*If Richard shows Daniel the documents, everything is finished. Make sure the folder is gone before Friday.*
Evan had replied:
*Then make sure he can't show him anything.*
The investigation expanded.
Financial records revealed that the consulting company linked to Evan had received several transfers from accounts connected to shell businesses.
The funds had been moved through multiple transactions.
The total amount exceeded $2.4 million.
Not all of it had come from the Carter family.
Some of it came from other investors.
But investigators believed the attempted access to Elizabeth's estate had been intended to secure a much larger amount.
The wedding was canceled.
The engagement announcement was removed from the company's social media accounts.
Daniel instructed the security team to revoke Claire's access to every property and account connected to him.
He also contacted the jeweler who had supplied the engagement ring.He did not want to sell it.
He did not want to keep it.
He placed it in a small box and locked it inside his desk.
He could not bring himself to look at it.
Three days after the attack, Daniel returned to the mansion.
The hallway looked exactly as it had before.
The wallpaper was unchanged.
The chandelier still glowed.
The gilded mirror still reflected the entrance.
The console table had been cleaned.
But Daniel could no longer walk through the space without remembering the recording.
He stopped beneath the security camera.
He looked up.
For a long time, he simply stared.
Then he took out his phone.
The footage was still there.
He had watched it so many times that he knew every movement.
Claire's entrance.
The argument.
The candlestick.
The attack.
The smile.
And his own arrival.
He had also watched another recording.
One that had been captured the following morning.
Richard had returned to the hallway after the security company had completed its inspection.
He had stood beneath the camera for almost a minute.
Then he looked directly into the lens.
He spoke quietly.
"Elizabeth, I tried."
Daniel had stopped the recording there.
He could not bear to watch it again.
He entered the study.
The brown leather folder was on the desk.
Margaret had collected the original documents, but she had left copies for Daniel.
He sat down.
For the next several hours, he read everything.
He discovered that Richard had been investigating the suspicious transactions for almost four months.
He discovered that his father had quietly contacted the bank, the company's legal department, and the security firm.
He discovered that Richard had delayed announcing the investigation because he wanted to avoid a public scandal.
And he discovered something else.
Richard had never intended to remove Daniel from the company.
In fact, he had been preparing to transfer additional responsibilities to him.
There was a draft succession agreement.
A proposal to make Daniel the chief operating officer within eighteen months.
There was also a handwritten note from Richard.
*Daniel is ready to lead. He only needs to understand that leadership is not about being right all the time. It is about being responsible when you are wrong.*
Daniel read the sentence repeatedly.
Then he put the papers down.
He looked at the photograph on the desk.
It showed Richard, Elizabeth, and Daniel standing in the garden.
Daniel was about seven years old.
He was holding a toy airplane.
His mother was laughing.
His father had one hand on his shoulder.
The three of them looked impossibly happy.
Daniel picked up the frame.
"I'm sorry, Mom," he whispered.
And for the first time since the attack, he allowed himself to understand how much he had lost.
The following week, Claire requested a meeting.
Her attorney contacted Daniel's lawyer.
The request was initially refused.
But Claire sent a personal message.
She wanted to apologize.She said there were things Daniel needed to understand.
She said she had been under pressure.
She said Evan had manipulated her.
And she said that despite everything, she still loved him.
Daniel read the message several times.
Then he agreed to meet.
Not because he believed her.
Not because he wanted to reconcile.
But because he wanted to hear the truth directly from her.
They met in a private conference room at Daniel's attorney's office.
Claire arrived wearing a dark navy coat.
Her blonde hair was neatly arranged.
Her face looked pale.
Without the warm lighting of the mansion and the soft cream dress, she appeared different.
Older.
More tired.
Less certain.
Daniel was already seated.
He did not stand when she entered.
Claire looked at him.
"Thank you for coming."
Daniel said nothing.
She sat opposite him.
For several seconds, neither spoke.
Then Claire folded her hands.
"I know you hate me."
Daniel looked at her.
"I don't think you understand what I feel."
She nodded.
"You're right."
"Do you?"
She swallowed.
"I don't know."
Daniel leaned back.
"Why did you do it?"
Claire looked down.
"I didn't plan for things to happen this way."
"That's not an answer."
"I wanted to protect my brother."
"From what?"
"He was in trouble."
"Because he stole money?"
Claire flinched.
"He made mistakes."
"Forging documents is a mistake?"
"Daniel—"
"Trying to access my mother's estate is a mistake?"
She looked away.
"Your father had no idea what Evan was going through."