Instead, he looked at Ryan.
"Do you think they will protect you?"
Ryan didn't answer.
"You're making yourself a target."
Ryan stared at him.
"I already was."
The investigators escorted Hayes outside.
But before he left, he turned toward Rachel.
"Ask Daniel what happened at Warehouse 17 three weeks ago."
Rachel frowned.
"What are you talking about?"
Hayes smiled faintly.
"Ask him."
Then he was gone.
The warehouse became quiet.
Olivia approached Ryan.
"What did he mean?"
Ryan looked at Rachel.
She shook her head.
"I don't know."
Marcus suddenly called from the other side of the room.
"Rachel, you need to see this."
He had recovered several files from the recorder.
Most were financial records.
But one audio file had been recorded only three days before Michael died.
Rachel pressed play.
Michael's voice appeared.
"I've discovered the real problem. The money isn't just being stolen. It's being used to pay people to make witnesses disappear."
A second voice answered.
"Who knows?"
Michael hesitated.
"Daniel."
Then the second voice spoke again.
"Does he know everything?"
"No."
A long silence followed.
Then Michael said something that made everyone in the warehouse freeze.
"He knows about the warehouse. But he doesn't know that the original evidence contains his father's name."
Olivia looked at Ryan.
"What?"
The recording continued.
"Daniel's father was involved in the first investigation. He tried to expose the same people years ago."
Rachel stopped the recording.
Nobody spoke.
Olivia shook her head.
"My father died twelve years ago."
Marcus looked at the screen.
"Maybe there's more."
He opened another file.
It contained a scanned document.
The document was an internal police report dated twelve years earlier.
At the top was a photograph of a younger man.
Olivia recognized him immediately.
Her father.
James Carter.
Below the photograph was a short description:
Former department financial investigator. Deceased following a reported vehicle accident.
Olivia felt dizzy.
Her father had worked for the police department.
She had never known.
Ryan leaned closer.
"Why would Michael mention him?"
Rachel studied the document.
"Because he may have been investigating the same financial network."
Olivia's eyes filled with tears.
"Are you saying my father was murdered too?"
Rachel looked at her carefully.
"I'm saying we need to find out."
She turned back toward the recorder.
A final audio file appeared.
Its title was simple.
JAMES_CARTER_FINAL_STATEMENT.
Ryan pressed play.
The recording began with static.
Then a man's voice spoke.
"If this recording is ever discovered, it means the people responsible have not been stopped."
Olivia covered her mouth.
She recognized the voice.
It was her father.
Olivia had not heard her father's voice in twelve years.
She remembered it from childhood.
The way he laughed when Daniel made jokes.
The way he sang badly while cooking dinner.
The way he used to tell her that nothing was more important than family.
Now that same voice was coming from an old digital recorder inside an abandoned warehouse.
And he was talking about something she had never known existed.
"If this recording is ever discovered, it means the people responsible have not been stopped."
Olivia sat down.
Ryan stood beside her.
Rachel continued listening.
James Carter's voice sounded tired.
"I have been investigating suspicious financial transfers connected to several city contracts. The evidence suggests that public money is being diverted through private companies."
A pause followed.
"I have identified several officers involved. I have also discovered that certain reports are being altered to protect those responsible."
Olivia began crying silently.
Her father continued.
"I tried to report this through official channels. But someone informed the people I was investigating."
A faint noise appeared in the background.
Then James spoke again.
"If anything happens to me, I want my children to know that I never abandoned them. I only wanted to make sure they would grow up in a world where doing the right thing still mattered."
The recording ended.
Olivia covered her face.
Ryan sat beside her.
"I'm sorry."
She shook her head.
"Why didn't he tell us?"
Rachel answered gently.
"Maybe he believed keeping you away from the investigation was the only way to protect you."
Olivia looked up.
"But he died."
Nobody responded.
After several minutes, Marcus discovered another file.
It contained a list of names.
Some belonged to former police officers.
Others belonged to private contractors and city officials.
At the bottom was a name that made Rachel stop.
Richard Hayes.
But there was another name.
Thomas Carter.
Olivia stared at it.
"Thomas?"
Ryan looked at her.
"Do you know him?"
"Yes. He's Daniel's manager."
Rachel examined the document.
"Could it be another person with the same name?"
Olivia shook her head.
"No. Thomas Carter is our uncle."
The room became silent.
Olivia explained that Thomas had been their father's younger brother.
After James died, Thomas had helped Daniel find work. He had occasionally provided money for the family and had attended important events.
Daniel trusted him.
More than almost anyone else.
Rachel looked at the document again.
"Why would his name be here?"
Marcus opened a second page.
It contained a handwritten note.
Thomas received the original financial archive after James's death. He agreed to keep it hidden until the investigation could be reopened.
Olivia felt confused.
"Does that mean he was helping our father?"
"Possibly," Rachel said.
"Then why is his name on the list?"
"Because we don't know whether he stayed loyal."
Ryan stood.
"We need to find him."
Olivia called Thomas immediately.
No answer.
She tried again.
Still nothing.
Then she sent a message.
Uncle Thomas, I need to speak with you. It's about Dad.
Five minutes later, her phone rang.
Thomas.
Olivia answered.
"Uncle?"
His voice sounded strange.
"Where are you?"
"With Rachel and Ryan."
"Don't tell anyone else."
Olivia frowned.
"What?"
"I need to see you."
"Why?"
A pause.
Then he said, "Because your father left something with me."
Olivia's heart began to race.
"What?"
"The original file."
Rachel motioned for Olivia to put the phone on speaker.
Thomas continued.
"I kept it for twelve years. I thought the investigation was over. But when Daniel started asking questions, I knew the past was coming back."
Olivia looked at Rachel.
"Where are you?"
"At home."
"Stay there. We're coming."
Thomas's voice suddenly became urgent.
"No. Listen to me. Don't come here."
"Why?"
"Someone has been watching my house."
A loud noise interrupted him.
Olivia stood.
"Uncle?"
The line crackled.
Then Thomas whispered.
"They know I still have it."
The call ended.
Ryan immediately grabbed his jacket.
"We need to get there."
Rachel stopped him.
"Wait. If someone is watching the house, we can't walk into a trap."
"Then what do we do?"
Rachel called the investigators who had secured Warehouse 17.
She requested immediate assistance.
Twenty minutes later, they arrived at Thomas's house.
The front door was open.
The living room had been turned upside down.
A broken lamp lay on the floor.
Several drawers had been emptied.
But there was no sign of Thomas.
Olivia rushed into the kitchen.
"Uncle Thomas!"
No answer.
Ryan checked the back door.
It was unlocked.
Then Marcus noticed something on the floor.
A small envelope.
It had Olivia's name written on it.
She opened it.
Inside was a photograph of her father standing beside a younger Lieutenant Hayes.
On the back was a handwritten sentence:
Your father did not die in an accident.
Olivia's hands trembled.
Another piece of paper was folded behind the photograph.
It contained an address.