Vanessa looked at the floor.
VANESSA: "He wants the documents because they could expose what he did."
DANIEL: "Then why would he offer to settle everything privately?"
MARCUS: "Because he wants to control the situation before anyone else gets involved."
Daniel looked at the brown envelope in his hand.
DANIEL: "And what happens if we refuse?"
Marcus did not answer immediately.
VANESSA: "He might try to make me look responsible for everything again."
Daniel turned toward her.
DANIEL: "Let him try. If the documents prove what you say, then we have to make sure the truth comes out."
Vanessa looked at him with surprise.
VANESSA: "You're willing to help me?"
Daniel remained silent for a moment.
DANIEL: "I'm willing to find out the truth. That doesn't mean everything between us is suddenly fine."
Vanessa nodded, understanding that his trust had been badly damaged.
MARCUS: "We should make copies of everything tonight."
DANIEL: "Agreed. But first, I want to know exactly what is on that USB drive."
They returned upstairs.
Daniel placed the laptop on the desk and connected the USB drive.
A folder appeared on the screen.
Inside were several audio files, scanned documents, and a spreadsheet containing financial transactions.
The first audio file was dated almost six years earlier.
Daniel looked at Vanessa.
DANIEL: "Is this the recording you mentioned?"
VANESSA: "Yes."
DANIEL: "Who is speaking?"
VANESSA: "Richard and one of the investors."
Daniel clicked on the file.
A man's voice emerged from the laptop speakers.
RICHARD: "You need to understand that the transfer was temporary. The money will be returned once the next investment is completed."
A second voice responded.
INVESTOR: "You told us the same thing last month. We have been waiting for an explanation for weeks."
RICHARD: "I'm handling it."
INVESTOR: "You said that before. Where is the money?"
There was a brief silence.
Then Richard spoke again.
RICHARD: "You should stop asking questions that could create unnecessary problems for everyone involved."
Daniel paused the recording.
He looked at Vanessa.
DANIEL: "Is that the conversation?"
VANESSA: "Yes."
DANIEL: "Keep playing."
The recording continued.
INVESTOR: "I trusted you. I trusted the company. I even convinced my family to invest."
RICHARD: "And you'll get your money back."
INVESTOR: "Then show me the accounts."
RICHARD: "Not everything is as simple as you think."
The audio became unclear for several seconds.
Then another sentence could be heard.
RICHARD: "If anyone asks, Vanessa handled the payments. That's what the records will show."
Daniel immediately stopped the recording.
He looked at Vanessa.
DANIEL: "He was planning to blame you."
Vanessa nodded slowly.
VANESSA: "That's what I discovered later."
Marcus leaned toward the laptop.
MARCUS: "Play the next file."
Daniel opened another recording.
This one contained a conversation between two men.
The first voice belonged to Richard.
The second sounded unfamiliar.
RICHARD: "We need to make sure the old records are consistent."
UNKNOWN MAN: "What about Vanessa?"
RICHARD: "She doesn't know enough to challenge anything."
UNKNOWN MAN: "What if she finds the original documents?"
RICHARD: "Then we have a problem."
The second man laughed quietly.
UNKNOWN MAN: "You should have dealt with this before she left."
Richard responded in a much colder tone.
RICHARD: "I thought I had."
Daniel stopped the recording.
The room became silent.
DANIEL: "Who is the second man?"
Marcus shook his head.
MARCUS: "I don't recognize the voice."
Daniel looked at Vanessa.
DANIEL: "Do you?"
She listened to the last few seconds again.
Then she shook her head.
VANESSA: "No."
Daniel returned to the folder and opened the spreadsheet.
Rows of numbers appeared across the screen. There were dates, transaction references, company names, and amounts.
He scrolled down slowly.
One particular transaction caught his attention.
The amount was significantly larger than the others.
DANIEL: "What is this payment?"
Marcus leaned closer.
MARCUS: "Let me see."
He studied the screen.
His expression changed.
MARCUS: "That's interesting."
DANIEL: "What?"
MARCUS: "This company was supposed to be a supplier. But I remember checking its registration details years ago. Something wasn't right."
DANIEL: "What wasn't right?"
MARCUS: "The company had almost no operating history. Yet it received one of the largest payments from the investment fund."
Daniel looked at the name.
DANIEL: "Who owns it?"
Marcus began examining the information.
MARCUS: "I don't remember."
Vanessa slowly moved closer to the laptop.
VANESSA: "Wait."
Daniel turned toward her.
DANIEL: "What is it?"
She pointed at the screen.
VANESSA: "I recognize that name."
MARCUS: "Where have you seen it?"
VANESSA: "On another document Richard showed me before the company collapsed."
Daniel looked at her.
DANIEL: "What document?"
VANESSA: "A list of investors and business contacts."
MARCUS: "Do you remember who was connected to it?"
Vanessa stared at the screen, thinking.
Then she slowly shook her head.
VANESSA: "I can't remember. But I know I've seen it before."
Daniel saved a copy of the spreadsheet.
He was beginning to realize that the documents contained more information than Vanessa had initially explained.
There were names he did not recognize, transactions that appeared unusual, and conversations suggesting that Richard had planned his actions long before the company collapsed.
But there was another detail that troubled him.
The documents had been stored for six years.
Someone had gone to considerable effort to preserve them.
And now that someone was threatening Vanessa to get them back.
DANIEL: "We need professional help. Someone who can examine these records and tell us what they actually prove."