Rebecca survived the shot.<\/p>\n
The bullet passed through the upper shoulder without striking an artery.<\/p>\n
Paramedics treated her on the restaurant floor while police searched surrounding streets for Gregory Shaw.<\/p>\n
Daniel stood near booth seventeen.<\/p>\n
Again.<\/p>\n
Rebecca sat on a stretcher ten feet away.<\/p>\n
Her face was pale but composed.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou should go to a hospital.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI am.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou sound disappointed.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI dislike hospitals.\u201d<\/p>\n
Daniel glanced toward her.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat seems reasonable.\u201d<\/p>\n
She almost smiled.<\/p>\n
Police carried the founder ledger upstairs in an evidence case.<\/p>\n
The Continuity drive went separately.<\/p>\n
Nathan had been arrested.<\/p>\n
He shouted for a lawyer before officers even finished reading his rights.<\/p>\n
Rebecca watched him leave.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe always hated losing.\u201d<\/p>\n
Daniel said, \u201cSo do you.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat changed?\u201d<\/p>\n
Rebecca looked toward the empty dining room.<\/p>\n
\u201cI ran out of things worth winning.\u201d<\/p>\n
Daniel thought about that.<\/p>\n
Then Gregory\u2019s name returned.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy would Gregory shoot you?\u201d<\/p>\n
Rebecca\u2019s expression hardened.<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t know.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNathan recognized him.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDid you?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cOnly after Nathan said it.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou employed Gregory?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cContinuity?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNot directly.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHartwell?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe had old Hartwell clearance.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cMeridian?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cEdward used him.\u201d<\/p>\n
Daniel rubbed his forehead.<\/p>\n
\u201cEverybody used Gregory except apparently Gregory.\u201d<\/p>\n
Rebecca studied him.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat may be the point.\u201d<\/p>\n
Daniel looked over.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cPeople like Gregory survive systems by letting everyone assume they belong to somebody else.\u201d<\/p>\n
Richard approached.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe found the rifle.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhere?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAlley behind the restaurant.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cPrints?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cLikely wiped.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cCamera?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cTraffic footage caught a dark sedan.\u201d<\/p>\n
Daniel waited.<\/p>\n
Richard\u2019s face tightened.<\/p>\n
\u201cRegistered to Northbridge Advisory.\u201d<\/p>\n
Daniel laughed bitterly.<\/p>\n
\u201cBack to the beginning.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cMaybe.\u201d<\/p>\n
Marcus Reed entered from the kitchen.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe found something else.\u201d<\/p>\n
He handed Daniel a photograph recovered from the basement staircase.<\/p>\n
It had fallen from Gregory\u2019s coat during his escape.<\/p>\n
Old.<\/p>\n
Faded.<\/p>\n
Four men standing beside a cargo vessel.<\/p>\n
Daniel recognized his grandfather from family photographs.<\/p>\n
Beside him stood a younger man Daniel did not know.<\/p>\n
Edward, who had arrived under police escort to give a statement, saw the photograph.<\/p>\n
His face changed.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhere did you get that?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cGregory dropped it.\u201d<\/p>\n
Edward took it carefully.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s Samuel Shaw.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cGregory\u2019s father?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
Daniel looked at the ship.<\/p>\n
\u201cGrandfather\u2019s company.\u201d<\/p>\n
Edward nodded.<\/p>\n
\u201cSamuel worked for him.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat did he do?\u201d<\/p>\n
Edward hesitated.<\/p>\n
Rebecca answered from the stretcher.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe kept the real ledgers.\u201d<\/p>\n
Everyone turned.<\/p>\n
Edward stared at her.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou knew?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cOf course.\u201d<\/p>\n
Daniel looked between them.<\/p>\n
\u201cSamuel Shaw knew about the smuggling.\u201d<\/p>\n
Rebecca nodded.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe helped Father hide it.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat happened to him?\u201d<\/p>\n
Edward\u2019s face darkened.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe died.\u201d<\/p>\n
Daniel waited.<\/p>\n
\u201cHow?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cPrison.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cFor Grandfather\u2019s crimes?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
Daniel understood.<\/p>\n
\u201cGrandfather sacrificed him.\u201d<\/p>\n
Edward nodded.<\/p>\n
\u201cSamuel took the conviction. Father kept Mercer Shipping.\u201d<\/p>\n
Daniel looked at Gregory\u2019s father in the photograph.<\/p>\n
A man sent to prison so the Mercer family could survive.<\/p>\n
\u201cHow old was Gregory?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cTen.\u201d<\/p>\n
Rebecca whispered, \u201cEleven.\u201d<\/p>\n
Daniel stared at her.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou knew him.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNot then.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYears later.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDid he join Continuity because of his father?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI tried to recruit him.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDid he accept?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
Daniel frowned.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe hated all Mercers.\u201d<\/p>\n
Edward looked toward the door.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat explains some things.\u201d<\/p>\n
Daniel shook his head.<\/p>\n
\u201cNot enough.\u201d<\/p>\n
Gregory had recommended Vanessa.<\/p>\n
Buried complaints.<\/p>\n
Moved money.<\/p>\n
Copied Anna\u2019s files.<\/p>\n
Accessed Project Meridian.<\/p>\n
Carried founder materials.<\/p>\n
Now shot Rebecca.<\/p>\n
His actions looked chaotic only if they were assumed to serve one faction.<\/p>\n
Maybe they served one purpose instead.<\/p>\n
Destroy Mercer control.<\/p>\n
Daniel looked at Rebecca.<\/p>\n
\u201cDid Gregory know Anna?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHow well?\u201d<\/p>\n
Rebecca hesitated.<\/p>\n
Daniel noticed.<\/p>\n
\u201cHow well?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cShe met him privately several times.\u201d<\/p>\n
Edward looked surprised.<\/p>\n
Daniel\u2019s pulse quickened.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cShe was trying to understand Northbridge.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDid Gregory help her?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAt first.\u201d<\/p>\n
Daniel stared.<\/p>\n
Gregory had not merely been Anna\u2019s enemy.<\/p>\n
He had been a source.<\/p>\n
Richard said, \u201cThat might explain why Anna\u2019s notes sometimes referred to G.S. without accusation.\u201d<\/p>\n
Daniel looked at him.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou saw that?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIn one recovered index.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd didn\u2019t mention it?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWe had larger\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n
Daniel raised a hand.<\/p>\n
\u201cStop. I\u2019m tired of hearing why information could wait.\u201d<\/p>\n
Richard nodded.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou\u2019re right.\u201d<\/p>\n
Daniel looked at Rebecca.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat did Gregory tell Anna?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat Northbridge was being used to move Hartwell and Continuity money through Bellmont.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cTrue?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat else?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe told her about Cross.\u201d<\/p>\n
Daniel went still.<\/p>\n
\u201cGregory exposed Cross to Anna.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThen Cross knew.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cEventually.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDid Gregory know Cross planned to kill her?\u201d<\/p>\n
Rebecca shook her head.<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t know.\u201d<\/p>\n
Edward stared at the photograph.<\/p>\n
\u201cGregory may have been trying to destroy all of us.\u201d<\/p>\n
Daniel looked at him.<\/p>\n
\u201cWould you blame him?\u201d<\/p>\n
Edward\u2019s face tightened.<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
That answer mattered.<\/p>\n
Daniel\u2019s phone rang.<\/p>\n
Detective.<\/p>\n
Gregory\u2019s sedan had been found beneath an overpass.<\/p>\n
Empty.<\/p>\n
Inside was a laptop.<\/p>\n
Daniel and Richard reached the police command center twenty minutes later.<\/p>\n
Investigators had isolated the device.<\/p>\n
No password.<\/p>\n
No encryption.<\/p>\n
Almost as if Gregory wanted it found.<\/p>\n
One folder sat on the desktop.<\/p>\n
MERCER.<\/p>\n
Daniel opened it under supervision.<\/p>\n
Video.<\/p>\n
Gregory appeared.<\/p>\n
Recorded that afternoon.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf Daniel sees this, then either I\u2019m dead or I decided I\u2019m finished running errands for people who think family money makes history private.\u201d<\/p>\n
Daniel watched.<\/p>\n
Gregory looked exhausted.<\/p>\n
No suit jacket.<\/p>\n
Sleeves rolled.<\/p>\n
He continued.<\/p>\n
\u201cMy father died in prison for crimes committed by Arthur Mercer.\u201d<\/p>\n
Arthur.<\/p>\n
Daniel\u2019s grandfather.<\/p>\n
\u201cEdward knows.\u201d<\/p>\n
Edward stood behind Daniel.<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
Gregory continued.<\/p>\n
\u201cNathan knows.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cRebecca knows.\u201d<\/p>\n
She was at the hospital now.<\/p>\n
Daniel kept watching.<\/p>\n
\u201cThomas knows.\u201d<\/p>\n
Daniel felt another surge of anger.<\/p>\n
Of course Thomas knew.<\/p>\n
Gregory continued.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen I was twenty-eight, Edward offered me a job.\u201d<\/p>\n
Daniel looked at his father.<\/p>\n
Edward\u2019s expression was grim.<\/p>\n
\u201cI accepted because I wanted access.\u201d<\/p>\n
Gregory smiled without humor.<\/p>\n
\u201cI planned to destroy Bellmont.\u201d<\/p>\n
Daniel stared.<\/p>\n
\u201cThen I learned most employees had nothing to do with Arthur Mercer.\u201d<\/p>\n
Daniel leaned closer.<\/p>\n
\u201cSo I changed the plan.\u201d<\/p>\n
Gregory began collecting evidence instead.<\/p>\n
Hartwell.<\/p>\n
Meridian.<\/p>\n
Continuity.<\/p>\n
Northbridge.<\/p>\n
He served each faction enough to maintain access.<\/p>\n
He sabotaged none completely because doing so would reveal him.<\/p>\n
\u201cI thought if I gathered enough, I could expose all of them at once.\u201d<\/p>\n
Daniel whispered, \u201cAnna.\u201d<\/p>\n
Gregory\u2019s recorded face changed.<\/p>\n
\u201cThen Anna found me.\u201d<\/p>\n
Daniel\u2019s throat tightened.<\/p>\n
\u201cShe was the first Mercer who asked what my father\u2019s name was before asking what evidence I had.\u201d<\/p>\n
Edward looked down.<\/p>\n
Gregory continued.<\/p>\n
\u201cShe knew what Arthur did.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cShe apologized.\u201d<\/p>\n
Daniel closed his eyes.<\/p>\n
That sounded like Anna.<\/p>\n
\u201cI hated her for apologizing.\u201d<\/p>\n
Gregory almost smiled.<\/p>\n
\u201cThen I started helping her.\u201d<\/p>\n
The video shifted.<\/p>\n
Documents appeared.<\/p>\n
Gregory had provided Anna access to old shipping records.<\/p>\n
Hartwell payment routes.<\/p>\n
Cross\u2019s hidden lineage.<\/p>\n
Rebecca\u2019s surveillance structure.<\/p>\n
Nathan\u2019s succession plan.<\/p>\n
Daniel stared.<\/p>\n
Gregory had been one of Anna\u2019s most important sources.<\/p>\n
Then why bury complaints?<\/p>\n
Why Vanessa?<\/p>\n
Gregory answered without being asked.<\/p>\n
\u201cAfter Anna died, I stopped believing exposure would work.\u201d<\/p>\n
His expression hardened.<\/p>\n
\u201cI decided to let the systems consume each other.\u201d<\/p>\n
He recommended Vanessa because her aggressive revenue policies would attract complaints.<\/p>\n
He protected her just enough for those complaints to accumulate.<\/p>\n
Daniel stared.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou used her.\u201d<\/p>\n
Richard nodded.<\/p>\n
Gregory continued.<\/p>\n
\u201cI knew Daniel would eventually visit Bellmont House.\u201d<\/p>\n
Daniel felt cold.<\/p>\n
The restaurant confrontation had not been engineered in detail.<\/p>\n
But Gregory had created the conditions.<\/p>\n
Vanessa\u2019s behavior was her own.<\/p>\n
Her prejudice was real.<\/p>\n
Her retaliation was real.<\/p>\n
Yet Gregory had allowed it to continue because he expected the scandal to draw Daniel into the deeper audit.<\/p>\n
Daniel\u2019s anger rose.<\/p>\n
Employees had suffered because Gregory wanted a trigger.<\/p>\n
Customers had been humiliated because he wanted evidence.<\/p>\n
Again.<\/p>\n
People treated as pieces.<\/p>\n
Gregory said:<\/p>\n
\u201cThat was wrong.\u201d<\/p>\n
Daniel looked at the screen.<\/p>\n
\u201cI knew employees were being hurt and told myself the larger exposure mattered more.\u201d<\/p>\n
He paused.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnna would have hated that.\u201d<\/p>\n
Daniel whispered, \u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
Gregory continued.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen Daniel came to Bellmont House with Sophie, I knew I had gone too far.\u201d<\/p>\n
The photograph of Daniel and Sophie at booth seventeen had not come only from Eastbridge.<\/p>\n
Gregory had been watching too.<\/p>\n
\u201cI sent the first anonymous message.\u201d<\/p>\n
Daniel\u2019s pulse quickened.<\/p>\n
Don\u2019t trust anyone on your board.<\/p>\n
Gregory.<\/p>\n
\u201cI directed him to March 17.\u201d<\/p>\n
Daniel stared.<\/p>\n
Gregory had been guiding the investigation.<\/p>\n
\u201cI left the Meridian archive trail.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe wanted us to find it,\u201d Richard whispered.<\/p>\n
Gregory continued.<\/p>\n
\u201cI also sent the photograph of myself carrying the box.\u201d<\/p>\n
Daniel almost laughed.<\/p>\n
Every clue that seemed like accidental discovery had been deliberately exposed.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy run?\u201d Daniel asked the recording.<\/p>\n
Gregory answered moments later.<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause Cross realized what I was doing.\u201d<\/p>\n
He described fleeing after accessing Anna\u2019s files.<\/p>\n
He had taken the Project Meridian box to keep Cross from destroying it.<\/p>\n
He had not disappeared to hide guilt.<\/p>\n
He had disappeared because Cross was hunting him.<\/p>\n
Then Gregory said:<\/p>\n
\u201cRebecca is not innocent.\u201d<\/p>\n
Daniel watched.<\/p>\n
\u201cNathan is not innocent.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cEdward is not innocent.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNeither am I.\u201d<\/p>\n
A pause.<\/p>\n
\u201cBut Julian Cross killed Anna.\u201d<\/p>\n
Daniel\u2019s jaw tightened.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd there is one person still protecting him.\u201d<\/p>\n
Daniel leaned forward.<\/p>\n
Gregory\u2019s face became grim.<\/p>\n
\u201cEleanor Hart.\u201d<\/p>\n
Richard inhaled.<\/p>\n
Daniel stared.<\/p>\n
Eleanor.<\/p>\n
Hartwell.<\/p>\n
The woman who had appeared compromised, manipulated, frightened.<\/p>\n
Gregory continued.<\/p>\n
\u201cEleanor knew Cross was Nathan\u2019s son.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cShe knew about the termination protocol.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cShe saw it before Anna died.\u201d<\/p>\n
Daniel felt cold.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf she had warned Anna, Anna might still be alive.\u201d<\/p>\n
Edward whispered, \u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
Gregory continued.<\/p>\n
\u201cShe did not warn her because exposing Cross would have destroyed Hartwell\u2019s relationship with Continuity.\u201d<\/p>\n
Daniel\u2019s anger sharpened.<\/p>\n
Another person choosing the structure over a life.<\/p>\n
Then Gregory said something worse.<\/p>\n
\u201cAfter the crash, Eleanor altered the investigation.\u201d<\/p>\n
Daniel stared.<\/p>\n
\u201cShe paid the first mechanic.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cShe removed the original brake assembly.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cShe replaced it before police inspection.\u201d<\/p>\n
Richard swore.<\/p>\n
That explained why the official crash investigation found no obvious sabotage.<\/p>\n
Gregory continued.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe original brake assembly still exists.\u201d<\/p>\n
Daniel leaned forward.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhere?\u201d<\/p>\n
Gregory gave an address.<\/p>\n
A storage facility outside the city.<\/p>\n
Unit 118.<\/p>\n
Access code.<\/p>\n
Then:<\/p>\n
\u201cIf you want the physical evidence that proves Cross killed Anna, it\u2019s there.\u201d<\/p>\n
Daniel stood.<\/p>\n
The video continued.<\/p>\n
\u201cOne more thing.\u201d<\/p>\n
He stopped.<\/p>\n
Gregory looked directly into the camera.<\/p>\n
\u201cI shot Rebecca.\u201d<\/p>\n
Daniel stared.<\/p>\n
\u201cNot to kill her.\u201d<\/p>\n
Marcus Reed frowned.<\/p>\n
Gregory continued.<\/p>\n
\u201cI needed Nathan to believe I was still protecting his interests.\u201d<\/p>\n
Daniel understood.<\/p>\n
Gregory was still infiltrating.<\/p>\n
Still moving between sides.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy?\u201d<\/p>\n
The recording answered.<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause Nathan has a second archive.\u201d<\/p>\n
Daniel felt cold.<\/p>\n
\u201cOne Anna never found.\u201d<\/p>\n
Gregory leaned toward the camera.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt contains every Continuity operation involving children.\u201d<\/p>\n
Sophie.<\/p>\n
Daniel\u2019s stomach tightened.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhere?\u201d<\/p>\n
Gregory\u2019s expression hardened.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m going to get it.\u201d<\/p>\n
Then the video ended.<\/p>\n
A message appeared automatically.<\/p>\n
IF I DO NOT CONTACT YOU BY MIDNIGHT, LOOK UNDER SOPHIE MERCER.<\/p>\n
Daniel stopped breathing.<\/p>\n
Rebecca survived the shot. The bullet passed through the upper shoulder without striking an artery. Paramedics treated her on the restaurant floor while police searched surrounding streets for Gregory Shaw. … <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":30626,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-30653","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\/30653","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=30653"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/30653\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":30688,"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/30653\/revisions\/30688"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/30626"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=30653"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=30653"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=30653"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}