Chapter 5 - What Mason Was Afraid to Say)
Mason Rourke looked twenty years older when Grant entered the hospital room.
A bandage crossed his forehead.
His right wrist was cuffed to the bed rail.
A police officer stood outside the door.
Detective Ortiz remained inside.
Mason stared at Grant.
"You shouldn't have come."
Grant almost laughed.
"You asked for me."
"I changed my mind."
"Too late."
Grant moved closer.
"You stole eighteen million dollars."
Mason looked toward the window.
"I moved it."
"That's your defense?"
"No."
"Did you threaten Amelia?"
Mason closed his eyes.
Grant stepped closer.
"Look at me."
Mason did.
For twenty years Grant had known his face.
He knew when Mason was lying.
He knew when he was ashamed.
Right now Mason looked terrified.
"Did you kill my wife?"
"No."
The answer was immediate.
Grant searched his face.
"I swear to you, Grant. I did not kill Amelia."
"Were you involved in her death?"
Mason hesitated.
That was worse.
Grant's voice became cold.
"What happened?"
Mason looked at Ortiz.
"I want a deal."
Ortiz shook his head.
"You don't have leverage yet."
"I know who Vanessa works for."
Grant leaned forward.
"Who?"
Mason said nothing.
Ortiz stepped closer.
"Mr. Rourke, someone beat you and left you in a motel. Whoever you are protecting clearly isn't protecting you."
Mason's jaw tightened.
"They weren't trying to kill me."
Grant stared at him.
"What were they doing?"
"Finding out what Amelia left behind."
Grant thought of the cabin.
"The second copy."
Mason looked at him sharply.
"You found it?"
Grant did not answer.
Mason's fear intensified.
"Grant, listen to me. Whatever you found, don't access anything labeled Northstar."
Ortiz immediately noticed.
"Why?"
"Because that's what this was always about."
Grant folded his arms.
"Explain."
Mason looked exhausted.
"Years ago, I had debts."
"How much?"
"Enough."
"That's not an answer."
"Four million."
Grant stared at him.
Mason continued.
"I borrowed through private lenders. I thought I could recover. I couldn't."
"So you stole from the foundation."
"Not at first."
"Then what?"
"A man approached me. He said he could erase the debt."
"In exchange for what?"
"Access."
"To the foundation?"
Mason nodded.
"They used charitable transfers to move money through legitimate international organizations."
Grant felt sick.
"How long?"
"Almost five years."
"Who are they?"
"I never knew everyone."
Grant slammed his hand against the chair.
"Stop protecting yourself."
"I'm trying to protect you."
"You locked my wife inside this nightmare and you're still pretending you're helping me?"
Mason flinched.
"Amelia wasn't supposed to find out."
"But she did."
"Yes."
"What did Vanessa do?"
Mason looked down.
"Her job was containment."
Grant's voice turned quiet.
"What does that mean?"
"She fixed problems."
"What kind of problems?"
Mason said nothing.
Grant felt his stomach turn.
"People?"
Mason looked up.
"Sometimes."
Ortiz leaned closer.
"Did she kill Amelia Mercer?"
"I don't know."
Grant exploded.
"You don't know?"
"She told me Amelia was going to be frightened into silence."
"What happened the night she died?"
Mason's eyes filled with something Grant had never seen before.
Remorse.
"Amelia called me."
Grant froze.
"When?"
"About forty minutes before the crash."
"What did she say?"
"She wanted to meet."
"Where?"
"Riverside overlook."
Grant knew the road.
Hawthorne Ridge began three miles beyond it.
"Did you go?"
"Yes."
Grant could barely breathe.
"And?"
"She was there."
"Alone?"
"At first."
Grant's heartbeat sounded inside his head.
"Then Vanessa arrived."
Ortiz began writing.
Mason continued.
"They argued. Amelia said she had enough evidence to expose everything."
"What did Vanessa say?"
"That she was making a mistake."
"And you?"
"I begged Amelia to give me twenty-four hours."
"Why?"
"I wanted to get my family out of the country."
Grant stared.
"You were going to run."
"Yes."
"What happened next?"
"Amelia left."
"In her SUV?"
Mason nodded.
"Vanessa left thirty seconds later."
Grant's face went white.
"You knew Vanessa followed her."
"Yes."
"And you never told police."
Mason began crying.
Grant felt no sympathy.
"I drove after them."
Grant stopped.
"What?"
"I was scared. I thought Vanessa might do something."
"What did you see?"
Mason looked at Ortiz.
"I saw Amelia's SUV heading toward Hawthorne Ridge."
"And Vanessa?"
"Behind her."
Grant stepped closer.
"Then what?"
Mason swallowed.
"A black SUV passed me."
"Whose?"
"I don't know."
"Was Vanessa in it?"
"No. Vanessa was driving a red sedan."
Grant's confusion deepened.
"So there were three vehicles."
"Yes."
"What happened?"
"I lost them near the ridge."
"You didn't see the crash?"
"No."
"Then why did you tell police Amelia was alone?"
Mason looked away.
"Vanessa called me afterward."
"What did she say?"
Mason's lips trembled.
"She said Amelia was gone."
Grant felt something inside him break.
"What exactly did she say?"
Mason looked at him.
"She said, 'The problem has been contained.'"
The room went silent.
Grant stepped backward.
Ortiz asked the next question.
"Why was Daniel Mercer meeting Amelia?"
Mason looked genuinely surprised.
"You don't know?"
Grant stared at him.
"Know what?"
Mason hesitated.
Then said the sentence Grant would remember for the rest of his life.
"Daniel wasn't helping Amelia investigate us."
May you like
Grant waited.
"He was helping her disappear."
