MARCUS: "I know a financial investigator who worked on a similar case."
DANIEL: "Can he be trusted?"
MARCUS: "Yes. I've known him for years."
Daniel looked at Vanessa.
DANIEL: "I don't want anyone else entering this house until we know exactly what's happening."
VANESSA: "I understand."
MARCUS: "I'll contact him tomorrow morning."
Daniel nodded.
Then he closed the laptop.
The clock on the wall showed that it was getting late.
For the first time that evening, Daniel realized that he had not eaten anything.
The dinner he had brought home was still sitting downstairs, untouched.
He remembered the small dessert he had bought for Vanessa.
He remembered how excited he had been to surprise her.
Now those simple plans seemed to belong to another evening, another version of his life.
He walked toward the bedroom door.
DANIEL: "I'm going downstairs."
Vanessa followed him with her eyes.
VANESSA: "Daniel..."
He stopped but did not turn around.
VANESSA: "I know I can't ask you to forgive me tonight. But I hope you'll give me a chance to explain everything."
Daniel remained quiet.
Then he finally turned.
DANIEL: "I want to believe you. But trust isn't something you can demand after you've spent years hiding the truth."
VANESSA: "I know."
DANIEL: "Tomorrow, we're going to find out exactly what Richard is trying to hide. After that, we'll deal with everything else."
He walked downstairs.
Vanessa remained in the bedroom, staring at the documents on the bed.
Marcus slowly approached her.
MARCUS: "You should have told him a long time ago."
VANESSA: "I know."
MARCUS: "He deserves better than this."
Vanessa looked at him.
VANESSA: "I never wanted any of this to happen."
MARCUS: "Wanting something doesn't change what happened."
She lowered her head.
VANESSA: "Do you think he'll leave me?"
Marcus paused.
MARCUS: "That's something only Daniel can decide."
Vanessa looked toward the staircase.
Downstairs, Daniel was standing in the kitchen, staring at the food he had brought home.
He opened the container, but his appetite had disappeared.
He sat at the table and looked at his phone.
There were several missed calls from business contacts, a message from his assistant, and a reminder about an important meeting the following morning.
Ordinarily, he would have answered everything immediately.
Tonight, he could barely concentrate.
He opened his conversation with Vanessa.
The last message he had sent earlier that afternoon was still visible.
DANIEL: "I'll be home early. I have a surprise for you."
Her response was still there.
VANESSA: "Okay. See you later."
He stared at those words for a long time.
He wondered whether she had already known Marcus would be there when she replied.
He wondered whether she had been planning to tell him the truth.
And he wondered how many other things he had misunderstood during the past three years.
A few minutes later, Marcus came downstairs.
MARCUS: "Daniel, can we talk?"
Daniel looked up.
DANIEL: "What now?"
MARCUS: "I want to explain something about my relationship with Vanessa."
Daniel leaned back in his chair.
DANIEL: "I'm listening."
Marcus pulled out the chair opposite him and sat down.
MARCUS: "I know you think I have been interfering in your relationship. And after what happened tonight, I understand why."
DANIEL: "Then explain yourself."
MARCUS: "Vanessa and I were friends before the business collapsed. We weren't involved romantically. I was working with a different department, and I was one of the few people who believed she had been blamed unfairly."
Daniel studied him.
DANIEL: "Why didn't you tell me that upstairs?"
MARCUS: "Because I didn't want to discuss her entire past in the middle of an argument."
DANIEL: "You could have started by telling me who you were."
Marcus nodded.
MARCUS: "You're right."
Daniel remained silent.
MARCUS: "I also want you to know that Vanessa never asked me to hide anything from you. I made the decision to keep my distance because I thought it was better for everyone."
DANIEL: "And yet you came here tonight."
MARCUS: "Because Richard has become increasingly aggressive. I believed Vanessa needed someone who understood the situation."
Daniel looked down at the table.
DANIEL: "You should have contacted me first."
MARCUS: "I agree."
For several seconds, neither man spoke.
Then Daniel asked a question that had been bothering him since the beginning.
DANIEL: "Do you think Vanessa was involved in the missing money?"
Marcus took his time before answering.
MARCUS: "I don't believe she planned it. But I cannot tell you that she knew absolutely nothing. She was part of the company. She signed documents. She attended meetings. She had responsibilities."
DANIEL: "So she may have known more than she's telling me."
MARCUS: "That's possible."
Daniel slowly nodded.
He appreciated the honesty, even though it was not particularly comforting.
MARCUS: "The important thing is that we examine the evidence carefully."
DANIEL: "And if the evidence shows she was involved?"
Marcus looked directly at him.
MARCUS: "Then she will have to take responsibility for whatever she did."
Daniel leaned forward.
DANIEL: "Good. Because I won't protect anyone from the consequences of their actions."
Marcus nodded.
MARCUS: "I understand."
Upstairs, Vanessa was still looking at the old documents.
She picked up one of the papers and examined the signatures.
A particular name caught her attention.
She had seen it before.
Not in the old company records.