Chapter 6: The Woman Who Knew My Father's Secret
“Mom?””
My mother didn't move.
I held up the phone.
“Who is Rebecca Shaw?””
She looked at the message.
Then she looked away.
“Someone who worked for your father.””
“I know that. But why does she say you know who signed the first document?””
My mother pressed her lips together.
“Vanessa, please.””
“No. Not this time.””
My voice was shaking, but I didn't care.
“Tyler has been using my signature. Someone has been moving money. My father's company is involved. And now a woman I've never met is telling me you know something about the original plan.””
My mother closed her eyes.
“I was trying to protect you.””
“By keeping me in the dark?””
She began to cry.
I stood up.
“I'm not a little girl anymore.””
“I know.””
“Then tell me the truth.””
For several seconds, the only sound in the room was the soft breathing of the twins.
Finally, my mother spoke.
“Your father asked me to sign a document six days before he died.””
I stared at her.
“What document?””
“A temporary guardianship and protection agreement.””
I frowned.
“For me?””
“No. For the company.””
She wiped her cheeks.
“He was worried that someone might use your identity to interfere with the trust. He wanted me to become the temporary administrative custodian if you were ever unable to manage your affairs.””
I slowly sat down.
“Did you sign it?””
“Yes.””
“Then why didn't you tell me?””
“Because it was supposed to be temporary. Eleanor was handling the legal arrangements, and your father believed the danger would pass.””
I looked at her.
“Who else signed?””
My mother swallowed.
“Rebecca.””
“Rebecca Shaw?””
She nodded.
“And one other person.””
“Who?””
My mother looked directly at me.
“Tyler.””
I felt the blood drain from my face.
“Tyler signed a document with my father?””
“Yes.””
“When?””
“Six days before your father died.””
I stood so quickly that the chair scraped across the floor.
“Why?””
“Your father believed Tyler was trustworthy at the time.””
“But I hadn't even met him!””
“I know.””
I paced toward the kitchen.
The pieces were beginning to fit together.
Tyler had known about the company before meeting me.
He had been introduced to my father.
He had been considered for a position.
And somewhere along the way, he had decided that marrying me would be the easiest way to gain control of everything.
I stopped.
“Did Dad know he was going to marry me?””
My mother looked devastated.
“No. Your father never knew you would meet Tyler.””
“Did Tyler know I was his daughter?””
“Yes.””
I gripped the kitchen counter.
“So when he approached me at that charity event…”
“He already knew who you were.””
I closed my eyes.
The memory came back.
The fundraiser.
The blue dress.
Tyler approaching me with two glasses of champagne.
He had asked about my father.
I remembered laughing and telling him that Dad had died several years earlier.
Tyler had looked sympathetic.
He'd held my hand.
He'd told me he understood what it meant to lose someone important.
And I'd believed every word.
I felt physically sick.
My mother came closer.
“Vanessa, I don't think everything between you was fake.””
I turned.
“How can you possibly know?””
“Because I saw the way he treated you.””
“He treated me like a person he was trying to win.””
My voice broke.
“Maybe he was trying to win something else.””
My mother lowered her head.
Before either of us could speak, the doorbell rang.
We both froze.
My mother looked at the clock.
“Who would come at this hour?””
I checked my phone.
10:58 a.m.
Another message appeared.
I'm outside. Please don't let anyone else hear this conversation.
It was Rebecca.
I walked to the front door.
A woman in her early fifties stood on the porch.
She wore a dark green coat and carried a brown leather handbag.
Her hair was tied back.
Her face looked tired.
“Vanessa?””
“Yes.””
“I'm Rebecca.””
I stepped aside.
“Come in.””
She entered, then immediately noticed my mother.
Her expression changed.
“Margaret.””
My mother went pale.
“Rebecca.””
They stared at each other.
I looked between them.
“You two know each other?””
Rebecca nodded.
“We've met before.””
My mother looked away.
Rebecca placed her handbag on the table.
“I wish we were meeting under better circumstances.””
I gestured toward the dining room.
“Please. Sit down.””
Rebecca noticed the twins.
Her expression softened.
“Beautiful girls.””
“Piper and Poppy.””
She nodded.
“Your father would have loved them.””
I swallowed.
“Everyone keeps saying that.””
“Because it's true.””
Rebecca opened her handbag and removed a sealed envelope.
“Your father gave me this shortly before he died. He asked me to deliver it only if someone attempted to gain control of the company through your personal authorization.””
I stared at the envelope.
“Why didn't you contact me before?””
“Because nothing happened for years. I thought the danger had passed.””
She placed it on the table.
Then she looked at my mother.
“Until Tyler Reed started making inquiries.””
My mother closed her eyes.
Rebecca turned back to me.
“I worked as your father's financial controller. I handled the original trust arrangements and maintained the private records.””
“Did you know Tyler?””
“Yes.””
“How?””
“He was introduced to your father as a potential business partner.””
“Was he trustworthy?””
Rebecca gave a sad smile.
“Your father believed he was.””
I looked down at the envelope.
“What's inside?””
“An original copy of the agreement Tyler signed.””
I opened it.
The first page was dated six days before my father's death.
It described an arrangement involving a future management position.
But the second page was more disturbing.
It contained a confidentiality clause.
The third page included a handwritten note.
My father's handwriting.
Tyler has requested access to the beneficiary records. I have refused. His intentions are no longer clear.
I looked at Rebecca.
“What happened?””
She took a breath.
“Your father discovered that someone had been providing Tyler with confidential information about the company.””
“Who?””
Rebecca looked toward my mother.
My mother stared at the table.
Then Rebecca answered.
“Someone inside your family.””
I turned toward my mother.
“Who?””
Rebecca opened another document.
It was a list of authorized people.
My father's name.
Rebecca's name.
Eleanor's name.
My mother's name.
And one more.
I read it twice.
*Margaret Reed.*
My mother's maiden name.
I looked up.
“Mom?””
She was crying now.
Rebecca spoke quietly.
“Your mother was not stealing from your father. But someone had been using her access credentials to retrieve private company records.””
My mother shook her head.
“I didn't know.””
Rebecca nodded.
“I believe you.””
I stared at the document.
“Who was using her credentials?””
Rebecca removed a small USB drive from her handbag.
“Your father discovered the answer shortly before he died.””
She placed it beside the envelope.
“He recorded a conversation.””
My mother stood abruptly.
“Rebecca, no.””
I looked at her.
“Why not?””
She shook her head.
“Please. Not here.””
Rebecca looked at me.
“Vanessa, this recording could explain why Tyler approached you. But it may also reveal something about the circumstances surrounding your father's death.””
My chest tightened.
“What circumstances?””
Rebecca's expression became serious.
“Your father did not simply collapse at his office. He had been trying to arrange a meeting with the company's external auditor that afternoon.””
“Why?””
“To report an unauthorized transfer.””
“Did he ever make the report?””
Rebecca shook her head.
“He never arrived.””
I stared at her.
“Are you saying someone stopped him?””
“I'm saying the circumstances were never properly investigated from a financial perspective.””
My mother sank into the chair.
Rebecca connected the USB drive to the laptop.
A single audio file appeared.
The date was six days before my father's death.
My mother whispered:
“Vanessa, don't.””
But I pressed play.
At first, there was only static.
Then my father's voice filled the room.
“I'm telling you, this cannot continue.””
A second voice responded.
A man's voice.
“I think you're making a mistake.””
My father sounded angry.
“I trusted you.””
The other man laughed softly.
“Then perhaps you shouldn't have.””
There was a pause.
Then my father's voice returned.
“If anything happens to me, Vanessa must never be given those documents without Eleanor present.””
My heart began pounding.
The second voice spoke again.
“Your daughter won't know what to do with the company.””
My father answered:
“She won't need to. The trust will protect her.””
The man laughed.
“And the children?””
My stomach dropped.
The recording continued.
My father sounded furious now.
“Leave my family out of this.””
A chair scraped.
Then the second man said something that made my blood turn cold.
“Your family became part of this the moment you put her name on the trust.””
The recording ended.
Nobody spoke.
I looked at Rebecca.
“Who was that man?””
She didn't answer.
I turned toward my mother.
“Did you recognize the voice?””
My mother was trembling.
Then she whispered:
“Yes.””
I gripped the edge of the table.
“Who?””
She looked at me with tears running down her face.
And finally, she said the name.
“Daniel.””
I frowned.
“Who is Daniel?””
Rebecca's face hardened.
“Daniel was your father's younger brother.””
I stared at her.
My father's brother.
My uncle.
The man who had attended my wedding.
The man who had held Piper's baby shower gift in his hands and congratulated me when I announced my pregnancy.
The man Tyler had once described as a difficult but harmless relative.
I shook my head.
“That's impossible. Uncle Daniel lives overseas.””
Rebecca looked directly at me.
“He returned three weeks ago.””
My phone vibrated.
An incoming message.
From an unknown number.
Congratulations on finding the recording, Vanessa.
I felt my stomach drop.
A second message appeared.
Now perhaps you understand why your father wanted you protected.
Then a photograph arrived.
It showed my uncle Daniel standing outside my mother's house.
Taken only minutes earlier.
I looked toward the window.
A dark sedan was parked across the street.
Someone was sitting behind the wheel.
My mother grabbed my arm.
“Don't go outside.””
The phone vibrated again.
Tell Rebecca I want the original trust documents.
I stared at the message.
Then came the final line.
Or I'll make sure your husband isn't the only person who loses everything.
I looked at Piper and Poppy.
They were still sleeping.
Completely unaware that someone had just threatened their family.
I turned to Rebecca.
“Who exactly is Daniel?””
She closed the laptop.
“Your father's brother. The man who helped establish the company. And the person who knows more about your inheritance than anyone alive.””
She paused.
“There's something else, Vanessa.””
“What?””
“Your father didn't leave you the company because he wanted you to become wealthy.””
Rebecca looked toward the twins.
“He left it to you because he knew Daniel would eventually come looking for something buried inside it.””
My voice trembled.
“What?””
Rebecca leaned closer.
“The original ownership records. The ones proving that Daniel never legally owned the company he helped build.””
And suddenly, I understood why Tyler had been so desperate to get control.
He wasn't simply trying to steal my inheritance.
He was trying to help someone erase the truth.
May you like
Someone who had been waiting for my father to die.
And that someone had just parked outside my mother's house.
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