Chapter 6: The Man Who Was Supposed to Be Dead
Ethan stared at the photograph.
His uncle Robert stood in the background, one hand resting against the doorframe.
The same uncle who had disappeared twelve years earlier.
The same man whose funeral Ethan had attended as a teenager.
The same man his father had once described as the most trustworthy person in the family.
“Where did you get this?”” Ethan asked.
Victoria slipped the photograph back into her handbag.
“From someone who knows the truth.””
Daniel stepped forward.
“Mrs. Reynolds, I strongly suggest you explain how you obtained that photograph.””
Victoria smiled.
“Why? So you can bury another inconvenient fact?””
Ethan looked at her.
“Is my uncle alive?””
Victoria didn't answer.
Chad suddenly turned toward his mother.
“Mom, what are you doing?””
She ignored him.
“Your father and my husband were business partners long before you were born, Ethan. Your family didn't build its fortune alone.””
“I know that.””
“No. You know what your mother wanted you to know.””
Victoria pointed toward the photograph.
“Robert Cole was the person who arranged the original partnership. He understood the assets, the properties, and the money better than anyone.””
Daniel shook his head.
“Robert disappeared in an accident. His death was officially recorded.””
“Was it?”” Victoria asked.
The question hung in the air.
Ethan stepped closer.
“Where is he?””
Victoria looked directly at him.
“Somewhere you won't find him.””
“Then why bring him up?””
“Because you're trying to take everything back without understanding what you're taking.””
Ethan's eyes narrowed.
“What does my uncle have to do with the company?””
Victoria laughed softly.
“Everything.””
Daniel reached for the photograph.
“Let me see it again.””
“No.””
“Mrs. Reynolds, if this image is genuine, it could be important evidence.””
Victoria stepped backward.
“Then perhaps you should ask Robert yourself.””
She turned toward the ballroom doors.
Two security officers moved into her path.
“I'm leaving,” she announced.
Martin looked at Ethan.
“Would you like us to stop her?””
Ethan shook his head.
“No. Let her go.””
Victoria paused.
She clearly hadn't expected that answer.
Ethan continued.
“She'll have to explain herself eventually. I don't need to force it tonight.””
Victoria stared at him.
Then she looked at Chad.
“Come.””
Chad didn't move.
“Mom, wait.””
She walked out alone.
The ballroom remained silent until the doors closed behind her.
Brooke was still sitting near the table.
Her mascara had begun to run.
Chad turned toward her.
“This is your fault.””
Brooke looked up.
“My fault?””
“You were the one who told me Ethan was finished.””
“I didn't know he'd recover!””
“You told me the hospital had declared him permanently disabled.””
“They never said that!””
Chad grabbed the back of a chair.
“You told me he couldn't walk.””
Ethan watched them argue.
He had spent months imagining what it would feel like to confront Brooke and Chad.
He had imagined anger.
He had imagined revenge.
But watching them turn against each other made him feel strangely empty.
He looked toward Grace.
She was still standing near the service station.
Their eyes met.
She gave him a small, reassuring nod.
Ethan returned it.
Then Daniel approached him.
“Ethan, we need to speak privately.””
“About my uncle?””
“Among other things.””
They moved toward a quiet alcove near the ballroom's windows.
Martin followed them.
Daniel opened his leather case again.
“Your mother left instructions concerning Robert. She believed he might attempt to contact you if the original agreement ever resurfaced.””
Ethan frowned.
“Why would he?””
“Because the agreement contains something he wanted to keep hidden.””
“What?””
Daniel glanced toward the ballroom.
Then he lowered his voice.
“Your father's original ownership shares.””
Ethan stared at him.
“Those shares were transferred to me years ago.””
“Not all of them.””
Martin stepped closer.
“The current corporate records show that part of the original holding structure was never fully disclosed.””
Ethan looked between the two men.
“Who owns the remaining shares?””
Daniel hesitated.
“That is what we have been trying to establish.””
Ethan felt the weight of the cream envelope in his hand.
“Is that why my mother kept this document hidden?””
“Yes.””
“Was she afraid of Victoria?””
Daniel nodded slowly.
“She was afraid of what Victoria and Robert might do if they discovered the original agreement still existed.””
Ethan looked back toward the ballroom.
Chad was arguing with a security officer.
Brooke sat alone.
Everything had become more complicated than he had imagined.
He had returned to reclaim his company.
Instead, he was uncovering a family secret that had existed long before his accident.
“Daniel,” Ethan said, “I want the original agreement examined tonight.””
“I've arranged for the estate administrator to meet us tomorrow morning.””
“Tomorrow is too late.””
Daniel studied him.
“Why?””
“Because if Victoria knows this document still exists, she'll try to destroy whatever evidence remains.””
Martin nodded.
“I'll contact the legal team immediately.””
Daniel closed his briefcase.
“There's something else.””
Ethan looked at him.
“Go on.””
“Your mother left a separate instruction. She specifically requested that I tell you something only after the document was recovered.””
Ethan's heart began to beat faster.
“What?””
Daniel looked toward the ballroom doors.
“She believed Robert had help from someone inside your father's company.””
Ethan frowned.
“Who?””
Daniel shook his head.
“She didn't know for certain. But she suspected the person had access to the family accounts and the estate's private records.””
Ethan considered the possibilities.
“Could it have been Victoria?””
“Possibly.””
“Chad?””
“Not at the time. He was too young.””
Ethan looked down.
Then he remembered something.
“Wait. You said the estate records showed someone entered my house two days after my accident.””
“Yes.””
“Did you identify the person?””
Daniel hesitated.
“We identified the vehicle. It was registered to a private security company.””
“Whose company?””
Daniel handed him a sheet of paper.
Ethan read the name.
His expression changed.
It belonged to a security firm owned by someone he knew.
Someone who had visited him repeatedly during rehabilitation.
Someone who had promised to help him rebuild his life.
“That's impossible,” Ethan whispered.
Martin leaned closer.
“What is it?””
Ethan handed him the sheet.
Martin read it.
Then his face went pale.
“Mr. Cole, we need to verify this before making accusations.””
Ethan nodded.
But he already knew the name.
The person who had arranged the security company's services was none other than his closest childhood friend.
Nathan Brooks.
The man who had stood beside him at his father's funeral.
The man who had driven him to the hospital after the accident.
The man who had told him that Brooke's betrayal was the only problem he needed to worry about.
Ethan slowly folded the paper.
“Daniel, when was Nathan last seen at the estate?””
“Three weeks ago.””
Ethan looked up.
“Three weeks?””
Daniel nodded.
“He requested access to your mother's old office.””
“Why?””
“He said he was looking for family photographs.””
Ethan's fingers tightened.
“My mother's office was sealed.””
“Yes.””
“Who authorized his entry?””
Daniel looked uncomfortable.
“I did.””
Ethan stared at him.
“You let him inside?””
“He was your closest friend. I had no reason to suspect him.””
Ethan turned toward the ballroom.
Nathan wasn't there.
He scanned the guests again.
Then he noticed something on the table beside the cream envelope.
A small black card.
He hadn't seen it earlier.
Someone had slipped it beneath the folder.
Ethan picked it up.
There were only two lines written on it.
Stop looking for what your mother hid.
The next person who disappears won't be as lucky as you.
For several seconds, Ethan couldn't move.
Martin read the message over his shoulder.
“Who left that?””
Ethan looked toward the entrance.
A man in a black suit was walking away.
“Security!”” Martin shouted.
The officers rushed toward the doors.
The man disappeared into the crowd outside.
Ethan turned the card over.
On the back was a handwritten name.
*Nathan.*
His childhood friend had finally made contact.
But instead of an explanation, he had sent a threat.
Ethan looked at Daniel.
“Get the car ready.””
“Where are we going?””
Ethan folded the card and slipped it into his jacket.
“To my mother's house.””
Daniel frowned.
“The estate?””
“Yes.””
“But it's almost midnight.””
Ethan looked toward the ballroom doors.
“Then we'd better get there before Nathan does.””
As they prepared to leave, Grace approached him.
“Mr. Cole?””
Ethan turned.
She was holding his forgotten glass of water.
“I thought you might need this.””
He accepted it.
“Thank you, Grace.””
She hesitated.
“Can I ask you something?””
“Of course.””
“Are you going to be okay?””
Ethan looked at the woman who had treated him with kindness when everyone else had treated him like a joke.
For the first time that evening, his expression softened.
“I don't know,” he admitted.
“But I think I'm finally getting close to the truth.””
Grace nodded.
“Then I hope you find it.””
Ethan started toward the exit.
Behind him, the ballroom remained filled with stunned guests, shattered reputations, and unanswered questions.
But as the black car pulled away from the hotel, his phone vibrated.
An unknown number.
One message.
Your mother didn't die because of her heart, Ethan.
May you like
A second message appeared.
And Nathan wasn't the only person in that house the night she died.
