Chapter 3 - Adrian’s First Mistake
After the recording filled the room, Adrian recovered quickly.
He always did.
“This is absurd,” he said. “Anyone can manipulate an audio file.”
Detective Ruiz remained calm. “Then you will have no objection to answering questions.”
“I have an entire company waiting for me.”
“You also have a wife whose brake line was cut.”
Adrian’s jaw tightened.
Dr. Hart stepped between Adrian and the bed. “My patient needs rest.”
Two uniformed officers escorted Adrian into the hallway. Ruiz stayed behind for several moments.
“Mrs. Vale, did you know someone had interfered with your car?”
“Not until I was driving.”
“Why were you recording?”
Lena explained the argument, the suspicious transfers, and Adrian’s phone conversation in the garage.
Ruiz wrote down every word.
“Who benefits if you die?”
“My husband controls Vale Dynamics,” Lena said. “But my shares are protected by a family trust created by my father. Adrian only gains full voting control if I die.”
“Who else knows about the trust?”
“Adrian’s attorney. The trustees. Possibly Victor Hale.”
Ruiz nodded. “Northstar Strategic Consulting?”
Lena looked at him in surprise.
“We began investigating Northstar three weeks ago. It has received money from several companies connected to Vale Dynamics.”
Lena felt the room shift around her.
The transfers were not only about stealing her inheritance.
Adrian might have been hiding something much larger.
Ruiz leaned closer.
“I need to ask something difficult. Is there anyone you trust completely?”
Lena thought of her younger sister, Camille, who lived in Boston. They had barely spoken in two years because Adrian claimed Camille was jealous and disruptive.
“I trust my sister.”
“Call her.”
“I can’t hold a phone.”
Ruiz glanced at her casts, then asked the nurse to help.
When Camille answered, Lena could not speak at first.
“Lena?” Camille said. “What happened?”
“I need you.”
There was no hesitation.
“I’m coming.”
In the hallway, Adrian demanded his phone call.
He contacted Victor.
“The recording survived,” Adrian said quietly.
Victor went silent.
“Then destroy everything,” Adrian ordered. “Before the police find Northstar.”
Adrian did not know that Detective Ruiz was standing close enough to hear the final sentence.
May you like
That was Adrian’s first mistake after the crash.
It would not be his last.
