Chapter 5 - The Collision
Investigators placed Ethan under surveillance.
For nine days, nothing happened.
Beatrice behaved as though the gala conversation had never occurred. Preston stayed inside his home. Dr. Pierce traveled between St. Augustine and Sloane’s private estate.
Then Hayes discovered a message sent from Beatrice’s assistant to Dale Mercer.
Tomorrow. Same route. No failure.
Hayes created a controlled operation.
Ethan would drive along his usual route while undercover officers followed at a distance. His car had been inspected, and additional cameras were installed.
The plan was to record Mercer attempting another act of sabotage or causing a collision.
At eleven that night, Ethan left his office.
Rain covered the highway.
A dark pickup truck followed him through three turns.
Hayes’s voice came through a hidden earpiece.
“We see it. Maintain speed.”
The pickup moved closer.
Ethan gripped the steering wheel.
“Is it Mercer?”
“License plate is false. Do not engage.”
The truck accelerated and struck the rear side of Ethan’s car.
The impact forced him toward the barrier.
Ethan corrected the steering, but the wet road offered little control. His car spun, crossed a lane, and struck a concrete divider.
The airbags deployed.
For several seconds, Ethan heard nothing except a high ringing sound.
Then rain tapped against broken glass.
His chest hurt, and his legs would not respond immediately. He tried to reach his phone but could not find it.
The pickup stopped ahead.
A figure stepped out.
Before the person reached Ethan’s car, unmarked police vehicles appeared. The figure ran back to the truck and escaped through an exit ramp.
Hayes reached Ethan first.
“Stay with me.”
Ethan struggled to focus.
“Did you get it?”
“We recorded everything.”
“Don’t take me to St. Augustine.”
An ambulance crew arrived.
Hayes spoke privately with the paramedics. Ethan was taken to a public trauma center under police protection.
However, Beatrice learned of the crash within minutes.
She arrived with private attorneys and demanded that her son be transferred to St. Augustine, claiming the family’s specialists were waiting.
Ethan was conscious but heavily medicated. Hayes could not openly prevent the transfer without revealing the investigation.
Instead, he changed the operation.
An undercover team would enter St. Augustine with Ethan.
The real trauma surgeon treating him agreed that Ethan’s injuries were serious but stable. He needed monitoring and rest, not an operation.
Hayes assumed the identity of a private surgeon supposedly requested by Conrad Sloane’s medical team.
The transfer occurred shortly before dawn.
Beatrice met the ambulance.
She did not ask Ethan whether he was in pain.
She asked whether he could speak.
When a nurse said he had drifted into sleep, Beatrice seemed relieved.
Preston watched from the hallway.
For one brief moment, Ethan opened his eyes and saw his brother standing there.
Preston took a step toward the bed.
Beatrice blocked him.
“He made his choice,” she said.
Preston did nothing.
That hurt Ethan more than the collision.
Inside the trauma room, Hayes instructed Ethan to pretend he was unable to move or communicate.
Cameras were hidden around the room.
Investigators monitored the hallway from a maintenance area.
They expected Beatrice to contact Dr. Pierce.
They did not expect her to make the offer herself.
She entered carrying a thick envelope.
Hayes wore a mask and surgical clothing.
Beatrice handed him the money.
“Stop treating him,” she whispered. “Preston needs his heart.”
Hayes accepted the envelope.
Ethan listened as his mother sentenced him with the calm voice she normally used to approve business contracts.
“He’s the son we never wanted,” she continued. “Make it look like the crash finished him.”
Hayes closed the curtain.
Beatrice stepped beside Ethan’s bed.
“Try to do one useful thing for this family,” she said.
Then she walked away.
May you like
Ethan waited until her footsteps disappeared.
Only then did Hayes remove his mask.
