Derek did not touch the envelope at first.<\/p>\n
The bank\u2019s private viewing room felt smaller than it had a minute earlier. Pale walls. Frosted glass. A rectangular table bolted to the floor. Four chairs. A camera mounted high in one corner, angled deliberately away from the documents spread before them.<\/p>\n
On the table sat the metal box that had survived eight years of bank transfers, mergers, storage relocations and attempted access.<\/p>\n
Inside it, Thomas Hale had left three folders, a cassette tape, a handwritten ledger and the envelope bearing two intended recipients.<\/p>\n
Derek.<\/p>\n
And Martin Bennett\u2019s daughter.<\/p>\n
Olivia.<\/p>\n
She stood at the opposite end of the table with one hand covering her mouth.<\/p>\n
Rebecca was the first to move.<\/p>\n
\u201cBefore anyone opens anything, we document the contents exactly as found.\u201d<\/p>\n
Lieutenant Harris nodded.<\/p>\n
Photographs were taken.<\/p>\n
Folder positions.<\/p>\n
Tape.<\/p>\n
Ledger.<\/p>\n
Envelope.<\/p>\n
Derek waited through every photograph without complaint.<\/p>\n
That alone would have been unremarkable to anyone except Olivia.<\/p>\n
A week earlier, he would have torn open the letter first and dealt with procedure later.<\/p>\n
Today he kept his hands off it until Harris finished.<\/p>\n
\u201cOkay,\u201d the lieutenant said.<\/p>\n
Derek reached for the envelope.<\/p>\n
His father\u2019s handwriting looked unmistakable up close.<\/p>\n
FOR DEREK \u2014 AND FOR MARTIN BENNETT\u2019S DAUGHTER, IF SHE EVER NEEDS THE TRUTH.<\/p>\n
Derek looked at Olivia.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou should open it.\u201d<\/p>\n
She shook her head.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt says your name first.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat doesn\u2019t mean\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cOpen it.\u201d<\/p>\n
His fingers slid beneath the flap.<\/p>\n
The adhesive had long since weakened.<\/p>\n
Inside were nine handwritten pages.<\/p>\n
Derek unfolded them carefully.<\/p>\n
The first line was addressed to him.<\/p>\n
Son,<\/p>\n
If you are reading this from the bank box, then I did at least one thing correctly.<\/p>\n
Derek stopped.<\/p>\n
Thomas had always written like he spoke.<\/p>\n
Direct.<\/p>\n
Dry.<\/p>\n
Without decoration.<\/p>\n
The familiarity hurt more than sentiment would have.<\/p>\n
He continued.<\/p>\n
Thomas explained that he had hired Martin Bennett after discovering financial transactions he could not reconcile.<\/p>\n
At first, he had believed Marjorie was simply hiding debt.<\/p>\n
Credit cards.<\/p>\n
Personal loans.<\/p>\n
Cash advances.<\/p>\n
Then Martin found accounts opened using information Thomas did not remember authorizing.<\/p>\n
One used Thomas\u2019s identity.<\/p>\n
Another used a business tax number.<\/p>\n
A third was linked indirectly to Derek.<\/p>\n
Derek looked up.<\/p>\n
\u201cHow old was I?\u201d<\/p>\n
Rebecca checked the dates on the attached papers.<\/p>\n
\u201cTwenty-three.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI barely had credit then.\u201d<\/p>\n
Olivia\u2019s eyes narrowed.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat may have made you easier to use.\u201d<\/p>\n
Derek read on.<\/p>\n
Thomas admitted he had protected Marjorie for years.<\/p>\n
He paid debts privately.<\/p>\n
Covered overdrafts.<\/p>\n
Replaced missing money.<\/p>\n
Told friends mistakes had been clerical.<\/p>\n
He wrote that he had mistaken concealment for loyalty.<\/p>\n
Derek paused there.<\/p>\n
The sentence looked almost written for him.<\/p>\n
Olivia saw his expression.<\/p>\n
She said nothing.<\/p>\n
Thomas continued.<\/p>\n
Eventually, Marjorie\u2019s behavior changed from hiding debt to creating access.<\/p>\n
She wanted Thomas to refinance the house.<\/p>\n
He refused.<\/p>\n
She wanted him to guarantee one of her private loans.<\/p>\n
He refused.<\/p>\n
Then she began pressuring him to sign papers quickly, usually during arguments or moments of urgency.<\/p>\n
Thomas became suspicious.<\/p>\n
Martin reviewed several signatures.<\/p>\n
At least two appeared inconsistent.<\/p>\n
Rebecca leaned closer.<\/p>\n
\u201cSo Martin did confirm likely forgery.\u201d<\/p>\n
Harris corrected gently.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe documented inconsistencies. We still need the original comparison materials.\u201d<\/p>\n
Derek nodded.<\/p>\n
The old impatience barely stirred.<\/p>\n
The second page explained the trust.<\/p>\n
Thomas did not create it to punish Marjorie.<\/p>\n
He created it because he no longer trusted the house to remain unencumbered if she controlled every document after his death.<\/p>\n
The trust gave Derek a protected interest.<\/p>\n
Thomas intended to tell him in person.<\/p>\n
Marjorie discovered the plan first.<\/p>\n
According to the letter, she became furious.<\/p>\n
She accused him of preparing to abandon her.<\/p>\n
Thomas wrote that the accusation was not entirely wrong.<\/p>\n
He had begun planning a separation.<\/p>\n
Olivia lowered her eyes.<\/p>\n
Derek remembered his mother\u2019s call.<\/p>\n
Your father was going to leave me.<\/p>\n
At the time, it had sounded like another justification.<\/p>\n
Now it became documented fact.<\/p>\n
Thomas said Martin had urged him not to announce the separation until the financial records were secured.<\/p>\n
Martin believed some documents could disappear if Marjorie knew exactly what he had found.<\/p>\n
Derek glanced toward the box.<\/p>\n
\u201cShe did burn papers.\u201d<\/p>\n
Rebecca nodded.<\/p>\n
\u201cSo his concern was justified.\u201d<\/p>\n
The third page changed tone.<\/p>\n
Thomas wrote directly to Martin\u2019s daughter.<\/p>\n
He did not know her name.<\/p>\n
He had met her only once when she was very young.<\/p>\n
Olivia\u2019s breathing caught.<\/p>\n
Derek looked up.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou met my dad?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t remember.\u201d<\/p>\n
Thomas explained that Martin had once brought his daughter to the office because a babysitter canceled.<\/p>\n
The child spent twenty minutes drawing on scrap paper while the two men reviewed records.<\/p>\n
Olivia\u2019s eyes filled unexpectedly.<\/p>\n
\u201cMy father used to do that.\u201d<\/p>\n
Derek waited.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe\u2019d bring me when work ran late. Give me highlighters and old spreadsheets to draw on.\u201d<\/p>\n
A tiny smile appeared despite everything.<\/p>\n
\u201cI thought all fathers had offices full of colored calculators.\u201d<\/p>\n
Rebecca looked back at the letter.<\/p>\n
Thomas wrote that if Martin\u2019s daughter ever found herself dragged into the consequences of his family\u2019s finances, she deserved to know her father had acted honestly.<\/p>\n
Martin had not destroyed the Hale marriage.<\/p>\n
He had exposed what was already breaking it.<\/p>\n
Olivia turned away.<\/p>\n
Derek read the sentence twice.<\/p>\n
Marjorie had spent years blaming Martin Bennett.<\/p>\n
Thomas had anticipated that.<\/p>\n
And apparently feared the blame could someday reach Martin\u2019s daughter.<\/p>\n
\u201cHow did he know that?\u201d Derek asked.<\/p>\n
Olivia shook her head.<\/p>\n
\u201cMaybe he didn\u2019t.\u201d<\/p>\n
Rebecca pointed at the wording.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe says if she ever needs the truth. That sounds precautionary.\u201d<\/p>\n
Derek continued.<\/p>\n
The next pages concerned the ledger.<\/p>\n
Thomas wrote that Martin created it as a working index of suspicious transactions.<\/p>\n
Every entry corresponded to supporting documents in one of the folders.<\/p>\n
Thomas instructed Derek not to assume every transaction was illegal.<\/p>\n
Some might have legitimate explanations.<\/p>\n
Others did not.<\/p>\n
Harris gave an approving nod.<\/p>\n
\u201cYour father was careful too.\u201d<\/p>\n
Derek almost laughed.<\/p>\n
\u201cApparently I surrounded myself with careful people and learned nothing from any of them.\u201d<\/p>\n
Olivia looked at him.<\/p>\n
There was sadness in her face, but not contempt.<\/p>\n
Thomas identified several categories.<\/p>\n
Cash withdrawals.<\/p>\n
Credit applications.<\/p>\n
Asset transfers.<\/p>\n
Signature discrepancies.<\/p>\n
Private loans.<\/p>\n
A business entity Derek had never heard of.<\/p>\n
Cedar Ridge Holdings.<\/p>\n
Rebecca wrote the name down.<\/p>\n
\u201cDoes that mean anything to anyone?\u201d<\/p>\n
No one answered.<\/p>\n
The letter explained that Cedar Ridge had been used to route funds related to Marjorie.<\/p>\n
Thomas believed Leonard Voss was involved.<\/p>\n
Derek stared.<\/p>\n
\u201cVoss was there then?\u201d<\/p>\n
Rebecca looked through the old folders.<\/p>\n
\u201cApparently.\u201d<\/p>\n
That connection changed the scale of everything.<\/p>\n
Leonard Voss was not a recent helper Marjorie had hired during a financial crisis.<\/p>\n
He had been connected to her before Thomas died.<\/p>\n
Eight years earlier.<\/p>\n
Possibly longer.<\/p>\n
Derek\u2019s hands tightened on the pages.<\/p>\n
Thomas wrote that Voss presented himself as a private loan broker.<\/p>\n
Martin believed some loans had been structured deceptively.<\/p>\n
Thomas intended to take the evidence to an attorney, separate from Samuel Price.<\/p>\n
He had not yet decided whether to involve law enforcement.<\/p>\n
The letter then described the evening of his death.<\/p>\n
Derek stopped before reading it.<\/p>\n
The room became silent.<\/p>\n
He looked toward Harris.<\/p>\n
\u201cShould we record this?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWe already are.\u201d<\/p>\n
Derek nodded.<\/p>\n
Thomas wrote that he planned to meet Martin at 6:30 p.m.<\/p>\n
Martin would give him final copies of signature comparisons and account tracing.<\/p>\n
Afterward, Thomas planned to tell Marjorie he was leaving.<\/p>\n
He expected anger.<\/p>\n
He did not expect cooperation.<\/p>\n
He wrote one sentence that made Derek\u2019s throat tighten.<\/p>\n
If she threatens herself, me, the house, the money or the family name, I will not change course.<\/p>\n
Olivia\u2019s fingers tightened around the back of a chair.<\/p>\n
Derek continued.<\/p>\n
Thomas expected Marjorie to demand documents.<\/p>\n
He intended to refuse.<\/p>\n
If he became ill or unable to manage his affairs that night, he instructed Derek to contact Martin.<\/p>\n
Derek looked at Olivia.<\/p>\n
\u201cYour dad was his backup.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
But Martin died three years before Derek ever learned any of this.<\/p>\n
One safeguard after another had disappeared.<\/p>\n
Thomas.<\/p>\n
Martin.<\/p>\n
Samuel Price.<\/p>\n
The old bank.<\/p>\n
The firm.<\/p>\n
Time itself had nearly finished the job Marjorie began.<\/p>\n
Then Derek reached the final page.<\/p>\n
His father\u2019s writing became more uneven.<\/p>\n
The last section had apparently been added later.<\/p>\n
Different ink.<\/p>\n
Same handwriting.<\/p>\n
Thomas wrote that he had begun experiencing chest pressure earlier that week.<\/p>\n
He had not told Marjorie.<\/p>\n
He suspected stress.<\/p>\n
Martin urged him to see a doctor.<\/p>\n
If he experienced symptoms during the confrontation, he would seek medical care.<\/p>\n
Derek closed his eyes.<\/p>\n
\u201cSo he already knew something was wrong.\u201d<\/p>\n
Harris nodded.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat matters.\u201d<\/p>\n
Thomas\u2019s final instructions were clear.<\/p>\n
If his death was natural, Derek should not turn grief into accusation.<\/p>\n
If Marjorie lied about where he had been or what happened before his death, Derek should ask why.<\/p>\n
The distinction struck Derek harder than any accusation could have.<\/p>\n
Thomas had not accused Marjorie of killing him.<\/p>\n
He had anticipated that Derek might someday suspect it.<\/p>\n
And told him to resist certainty without evidence.<\/p>\n
Derek lowered the letter.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe knew me better than I knew him.\u201d<\/p>\n
Olivia stepped closer.<\/p>\n
\u201cNo. He knew grief.\u201d<\/p>\n
Derek looked at her.<\/p>\n
She continued softly.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe knew what uncertainty could do to someone.\u201d<\/p>\n
Rebecca opened the first folder.<\/p>\n
Inside were Martin Bennett\u2019s signature-comparison reports.<\/p>\n
Photocopies of Thomas\u2019s signatures.<\/p>\n
Loan documents.<\/p>\n
Annotations.<\/p>\n
Two applications were marked probable imitation.<\/p>\n
One was marked inconclusive.<\/p>\n
The handwriting on the analysis sheets belonged to Martin.<\/p>\n
Olivia touched the edge of one page.<\/p>\n
\u201cMy dad wrote this.\u201d<\/p>\n
Rebecca nodded.<\/p>\n
Martin\u2019s notes were precise.<\/p>\n
No dramatic language.<\/p>\n
No accusations.<\/p>\n
One signature lacked Thomas\u2019s usual pressure pattern.<\/p>\n
Another had unusual letter spacing.<\/p>\n
A third could not be reliably assessed from copies.<\/p>\n
Olivia read every word.<\/p>\n
Derek watched her carefully.<\/p>\n
This was no longer only his father\u2019s hidden history.<\/p>\n
It belonged to hers too.<\/p>\n
The second folder contained Cedar Ridge Holdings documents.<\/p>\n
The entity had been registered by Leonard Voss.<\/p>\n
Marjorie appeared repeatedly as an \u201cadvisor,\u201d though no formal ownership was listed.<\/p>\n
Several Hale-related payments had moved through Cedar Ridge.<\/p>\n
Thomas had circled one amount.<\/p>\n
$86,400.<\/p>\n
Derek frowned.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat was that?\u201d<\/p>\n
Rebecca checked the ledger.<\/p>\n
\u201cProperty-secured private loan.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAgainst the house?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAttempted against it.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDid it go through?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cPartially.\u201d<\/p>\n
Harris leaned in.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat does partially mean?\u201d<\/p>\n
Rebecca followed cross-references.<\/p>\n
\u201cFunds were disbursed before final title verification.\u201d<\/p>\n
Derek stared.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou can do that?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou can make many bad decisions when private money is involved.\u201d<\/p>\n
Olivia looked at another line.<\/p>\n
\u201cThen the loan was called?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat happened to the money?\u201d<\/p>\n
Rebecca turned the page.<\/p>\n
Most of it vanished through transfers.<\/p>\n
Some to creditors.<\/p>\n
Some to Marjorie.<\/p>\n
Some to Cedar Ridge.<\/p>\n
Derek looked toward the ledger.<\/p>\n
\u201cShe was already deep in this before Dad died.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
The third folder contained correspondence.<\/p>\n
Letters between Thomas and Martin.<\/p>\n
Thomas and Samuel Price.<\/p>\n
Thomas and an unnamed lender.<\/p>\n
One letter made Olivia stop.<\/p>\n
It was from Martin to Thomas.<\/p>\n
The date was the morning Thomas died.<\/p>\n
Thomas,<\/p>\n
I found the duplicate account you were worried about. Do not confront M. alone. Voss has more exposure here than we thought. I\u2019ll bring the ledger tonight.<\/p>\n
Olivia read it aloud once.<\/p>\n
Then again.<\/p>\n
Harris looked at Rebecca.<\/p>\n
\u201cMore exposure?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cFinancial exposure, likely.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cLikely,\u201d Harris repeated.<\/p>\n
They did not know yet.<\/p>\n
Derek looked at the cassette tape.<\/p>\n
\u201cMaybe that tells us.\u201d<\/p>\n
A bank employee supplied an old playback device from archival services.<\/p>\n
The cassette was marked with a date.<\/p>\n
The date Thomas died.<\/p>\n
Derek\u2019s palms became damp.<\/p>\n
Harris started recording separately.<\/p>\n
Rebecca inserted the cassette.<\/p>\n
Static filled the room.<\/p>\n
Then Martin Bennett\u2019s voice.<\/p>\n
Olivia covered her mouth.<\/p>\n
She had not heard her father speak in eleven years.<\/p>\n
The first sound he made was a quiet cough.<\/p>\n
Then:<\/p>\n
\u201cThomas, if you\u2019re recording this, put the machine somewhere steady.\u201d<\/p>\n
Thomas\u2019s voice answered.<\/p>\n
\u201cI am.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo, you\u2019re holding it.\u201d<\/p>\n
A soft thump.<\/p>\n
Fabric.<\/p>\n
Then Thomas:<\/p>\n
\u201cHappy?\u201d<\/p>\n
Martin replied, \u201cDeeply.\u201d<\/p>\n
Olivia laughed and cried at the same time.<\/p>\n
She turned away.<\/p>\n
Derek almost reached for her.<\/p>\n
He stopped.<\/p>\n
Rebecca handed Olivia a tissue.<\/p>\n
The recording continued.<\/p>\n
Martin explained what he had found.<\/p>\n
Cedar Ridge Holdings had received funds tied to loans using Thomas\u2019s information.<\/p>\n
Some documents contained questionable signatures.<\/p>\n
One application included Derek\u2019s personal information.<\/p>\n
Thomas swore.<\/p>\n
Derek flinched.<\/p>\n
He had rarely heard his father swear.<\/p>\n
Martin told him the most important discovery was not the loans.<\/p>\n
It was the ledger.<\/p>\n
Cedar Ridge maintained an internal accounting sheet separate from official statements.<\/p>\n
Payments marked with initials.<\/p>\n
One set repeated.<\/p>\n
M.H.<\/p>\n
Another:<\/p>\n
L.V.<\/p>\n
Then one more:<\/p>\n
S.P.<\/p>\n
Rebecca froze.<\/p>\n
\u201cSamuel Price?\u201d<\/p>\n
Harris raised a hand.<\/p>\n
\u201cCould be. Don\u2019t assume.\u201d<\/p>\n
The tape continued.<\/p>\n
Thomas apparently had the same reaction.<\/p>\n
\u201cPrice?\u201d<\/p>\n
Martin answered, \u201cI don\u2019t know yet.\u201d<\/p>\n
Thomas said Price had handled estate work for years.<\/p>\n
Martin warned him not to accuse anyone without confirming.<\/p>\n
Olivia looked toward Harris.<\/p>\n
\u201cMy father sounds like you.\u201d<\/p>\n
Harris gave the faintest smile.<\/p>\n
\u201cSmart man.\u201d<\/p>\n
Then Martin said something none of them expected.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere\u2019s another account, Thomas. It isn\u2019t under your name.\u201d<\/p>\n
Whose?<\/p>\n
\u201cDerek\u2019s.\u201d<\/p>\n
Derek went rigid.<\/p>\n
Martin explained that someone had created a custodial-style financial structure when Derek was younger.<\/p>\n
It contained money originally intended for education or future property.<\/p>\n
Thomas sounded stunned.<\/p>\n
He had never opened it.<\/p>\n
Martin believed Marjorie had.<\/p>\n
Derek stared at the table.<\/p>\n
\u201cHow old was I?\u201d<\/p>\n
Rebecca searched.<\/p>\n
\u201cSeventeen.\u201d<\/p>\n
The recording continued.<\/p>\n
Thomas\u2019s anger became unmistakable.<\/p>\n
Martin told him to stay calm.<\/p>\n
The account had been drained gradually.<\/p>\n
Not all at once.<\/p>\n
Transfers over several years.<\/p>\n
Some ended up covering Marjorie\u2019s debts.<\/p>\n
Some traveled through Cedar Ridge.<\/p>\n
Thomas said he would confront her immediately.<\/p>\n
Martin told him not to.<\/p>\n
\u201cGet your medical issue checked first. Then speak to her with someone else present.\u201d<\/p>\n
Thomas insisted he was fine.<\/p>\n
Martin said:<\/p>\n
\u201cYou\u2019ve been holding your chest for twenty minutes.\u201d<\/p>\n
Derek shut his eyes.<\/p>\n
His father had already been symptomatic before the clinic.<\/p>\n
That did not absolve anyone.<\/p>\n
But it changed the picture.<\/p>\n
Martin told Thomas the envelope contained copies of the account history, signature analysis and Cedar Ridge transfers.<\/p>\n
The envelope from the clinic.<\/p>\n
The papers Marjorie later admitted burning.<\/p>\n
Thomas asked whether Martin kept copies.<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
Olivia looked up.<\/p>\n
Rebecca stopped the cassette.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhere?\u201d<\/p>\n
They resumed.<\/p>\n
Martin said he had duplicates in his office and one off-site set.<\/p>\n
Thomas told him to keep them secure.<\/p>\n
Martin joked that his filing system was more reliable than Thomas\u2019s marriage.<\/p>\n
Thomas did not laugh.<\/p>\n
Then the conversation turned serious.<\/p>\n
Thomas said Marjorie knew he had been investigating.<\/p>\n
Martin asked how much she knew.<\/p>\n
Thomas answered:<\/p>\n
\u201cEnough to be scared.\u201d<\/p>\n
The tape clicked.<\/p>\n
End of side one.<\/p>\n
Rebecca turned it over.<\/p>\n
Before she pressed play, Harris\u2019s phone rang.<\/p>\n
He stepped into the hallway.<\/p>\n
Derek looked at Olivia.<\/p>\n
\u201cYour father kept copies.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIf they still exist.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhere would he put them?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t know.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDid he have storage?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cOffice?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cClosed after he died.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSafe?\u201d<\/p>\n
Olivia frowned.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe had a fireproof box.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhere?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cMy mother sold most of his office contents after he died.\u201d<\/p>\n
Derek watched her.<\/p>\n
\u201cWould she remember?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
Before they could continue, Harris returned.<\/p>\n
His expression had changed.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat happened?\u201d Rebecca asked.<\/p>\n
He closed the door.<\/p>\n
\u201cOfficers went to Marjorie Hale\u2019s residence.\u201d<\/p>\n
Derek stood.<\/p>\n
\u201cIs she there?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhere is she?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWe don\u2019t know.\u201d<\/p>\n
His chest tightened.<\/p>\n
\u201cDid she run?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWe don\u2019t know.\u201d<\/p>\n
Harris continued.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe house is not empty.\u201d<\/p>\n
Derek stared.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat does that mean?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cLeonard Voss is inside.\u201d<\/p>\n
Every person in the room went still.<\/p>\n
\u201cAlive?\u201d Derek asked.<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cArrested?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDetained for questioning.\u201d<\/p>\n
Derek\u2019s heart pounded.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhere\u2019s my mother?\u201d<\/p>\n
Harris looked directly at him.<\/p>\n
\u201cVoss claims he doesn\u2019t know.\u201d<\/p>\n
Derek laughed once without humor.<\/p>\n
\u201cOf course.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThere\u2019s more.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen officers entered, Voss was burning documents in the backyard.\u201d<\/p>\n
Olivia closed her eyes.<\/p>\n
Derek looked at the ledger.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat documents?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThey\u2019re being recovered.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAnything identifiable?\u201d<\/p>\n
Harris paused.<\/p>\n
\u201cOne page had a heading officers could still read.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n
The lieutenant answered.<\/p>\n
\u201cBennett Consulting.\u201d<\/p>\n
Olivia went completely still.<\/p>\n
Derek did not touch the envelope at first. The bank\u2019s private viewing room felt smaller than it had a minute earlier. Pale walls. Frosted glass. A rectangular table bolted to … <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":23100,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-23109","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-insightdrama"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/23109","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=23109"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/23109\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":23149,"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/23109\/revisions\/23149"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/23100"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=23109"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=23109"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=23109"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}