Chapter 10 - The Inheritance of Lies
Daniel looked down at his ring.
It was black onyx engraved with the letter M.
“My father’s,” he said.
Adrian studied the photograph.
The third man beside Richard and Julian appeared older than Daniel would have been in 1998.
“Your father knew them.”
Daniel nodded slowly.
“Apparently.”
“You never mentioned that.”
“I didn’t know.”
Torres enlarged the photograph.
A date stamp confirmed it had been taken two nights before Julian’s supposed death.
A note beneath the image read:
THREE MEN CREATED THE AGREEMENT.
ONE DIED.
ONE DISAPPEARED.
ONE INHERITED EVERYTHING.
Adrian felt cold.
His father, Richard, had died seven years ago in what was ruled a heart attack.
Julian had disappeared.
Daniel’s father, Samuel Mercer, had died the following year.
No one had inherited everything.
Unless the message referred to someone else.
Torres opened the next file.
A scanned contract appeared.
It outlined the creation of a private investment entity called Meridian Trust. The original owners were Richard Vale, Julian Beaumont, and Samuel Mercer.
Assets from Vale Logistics, Beaumont Hotels, and Mercer Capital had been combined secretly.
The final page was missing.
“Why was this hidden?” Adrian asked.
Daniel shook his head.
“My father never spoke of Meridian.”
A message appeared on the phone.
LIVE CONNECTION RESTORED.
The screen flickered.
Elena Marlow appeared.
She was seated in darkness.
Blood marked one side of her face.
“Adrian,” she said.
Everyone froze.
“Elena, where are you?” Torres asked.
“I don’t know. They moved me.”
“Who?”
Elena looked offscreen.
“Hurry. This connection won’t last.”
Adrian leaned toward the phone.
“Celeste has been taken.”
“I know.”
“Is she with you?”
“No.”
“Who took her?”
Elena swallowed.
“The insider.”
Daniel stepped closer.
“Who is it?”
Elena’s gaze moved toward him through the screen.
“Samuel Mercer did not die twelve years ago.”
Daniel went still.
“That’s impossible.”
“Your father arranged his death just as Julian arranged his.”
Daniel’s face lost color.
“Where is he?”
“He has been operating under several identities. One of them gave him access to Vale Holdings.”
Adrian watched Daniel.
“Did you know?”
“No.”
Elena continued quickly.
“The wedding plot had two layers. Julian and Vivian believed they were taking Vale Holdings. Samuel allowed them to proceed because he wanted the Meridian Trust activated.”
“What activates it?” Torres asked.
“A legal union between the Vale and Beaumont heirs.”
Adrian’s stomach tightened.
“The marriage.”
“Yes. If Adrian and Celeste sign the register, Meridian becomes accessible.”
“We didn’t sign during the ceremony.”
Elena shook her head.
“Adrian signed this morning while drugged. Celeste signed during the rehearsal.”
Celeste had lied.
Or perhaps she had not understood what she was signing.
“Who controls Meridian?” Daniel asked.
“The surviving founder.”
“Samuel.”
“Yes.”
A noise sounded behind Elena.
She turned sharply.
“The flower girl’s mother found something they missed.”
Hannah looked startled.
“What?”
“The wedding cake.”
Hannah remembered the four numbers scratched into the sugar.
“I didn’t write 1998.”
“No,” Elena said. “Celeste did.”
Adrian frowned.
“She had access to the cake?”
“She learned the truth before the ceremony. She was trying to leave clues without alerting her family.”
“Then why didn’t she tell me directly?”
“Because they had someone watching you.”
“Who?”
The connection broke.
The screen went black.
Daniel stared at his reflection.
“My father is alive.”
Adrian looked at him.
“And he may have Celeste.”
Daniel removed the signet ring and placed it on a table.
Inside the band, words were engraved.
He had never noticed them before.
MERIDIAN OPENS AT MIDNIGHT.
Torres checked the time.
May you like
11:18 p.m.
Forty-two minutes remained.
