n
My father\u2019s consulting invoice.<\/p>\n
Twelve thousand five hundred dollars.<\/p>\n
The amount in Marcus\u2019s ledger.<\/p>\n
\u201cDaniel knew Dad was investigating him.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSo he used Mom\u2019s name.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI think so.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cTo intimidate Dad?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cOr compromise him.\u201d<\/p>\n
Dad's voice came through Gavin's phone from where he had joined remotely again.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat would fit.\u201d<\/p>\n
We had called him after Brenda answered.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf the account was discovered,\u201d he said, \u201cit could make my investigation look corrupt.\u201d<\/p>\n
I rubbed my temples.<\/p>\n
A trap inside another trap.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhere was the four hundred eighty supposed to go eventually?\u201d Gavin asked.<\/p>\n
\u201cI don't know.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBrenda.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI really don't.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou were helping Marcus.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cOnly after the transfer.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThen what did you find?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat Larkspur sent portions to two other trusts.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNames?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBarton Ridge and Ellison North.\u201d<\/p>\n
Gavin wrote them down.<\/p>\n
\u201cAmounts?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAbout three hundred thousand total.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat happened to the rest?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cStayed in Larkspur for months.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat happened when Larkspur closed?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI don't know.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause by then Marcus and I weren't working together anymore.\u201d<\/p>\n
Celia frowned.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy?\u201d<\/p>\n
Brenda became quiet.<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause he found out about Gavin and me.\u201d<\/p>\n
Celia stared at the speaker.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat did he do?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe told me I was destroying his last chance to make Gavin listen.\u201d<\/p>\n
Gavin flinched.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat does that mean?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe said you already distrusted him. If you found out I was meeting him privately, you'd think we were conspiring.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou were meeting privately.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cTo investigate Daniel.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWithout telling me.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
Gavin laughed once.<\/p>\n
It was an exhausted sound.<\/p>\n
\u201cEveryone around me was lying because nobody thought I'd listen.\u201d<\/p>\n
Brenda answered immediately.<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
He looked at the phone.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDon't turn yourself into the only cause.\u201d<\/p>\n
That silenced him.<\/p>\n
\u201cMarcus lied too,\u201d she said. \u201cI lied. Daniel manipulated everyone. Nora's parents hid things. We all made choices.\u201d<\/p>\n
I watched Gavin absorb that.<\/p>\n
It mattered.<\/p>\n
Accountability was not the same as becoming the center of every bad thing.<\/p>\n
Sometimes self-blame was just another way to remain the main character.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat happened after Marcus learned about the affair?\u201d I asked.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe stopped trusting me.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cReasonable.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
No defense.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe began keeping records alone.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThe files we have.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cProbably.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDid you know Celia had them?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI suspected.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy call her last night?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause Gavin confronted me about the account.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy run?\u201d<\/p>\n
Brenda did not answer.<\/p>\n
\u201cBrenda.\u201d<\/p>\n
Her voice dropped.<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause Daniel called me.\u201d<\/p>\n
The room changed again.<\/p>\n
Celia leaned toward the phone.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYesterday afternoon.\u201d<\/p>\n
Gavin looked stunned.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe has your number?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe's had it for years.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI thought you hadn't spoken.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI hadn't. Not for almost five years.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat did he say?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat old records were surfacing.\u201d<\/p>\n
Ethan frowned.<\/p>\n
\u201cHow did he know?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI don't know.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDid you tell anyone Gavin was investigating?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThen somebody else did.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
The break-in suddenly felt less random.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat did Daniel want?\u201d I asked.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe wanted to know whether I still had access to Marcus's files.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI told him no.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat did he say?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat was good.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAnything else?\u201d<\/p>\n
Brenda paused.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe asked whether Nora knew.\u201d<\/p>\n
A cold line ran down my back.<\/p>\n
\u201cHow does he know me?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe always knew who you were.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy ask now?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI don't know.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhere are you?\u201d<\/p>\n
Gavin asked.<\/p>\n
Brenda refused again.<\/p>\n
\u201cTell me you're safe.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI am.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAre you with Daniel?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWith anyone?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBrenda.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI'm safe.\u201d<\/p>\n
Gavin stood.<\/p>\n
\u201cCome home.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
His face tightened.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause I don't know what Daniel knows about the house.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThen come somewhere else.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI can't.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou can.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo, Gavin.\u201d<\/p>\n
Her voice broke.<\/p>\n
\u201cI left because I need to give you something.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cProof.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cOf what?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat Daniel created Larkspur.\u201d<\/p>\n
Celia leaned forward.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou have that?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThen bring it here.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI can't.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause it isn't with me.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhere?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAt Daniel's old office.\u201d<\/p>\n
Gavin stared at the phone.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat building was sold years ago.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI know.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThen how?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe kept a private records room in the basement.\u201d<\/p>\n
Ethan spoke.<\/p>\n
\u201cHow do you know it still exists?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause I put something there six years ago.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n
Brenda breathed in.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe original authorization file for Larkspur.\u201d<\/p>\n
Gavin froze.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou had proof for six years?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI had a copy.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd never told me?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI tried.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThe night you told me leaving Nora was the best decision you'd ever made.\u201d<\/p>\n
I felt my chest tighten.<\/p>\n
The phrase from the wedding.<\/p>\n
Apparently Gavin had used it before.<\/p>\n
Brenda continued.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou were drunk. You said Marcus was gone, the lawsuit was settling, and you were done looking backward.\u201d<\/p>\n
Gavin stared at nothing.<\/p>\n
\u201cSo you stopped.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
He nodded slowly.<\/p>\n
That answer hurt him more than anger would have.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat now?\u201d I asked.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m going to get the file.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
She went quiet.<\/p>\n
\u201cNo?\u201d Brenda asked.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou said Daniel called you.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe may expect you to go there.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cMaybe.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSo don't.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI need the document.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWe need you not to do something stupid.\u201d<\/p>\n
She gave a weak laugh.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat sounds strange coming from you.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI have experience.\u201d<\/p>\n
Even Ethan smiled at that.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhere is the office?\u201d I asked.<\/p>\n
Brenda told us.<\/p>\n
Gavin recognized the address.<\/p>\n
A vacant professional building near Pascagoula.<\/p>\n
Celia stood.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe should call police.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes,\u201d I said.<\/p>\n
Brenda immediately objected.<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause I don't know which documents Daniel used during the restructuring.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat isn't a reason.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIf he implicated anyone else, the police showing up might trigger him.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe already broke into Celia\u2019s house.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWe don't know that.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWho else knew about the files?\u201d<\/p>\n
Silence.<\/p>\n
Then Brenda said, \u201cOne other person.\u201d<\/p>\n
Gavin closed his eyes.<\/p>\n
\u201cWho?\u201d<\/p>\n
She hesitated.<\/p>\n
\u201cYour former chief financial officer.\u201d<\/p>\n
Gavin looked up.<\/p>\n
\u201cThomas?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThomas Bell?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
Gavin laughed once.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat is impossible.\u201d<\/p>\n
The same phrase I had used about my mother.<\/p>\n
Nothing was impossible anymore.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy would Thomas know?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause he signed some of Daniel\u2019s restructuring documents.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThomas left the company years ago.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI know.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhere is he now?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI don't know.\u201d<\/p>\n
Celia was already searching.<\/p>\n
Then she stopped.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe isn't hard to find.\u201d<\/p>\n
She turned the phone toward us.<\/p>\n
An obituary.<\/p>\n
Thomas Bell.<\/p>\n
Died eleven months earlier.<\/p>\n
Age fifty-eight.<\/p>\n
Gavin stared.<\/p>\n
\u201cHow?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cCar accident.\u201d<\/p>\n
Nobody spoke.<\/p>\n
I looked at the photograph.<\/p>\n
A stranger to me.<\/p>\n
Not to Gavin.<\/p>\n
Another person in the story who could no longer answer questions.<\/p>\n
Brenda whispered through the phone.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat changes things.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI thought Thomas was alive.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSo?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSo Daniel told me yesterday that Thomas had contacted him.\u201d<\/p>\n
Gavin leaned forward.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat is not possible.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
Brenda's voice became very quiet.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhich means Daniel wanted me to believe someone dead was talking.\u201d<\/p>\n
Nobody spoke. Even Gavin, who had spent years beside Brenda, looked as if he had been introduced to a stranger. \u201cYour uncle.\u201d His voice was flat. \u201cYes.\u201d \u201cDaniel Reeves is … <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":3803,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3814","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-feel-every-story"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/feeleverystory.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3814","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/feeleverystory.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/feeleverystory.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/feeleverystory.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/feeleverystory.online\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=3814"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/feeleverystory.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3814\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3849,"href":"https:\/\/feeleverystory.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3814\/revisions\/3849"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/feeleverystory.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/3803"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/feeleverystory.online\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=3814"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/feeleverystory.online\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=3814"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/feeleverystory.online\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=3814"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}