Chapter 4 - The Fake Story
When Michael finally looked at me, his eyes were red.
"I accused you."
I knew exactly what he meant.
Two months earlier, after Diane sent the fake paternity report, Michael had asked me whether there was something I needed to tell him. He hadn't called me a liar. Somehow that had hurt worse.
"You were confused," I said.
"I let her make me doubt you."
"Yes."
He flinched because I didn't rescue him from the truth.
"I'm sorry."
"I know. But sorry doesn't erase what she did to us."
He nodded slowly. "Then we stop letting her erase anything."
Detective Rosa Martinez returned with more from Diane's phone. There were dozens of deleted messages recovered from cloud backups.
Victor: THE SHAW WOMAN HAS THE OLD FILE.
Diane: EMMA DOESN'T KNOW WHAT SHE'S HOLDING.
Victor: SHE WILL.
Diane: THEN I'LL HANDLE HER.
My skin went cold.
Michael read the messages twice. "Handle her how?"
Martinez didn't answer immediately.
Instead she opened another file.
"Do you know Mara Reed?"
"Senior accounting manager," Michael said. "She's been with us six years."
"She called 911 from a hotel last night. The call disconnected after four seconds."
"What did she say?" I asked.
Martinez played the audio.
A woman whispered through ragged breathing.
"They found the ledger. Tell Emma Bennett--"
A crash.
Then a man's voice in the background.
The call ended.
Martinez looked at us.
"We searched the hotel room. Mara Reed is gone."
She placed a photograph on the table.
There was blood on the bathroom sink.
May you like
And written across the mirror in lipstick were four words.
ANDREW'S CRASH WASN'T AN ACCIDENT.
