"Something like that."
"You're lucky I'm not a thief."
Sarah smiled.
"Maybe I should be worried that you're a police officer instead."
They laughed.
Over the following months, they became friends.
Daniel eventually learned that Sarah had discovered suspicious payments involving several senior officers.
At first, he encouraged her to report everything.
But Sarah refused.
She had already tried.
The people she reported had connections inside the department.
One of them was Deputy Commissioner Victoria Hale.
And another was Daniel's own supervisor.
Thomas Reed.
When Sarah finally trusted Daniel enough to show him the documents, he realized the situation was far more dangerous than he had imagined.
The records connected several police officials to a criminal organization called the Black Harbor Group.
The organization controlled illegal gambling operations, money laundering networks, and several businesses across Westbridge.
But its most valuable business was selling confidential information about police investigations.
Sarah had discovered the entire operation.
She was also pregnant.
Her daughter would be born in a few months.
She wanted to disappear before the organization discovered the pregnancy.
Daniel promised to help.
But he made one terrible mistake.
He told Thomas Reed.
Thomas had been his mentor.
He had taught Daniel how to survive dangerous situations and how to recognize when an investigation was becoming political.
Daniel believed he could trust him.
He was wrong.
Three days later, Sarah disappeared.
In the present, Daniel sat inside his car outside the police station.
He stared at his reflection in the rearview mirror.
His phone rang.
Victoria Hale.
"Where are you?" she demanded.
"At the station."
"Then get back inside. We have a problem."
"I know."
"No, Daniel. You don't understand the size of this problem."
He remained silent.
Victoria continued.
"The girl has evidence. Michael Bennett has been contacted. We need to know exactly what they found."
"Maybe we should turn everything over to the authorities."
Victoria laughed.
"Which authorities? The ones who work for us?"
Daniel looked out at the rain.
"I can't keep doing this."
Her voice became cold.
"You have been doing this for twenty-two years."
"I didn't kill Sarah."
"No. But you helped us make her disappear."
Daniel closed his eyes.
Victoria had a point.
He had not pulled the trigger.
He had not driven the car.
But he had signed the report that declared Sarah had left the city voluntarily.
He had watched Evelyn beg for information.
He had helped destroy the evidence.
And now he had arrested the same woman who had spent decades trying to find her daughter.
"Listen to me," Victoria said. "The girl cannot testify. The grandmother cannot leave the station. And Michael Bennett must be dealt with."
Daniel ended the call.
For several minutes, he sat without moving.
Then he opened his contacts and found a number he had not called in twelve years.
Thomas Reed.
The phone rang.
Once.
Twice.
A man's voice answered.
"Daniel."
Daniel nearly dropped the phone.
"You're alive."
Thomas laughed quietly.
"That's not the first thing you should be worried about."
"Where are you?"
"Somewhere you can't find me."
"Sarah's daughter has the evidence."
Silence.
Then Thomas asked:
"How old is she?"
"Seven."
"Then it's time we finished what we started."
The call ended.
Daniel stared at the phone.
He suddenly understood something.
Thomas wasn't afraid of the evidence.
He was afraid of what would happen if someone discovered the truth about the child.
Meanwhile, Michael had managed to restore part of Sarah's missing video.
A single frame appeared on his screen.
It showed a document resting on the passenger seat of Sarah's car.
At the bottom was a name.
LILY CARTER β ORIGINAL IDENTITY: UNKNOWN.
Michael frowned.
He looked at Lily.
"Sweetheart, do you know why your grandmother gave you her last name?"
Lily shook her head.
Michael leaned back.
For the first time, he wondered whether the secret Sarah had been protecting involved something even more personal than the criminal organization.
And whether Lily's entire identity was part of the conspiracy.
Lily had not slept.
She sat beside the window of the old house, watching the rain disappear into the darkness.
Michael had promised to explain everything in the morning.
But she didn't want to wait.
She wanted her grandmother.
She wanted her mother.
And she wanted someone to tell her why so many adults were frightened of a little blue envelope.
"Can I ask you something?" she said.
Michael looked up from his laptop.
"Of course."
"Did my mother know me?"
He paused.
"Yes."
"Did she hold me?"
Michael smiled sadly.
"From what I understand, she held you every day."
"Then why can't I remember her?"
"Because you were very young."
Lily looked down.
"I wish I could."
Michael closed his laptop.
"Your mother wanted you to have a normal life. She wanted you to grow up without fear."
"Did she know she was going to die?"
Michael didn't answer.
Lily turned away.
Then she suddenly remembered something.
"Wait."
She ran toward her coat and pulled out the old photograph.