Chapter 11 - THE MAN MARGARET HIRED
Victor did not leave in handcuffs.
Not yet.
The officers took statements, documented the forced entry, and warned him not to return. Because Margaret had once lived in the house and claimed ownership, the burglary question would take more investigation.
Daniel hated that answer.
Emily understood it.
Messy families created messy facts.
Victor sat in his car at the curb for nearly ten minutes before driving away.
That evening, he called Emily from a blocked number.
“I want to talk.”
Daniel shook his head the moment she put it on speaker.
“No.”
Victor continued. “I have invoices, messages, instructions. She’s setting me up to take the fall.”
Emily looked at Daniel. “Where?”
“Public place. Your bakery. After closing.”
At nine, Victor walked into Sweet Ember carrying the same black document case.
Claire sat in the back booth. Daniel stood near the kitchen door. Mia locked the front entrance behind him.
Victor placed the case on a table.
“I was hired eighteen months ago,” he said. “At first it was normal. Background checks. Public records. Then she started asking me to photograph Emily.”
Emily’s stomach turned.
“Where?”
“Meetings. Deliveries. Lunches. She wanted anything that could look suspicious out of context.”
“The hotel photos of Daniel?”
“I took those too.”
Daniel stepped forward.
Victor raised a hand. “She gave me the schedule. Told me exactly what angle she needed.”
“You knew what she was doing.”
“Yes.”
“And you did it anyway.”
“Yes.”
Victor didn’t defend himself.
That made it worse.
He opened the case and removed a hard drive.
“She paid Lena Price for a statement. She paid a tech contractor to create the email accounts. She had me obtain copies of old bank records.”
Emily asked, “Did she forge my signature?”
“I don’t know who physically did it.”
“Did she order it?”
Victor looked at Daniel.
“Yes.”
Daniel’s hands curled into fists.
Then Victor removed one final envelope.
“This is why I called you.”
Inside was a copy of a cashier’s check for $75,000.
Payable to Robert Merritt.
Claire stood up.
“Uncle Robert?”
Victor nodded.
May you like
“The payment was made two days after he witnessed the codicil.”
• • •
