“I wasn't following Matthew.”
Henry's words seemed to hang in the dusty room.
I stared at him.
“Then who were you following?”
“Victor.”
Daniel folded his arms.
“He knows what happened.”
Henry looked at him sharply.
“Don't do this.”
“You've already kept her in the dark for two years.”
I turned toward Henry.
“What does he mean?”
Henry didn't answer.
I stepped closer.
“Why were you following Victor?”
He looked down at the floor.
“Because Matthew asked me to.”
The answer stunned me.
“Matthew asked you?”
“Yes.”
“When?”
“The week before the accident.”
Daniel shook his head.
“Tell her everything.”
Henry rubbed a hand over his face.
“Matthew contacted me because I had access to information about Victor.”
I frowned.
“How?”
“I worked with a company that handled security records for several businesses. Victor's movements appeared in some of those records.”
“You knew him?”
“Not personally.”
“Then why did Matthew come to you?”
“Because Daniel had already warned him.”
Daniel nodded.
“Matthew needed someone outside the family.”
Henry looked at me.
“He thought I could help him confirm whether Victor was following him.”
The memory of the dark sedan returned.
The photographs.
The repeated sightings.
The note Matthew had left.
Ask about the sedan.
“You followed Victor,” I said.
“Yes.”
“On the day Matthew died?”
Henry nodded.
“I had been watching him for several days.”
“Why didn't you tell me?”
“I didn't know how.”
“That isn't an answer.”
He swallowed.
“Because I was there when it happened.”
I stared at him.
He continued.
“Victor drove the sedan. I followed him from a distance. I didn't know where he was going. I thought he might be meeting someone.”
“And then?”
“I saw Matthew's car.”
My heart tightened.
“You knew it was him?”
“Yes.”
“What happened?”
Henry looked toward Daniel.
Daniel gave a slight nod.
Henry took a breath.
“Victor's car passed Matthew. Then it slowed.”
I felt cold.
“Why?”
“I don't know.”
“You followed them?”
“Yes.”
“Then the truck appeared.”
“Yes.”
“And you said you were too far away.”
“I was.”
Henry's voice became quieter.
“I saw Victor pull over after the crash.”
I stared.
“What?”
“He stopped.”
Daniel looked at me.
“That is why we know it wasn't simply an accident.”
Henry nodded.
“Victor got out.”
“What did he do?”
“He looked toward Matthew's car.”
“Did he help?”
“No.”
The word was flat.
“He made a phone call.”
I felt sick.
“Who did he call?”
“I couldn't hear.”
“Then what?”
“He left.”
I stared at Henry.
“You watched him leave?”
“Yes.”
“And you stayed?”
“I went after the truck driver.”
“Why?”
“Because Victor was gone, and the driver was trying to escape.”
I understood then why Henry had found him.
He had been trying to keep the driver from disappearing.
But one question remained.
“Why didn't you tell the police that Victor was there?”
Henry's eyes filled.
“I did.”
“You said you gave a statement.”
“I gave a statement about the driver.”
“Not Victor?”
“I mentioned seeing a dark sedan.”
“That's not the same.”
“No.”
I stepped away.
“You knew Victor might have been involved.”
“I suspected.”
“And you said nothing.”
“I had no proof.”
Daniel interrupted.
“You had more than I did.”
Henry turned on him.
“And you disappeared.”
“I had to.”
“You left Matthew alone with this.”
“I was trying to get the evidence.”
The argument stopped me.
Daniel looked at me.
“After the accident, I went after the financial records.”
“Why?”
“Because I knew Victor would destroy them.”
“And did he?”
“Some.”
I looked at the memory card on the desk.
“What is on that?”
Daniel finally handed it to me.
“A recording Matthew made.”
I held it carefully.
“What does it prove?”
“That Victor was planning something.”
Henry stared at the card.
“Did Matthew make that recording before the accident?”
“Yes.”
“Where did he get it?”
“From Victor's office.”
I looked at Daniel.
“How?”
“Matthew had copied files.”
I felt my stomach tighten.
“What kind of files?”
“Payments.”
“To whom?”
“People connected to the company.”
“And the truck driver?”
Daniel nodded.
“His name appears in the records.”
The room seemed to become colder.
I looked at Henry.
“Did you know that?”
“I suspected.”
“Again.”
He lowered his head.
“I know.”
I turned away.
Every answer seemed to reveal another layer.
Then Daniel said something that stopped me.
“The driver wasn't supposed to kill Matthew.”
I turned back.
“What?”
“He was told to frighten him.”
“By Victor?”
“Yes.”
“Then how did Matthew die?”
Daniel's face hardened.
“Because someone changed the plan.”
Henry looked at him.
“You never proved that.”
“No.”
“Then don't tell her as if it's fact.”
Daniel ignored him.
“Victor wanted Matthew to hand over the documents.”
I asked, “And when he refused?”
“He arranged the truck.”
“Then who changed the plan?”
Daniel shook his head.
“I don't know.”
Silence followed.
I looked at the memory card.
“Then what does this recording prove?”
Daniel said, “Listen to it.”
Henry immediately said, “Not here.”
I looked at him.
“Why?”
“Because if the recording is what I think it is, you need to hear it somewhere safe.”
The police were waiting nearby.
We took the card to the station.
An officer copied the contents before playing them.
The first file was audio.
Static.
Then Matthew's voice.
My heart nearly stopped.
He sounded calm.
He said that he had found evidence connecting Victor to the family company's missing money.
Then another voice appeared.
Victor.
The recording was incomplete, but enough could be heard to establish that Victor knew Matthew had documents.
Then came a sentence that made everyone in the room go silent.
“You don't understand what happens if you go to the police.”
Matthew answered, “I'm not afraid of you.”
Victor replied, “You should be.”
The recording ended.
I stared at the screen.
The officer looked at Daniel.
“This is significant.”
Daniel nodded.
But I noticed Henry wasn't looking at the recording.
He was looking at me.
“What?” I asked.
He shook his head.
“Nothing.”
I knew that expression.
“There is something else.”
He hesitated.
“Yes.”
“Tell me.”
Henry swallowed.
“Victor wasn't the only person Matthew recorded.”
I felt my pulse quicken.
“Who else?”
Henry didn't answer.
Daniel did.
“Your father.”
I stared at him.
“My father?”
Daniel nodded.
“Your biological father.”
I couldn't move.
Henry looked at Daniel with alarm.
Daniel said quietly, “That's the part Matthew never told you.”
Click Here to continue read next: PART10: Daniel’s Revelation About My Family Forced Me to Question Why Matthew Had Protected Me From the Truth Even Before His Death
The Promise I Made to a Grieving Woman Followed Me Into a New Marriage, But I Never Expected the Past to Wait Behind Our Door
Part 9 of 16
