{"id":16821,"date":"2026-09-22T15:49:16","date_gmt":"2026-09-22T15:49:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/?p=16821"},"modified":"2026-09-22T15:49:16","modified_gmt":"2026-09-22T15:49:16","slug":"part-23-the-identity-behind-sterling-two-forced-eleanor-to-admit-her-own-connection-to-voss-and-reopened-the-oldest-wound-in-the-family","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/?p=16821","title":{"rendered":"PART 23 \u2013 The Identity Behind \u201cSterling Two\u201d Forced Eleanor to Admit Her Own Connection to Voss\u2014and Reopened the Oldest Wound in the Family"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Eleanor did not deny it.<\/p>\n<p>That frightened Luna more than denial would have.<\/p>\n<p>We returned to Denver after midnight under federal escort. Voss remained in joint custody. Pike went into protective care. Crane survived surgery and was placed under guard pending questioning.<\/p>\n<p>Eleanor waited for us in a secure conference room at Sterling headquarters.<\/p>\n<p>Derek sat beside her.<\/p>\n<p>When Luna placed the copied frequency log on the table and pointed to S-2, Eleanor closed her eyes.<\/p>\n<p>Derek looked between them.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat is that?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Luna\u2019s voice was quiet.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cSterling Two.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cSo?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt appears in intelligence communications connected to Voss before he ever worked for Dad.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Derek frowned.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThat\u2019s impossible.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Eleanor opened her eyes.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Everyone looked at her.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt isn\u2019t.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Luna sat slowly.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou know what it means.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWho?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Eleanor looked at Richard\u2019s children.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMe.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Silence.<\/p>\n<p>Derek laughed.<\/p>\n<p>Not because he doubted her.<\/p>\n<p>Because the answer was absurd.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMother, you were raising two children in Denver.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI was also married to a man building a company with more ambition than judgment.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Luna\u2019s face tightened.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat did you do?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Eleanor folded her hands.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cRichard first encountered Voss through me.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>That rearranged everything.<\/p>\n<p>Thomas stood near the wall.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou knew Graham before Sterling.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHow?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMy brother.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Luna frowned.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cUncle Peter?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Peter Hale had died before Luna was born. At least that was what she had been told.<\/p>\n<p>Eleanor continued.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMy brother worked overseas. Private logistics. Government contracts.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Thomas\u2019s face changed.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat unit?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe never told me.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cDid he know Crane?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI believe so.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Reyes leaned forward.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cStart at the beginning.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Eleanor looked at Luna.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhen Richard and I were young, Sterling barely existed. Your father was talented, ambitious, and permanently short of money.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThat sounds familiar,\u201d Derek muttered.<\/p>\n<p>Eleanor ignored him.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cPeter offered introductions. Clients. Government-adjacent work.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cTo Richard?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThrough Voss?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cEventually.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Thomas said, \u201cPeter Hale.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>He repeated the name as though testing a memory.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI knew him.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Eleanor stared.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNot well.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhere?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cKandahar.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The room changed again.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe was there?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Eleanor\u2019s face drained.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe told me he was in Germany.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>She covered her mouth.<\/p>\n<p>Thomas looked toward Reyes.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cPeter was part of the contracting network.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cDoing what?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cProcurement.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Eleanor whispered, \u201cOh God.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Thomas continued carefully.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI never knew he was your brother.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhy would you?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat happened to him?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Eleanor looked away.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe died in an accident.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Thomas\u2019s expression said otherwise.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat kind?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cCar crash.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhen?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cTwo months after Farid died.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Reyes immediately started typing.<\/p>\n<p>Thomas sat.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThat wasn\u2019t an accident.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Eleanor stared.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou don\u2019t know that.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cBut?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cVoss eliminated people who knew too much.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Eleanor\u2019s eyes filled.<\/p>\n<p>For all the revelations we had endured, this one seemed to break through something deeper.<\/p>\n<p>She had spent decades believing one history.<\/p>\n<p>Now it had shifted beneath her.<\/p>\n<p>Luna said softly, \u201cMother.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Eleanor shook her head.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI brought Voss to Richard.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHow?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cPeter told me Voss could help with security and sensitive corporate research.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhen?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAfter Peter died.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Thomas closed his eyes.<\/p>\n<p>Voss had removed her brother, then allowed her to recommend him to Richard.<\/p>\n<p>Cold.<\/p>\n<p>Efficient.<\/p>\n<p>Exactly his pattern.<\/p>\n<p>Eleanor continued.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI introduced them.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Derek stared.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAnd Sterling Two?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMy code.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cFor what?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cCommunications.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat kind?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI passed messages between Peter and Richard before Peter died.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Reyes asked, \u201cDid you ever transmit intelligence names?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cFinancial information?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cSometimes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat did you believe you were sending?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cContract bids. Supplier information. Security updates.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Thomas asked, \u201cDid Voss ever ask you to forward lists?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Eleanor went still.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHow many?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI don\u2019t remember.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat kind of lists?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNames.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>My stomach tightened.<\/p>\n<p>Luna whispered, \u201cInformants?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Eleanor sounded horrified.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI thought they were local contractors.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Thomas\u2019s face hardened.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cFarid\u2019s network included local contractors.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Eleanor began shaking.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cEleanor.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Thomas did not soften it.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou may have transmitted names Voss later sold.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>She stood so quickly the chair hit the wall.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Derek moved toward her.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMom.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>She shoved his hand away.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI did not know.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Nobody accused her of knowing.<\/p>\n<p>That was the tragedy.<\/p>\n<p>Once again, someone had done something they believed small.<\/p>\n<p>Voss had turned it into something enormous.<\/p>\n<p>Eleanor paced.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cPeter told me the lists were for vetting.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Thomas said, \u201cThey probably were, initially.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat does that mean?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cVoss always started with legitimate access.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Luna sat motionless.<\/p>\n<p>I could see what she was doing.<\/p>\n<p>Revisiting childhood.<\/p>\n<p>Her father.<\/p>\n<p>Her mother.<\/p>\n<p>The company.<\/p>\n<p>Trying to decide whether any part of it had ever been clean.<\/p>\n<p>I touched her hand under the table.<\/p>\n<p>She held mine immediately.<\/p>\n<p>Eleanor saw.<\/p>\n<p>Her expression changed.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cLuna.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI am sorry.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cFor what specifically?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The question was not cruel.<\/p>\n<p>It was tired.<\/p>\n<p>Eleanor closed her eyes.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cFor making secrecy feel normal.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Luna stared.<\/p>\n<p>Her mother continued.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYour father and I believed privacy was protection. Then privacy became withholding. Withholding became habit.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Derek sat.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cSo everyone in this family lied professionally.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Eleanor almost smiled.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThat explains childhood.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Luna gave him a look.<\/p>\n<p>He raised his hands.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cBad timing.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Reyes returned to the code.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhy S-2?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cRichard was S-1.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Luna froze.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Eleanor nodded.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cSterling One.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Thomas leaned forward.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cSo Richard was involved earlier than we knew.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHow early?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cBefore he hired Voss formally.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The final pieces connected.<\/p>\n<p>Richard had not simply inherited Voss as a security contractor.<\/p>\n<p>He had benefited from the same network.<\/p>\n<p>Maybe unknowingly at first.<\/p>\n<p>Maybe knowingly later.<\/p>\n<p>Luna whispered, \u201cHe lied in the archive.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Eleanor looked at her.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNot completely.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe wrote as if his involvement began after Thomas discovered Voss.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe was ashamed.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThat is not an excuse.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou knew.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cSome.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHow much?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cEnough to understand why he hated himself near the end.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Luna stood.<\/p>\n<p>I expected anger.<\/p>\n<p>Instead she looked exhausted beyond it.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cEvery time I think I have reached the bottom, somebody opens another floor.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>I stood too.<\/p>\n<p>She turned toward the window.<\/p>\n<p>Derek said quietly, \u201cLuna.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>She did not answer.<\/p>\n<p>He walked over.<\/p>\n<p>For once, he did not touch her.<\/p>\n<p>He simply stood beside her.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe don\u2019t have to defend him.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>That got her attention.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cOur father.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI know.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI spent my whole life trying to beat you because I thought he chose you.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Luna looked at him.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAnd I spent mine trying to become someone he would trust.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Derek laughed bitterly.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMaybe neither of us understood the prize.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>They stood together in silence.<\/p>\n<p>Two children who had spent years competing for approval from a man who had buried half his own history.<\/p>\n<p>Then Reyes\u2019s phone rang.<\/p>\n<p>She answered.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cReyes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Her expression changed.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat did he say?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Everyone turned.<\/p>\n<p>She listened.<\/p>\n<p>Then looked at Eleanor.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cJudge Crane is awake.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Thomas stiffened.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cTalking?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat did he say?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe asked for immunity.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Reyes almost smiled.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cDenied.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Derek said, \u201cGood.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe offered cooperation anyway.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhy?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cBecause Voss has lost leverage.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Thomas nodded.<\/p>\n<p>That made sense.<\/p>\n<p>Once secrets became public, blackmail died.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat can he give us?\u201d Luna asked.<\/p>\n<p>Reyes looked at her.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cA complete account of the Afghanistan operation.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAnd Farid?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAnd Richard?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cCrane says Voss admitted years ago that he deliberately withheld Richard\u2019s medication.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Luna closed her eyes.<\/p>\n<p>There it was.<\/p>\n<p>Confirmation.<\/p>\n<p>Not suspicion.<\/p>\n<p>Not inference.<\/p>\n<p>Voss had watched Richard suffer and chosen not to help.<\/p>\n<p>Thomas lowered his head.<\/p>\n<p>I felt anger toward him again.<\/p>\n<p>But it had changed.<\/p>\n<p>He had made a terrible choice.<\/p>\n<p>Voss had made the final one.<\/p>\n<p>Luna asked, \u201cWill Crane testify?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIf prosecutors make an agreement.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat kind?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cReduced charges.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Derek said, \u201cHe deserves prison.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Reyes looked at him.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe will almost certainly get it.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHow much?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThat is not my decision.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Luna asked, \u201cWhat about Voss?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cBetween the Sterling evidence, the transport escape, Naomi\u2019s assault conspiracy, attempted homicide, the hostage situation, Pike, Crane, and the Kandahar recording?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Reyes paused.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe is not walking away.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>For the first time, Thomas looked relieved.<\/p>\n<p>Then Reyes added, \u201cAssuming nothing else surfaces.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>We all stared.<\/p>\n<p>She lifted both hands.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI regret phrasing it that way.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Naomi entered carrying folders.<\/p>\n<p>Bandage gone now, though bruising remained.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cSorry to interrupt the family reckoning.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cPlease,\u201d Derek said. \u201cInterrupt frequently.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>She placed the folders in front of Luna.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe independent trustee issued its ruling.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The trust.<\/p>\n<p>With everything else, I had nearly forgotten.<\/p>\n<p>Luna opened the letter.<\/p>\n<p>Thomas stood behind her.<\/p>\n<p>The independent review concluded that her voluntary disclosure met Richard\u2019s condition.<\/p>\n<p>The controlling shares remained permanently with Luna.<\/p>\n<p>No marriage requirement.<\/p>\n<p>No transfer to Derek.<\/p>\n<p>No deadline.<\/p>\n<p>Derek read the page.<\/p>\n<p>Then smiled.<\/p>\n<p>Actually smiled.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cCongratulations.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Luna looked at him suspiciously.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou mean that?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou spent three years trying to take them.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI know.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat changed?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>He looked toward Eleanor.<\/p>\n<p>Then the records.<\/p>\n<p>Then me.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cEverything.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Luna studied him.<\/p>\n<p>He shrugged.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI still think I would have been a better CEO.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cLet me keep one delusion.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>She almost laughed.<\/p>\n<p>Naomi handed me another envelope.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThis is yours.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMartin sent it.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>I opened it.<\/p>\n<p>Our marriage contract.<\/p>\n<p>Annotated.<\/p>\n<p>The trust condition had ended.<\/p>\n<p>The twelve-month marriage was no longer necessary.<\/p>\n<p>The agreement could be terminated immediately by mutual consent.<\/p>\n<p>Luna saw.<\/p>\n<p>Nobody else needed explanation.<\/p>\n<p>She looked at me.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThat\u2019s convenient.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cExtremely.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Derek looked between us.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Naomi said, \u201cLegal housekeeping.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Eleanor smiled faintly.<\/p>\n<p>I folded the document.<\/p>\n<p>Luna\u2019s eyes followed.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat are you going to do with it?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>I looked at the contract that had started everything.<\/p>\n<p>Mom\u2019s surgery.<\/p>\n<p>The penthouse.<\/p>\n<p>The cameras.<\/p>\n<p>Blackwood.<\/p>\n<p>The kiss.<\/p>\n<p>The impossible sequence of truths.<\/p>\n<p>Then I tore it in half.<\/p>\n<p>Naomi gasped.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThat was a signed original.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMartin has copies.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThank God.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Luna stared.<\/p>\n<p>I tore it again.<\/p>\n<p>Then placed the pieces on the table.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNo expiration date.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Her eyes filled.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThat is not legally precise.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou wanted romance.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI did not say that.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou implied.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Derek said, \u201cThis is painful.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cLeave,\u201d Luna told him.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>I took her hand.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe\u2019ll write a new agreement.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat terms?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHonesty.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAmbitious.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cSeparate finances.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cReasonable.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cShared kitchen.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNegotiable.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYour coffee is terrible.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThat is defamatory.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cSeparate bedrooms?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Her eyebrow rose.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThat clause may require substantial revision.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Derek covered his ears.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI regret staying.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Luna laughed.<\/p>\n<p>Then she kissed me in front of everyone.<\/p>\n<p>No performance.<\/p>\n<p>No cameras.<\/p>\n<p>No board requirement.<\/p>\n<p>When she pulled away, Naomi said, \u201cI would like advance notice before future workplace romance develops into legal restructuring.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou\u2019ll be the first to know,\u201d I said.<\/p>\n<p>Then Reyes\u2019s phone rang again.<\/p>\n<p>We all stared at her.<\/p>\n<p>She looked at the screen.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cRelax.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Nobody relaxed.<\/p>\n<p>She answered.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>A pause.<\/p>\n<p>Then her face changed.<\/p>\n<p>Not alarm.<\/p>\n<p>Something else.<\/p>\n<p>Surprise.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAre you sure?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Thomas stepped closer.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Reyes ended the call.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cVoss asked to speak with Adam.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Everyone turned toward me.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNo,\u201d Luna said immediately.<\/p>\n<p>Reyes looked at me.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe claims it concerns Thomas.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Thomas shook his head.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cDo not go.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>I thought of every warning.<\/p>\n<p>Every trap.<\/p>\n<p>Every time Voss used uncertainty to make people isolate themselves.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat exactly did he say?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Reyes checked her notes.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe said: \u2018Tell Adam his father still doesn\u2019t know why Richard chose him.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Thomas went pale.<\/p>\n<p>I stared.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cChose me for what?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Thomas had no answer.<\/p>\n<p>And somehow, even with Voss behind bars, he had found one last secret capable of opening the room again.<\/p>\n<hr>\n<h2><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/?p=16822\">Click here to continue reading: PART 24: Voss\u2019s Last Secret About Why Richard Chose Me Forced Thomas to Tell the Truth He Had Been Protecting From Both Families<\/a><\/strong><\/h2>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Eleanor did not deny it. That frightened Luna more than denial would have. We returned to Denver after midnight under federal escort. Voss remained in joint custody. 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