Chapter 6 - The Intruder Who Knew the Mansion
Daniel motioned for everyone to remain silent.
The mansion was dark except for daylight filtering through the upstairs windows.
He moved into the hallway.
Elena caught his sleeve.
“Don’t go alone.”
“I need to see who is inside.”
“What if they came for the documents?”
“That is exactly why I need to go.”
Lucas opened a drawer and removed a small pistol.
Daniel stared at him.
“Since when do you keep a gun in the library?”
“Since Mother started receiving threats.”
Margaret turned on him.
“You were never supposed to mention that.”
Daniel looked between them.
“What threats?”
Lucas gripped the weapon.
“Letters. Calls. Someone left a dead bird outside last month.”
Margaret said sharply,
“It was a prank.”
Richard shook his head.
“No, it was not.”
Daniel’s patience broke.
“How many secrets are you all keeping?”
A floorboard creaked below.
Lucas raised the gun.
Daniel pushed the barrel downward.
“Not while Elena is behind you.”
They descended together.
At the bottom of the stairs, the shattered glass came from the display case beside the office.
An old silver watch was missing.
Daniel recognized it as his father’s.
Nothing else had been touched.
The office door stood open.
Inside, drawers had been emptied and papers thrown across the floor.
The intruder knew exactly where to search.
Daniel moved toward the desk.
A shadow crossed the terrace doors.
He ran outside.
A man in dark clothing crossed the garden and climbed over the stone wall.
Daniel followed, but the stranger disappeared into a black vehicle waiting on the service road.
The car sped away without license plates.
Daniel returned to the office.
Elena stood beside the desk holding a small object.
“What is that?”
She opened her palm.
A memory card.
“It was taped underneath the drawer.”
Margaret rushed toward her.
“Give it to me.”
Elena closed her hand.
“No.”
Margaret stopped in shock.
Elena’s voice was quiet.
“You used fear to control me because you thought I would always remain silent.”
She looked at Daniel.
“I won’t be silent anymore.”
Daniel took the memory card.
Richard examined it.
“Charles sometimes recorded private meetings.”
Margaret’s face became unreadable.
Daniel found an old laptop in the office.
The power was out, but the battery still worked.
He inserted the memory card.
Only one video file appeared.
The date was two days before his father’s death.
Daniel pressed play.
Charles Morrison appeared on the screen.
He was pale and thin, sitting in the same office.
Beside him stood Richard Vale.
Charles looked directly into the camera.
“My name is Charles Morrison. I am recording this statement because I believe my wife may attempt to alter my estate after my death.”
Margaret turned away.
Daniel continued watching.
“I wronged Nathan Ashcroft. I allowed fear and ambition to destroy our partnership. When he disappeared, I said nothing because the truth would have cost me everything.”
Elena covered her mouth.
Charles coughed violently before continuing.
“Nathan had a daughter he never met. Her name is Elena Ashcroft.”
Elena began crying.
Daniel wrapped an arm around her.
On the video, Charles opened a document.
“I created a protected trust for Elena. It contains twenty percent of Morrison Holdings, transferred from the shares that once belonged to Nathan.”
Daniel stared at his mother.
The monthly transfers were not random theft.
They were money moved from Elena’s trust.
Charles continued.
“Margaret must never control this trust. If Daniel marries Elena without knowing the truth, tell them both immediately. Do not allow my silence to become their punishment.”
The video stopped.
Not at the end.
Someone had cut the recording.
Daniel checked the file.
The final seven minutes were corrupted.
Margaret looked almost relieved.
Richard was not.
“There was more.”
Daniel turned.
“What?”
Richard looked toward the shattered display case.
“The watch was not stolen because it was valuable.”
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“Then why?”
“Your father kept a second memory card inside it.”
