Chapter 14: The Truth About Sarah's Final Night
The recording began with the sound of an engine.
Then Derek's voice came through the speakers.
"She's got the documents. You need to get them back.""
Thomas answered.
"I already told you she won't give them to me.""
"Then you're not asking properly.""
"She's my sister.""
"Not anymore. Not after what she knows.""
A long silence followed.
Then Thomas spoke again.
"What if she tells Michael?""
Derek laughed.
"That's why you need to stop her before she gets home.""
Vanessa suddenly stood.
"Turn it off.""
Nobody moved.
She repeated herself.
"TURN IT OFF!""
I looked at her.
"You've had seven years to stop this recording from being heard.""
Karen continued playing it.
Thomas's voice returned.
"I'm not going to hurt her.""
Derek answered coldly.
"Nobody asked you to hurt her. Just make sure she understands that she cannot destroy everything we've worked for.""
The recording crackled.
Then Thomas spoke.
"What about Vanessa?""
"She knows what she has to do.""
A few seconds passed.
Derek's next sentence made my blood run cold.
"Once Sarah is out of the way, Michael won't have anyone telling him to look too closely.""
The recording stopped.
Emily covered her mouth.
Brianna was crying.
I sat completely still.
"Play it again," I said.
Laura did.
I listened to every word.
There was no question that Derek had instructed Thomas to intercept Sarah.
But I wanted to know exactly what happened afterward.
Karen turned toward Vanessa.
"Mrs. Carter, did you know about this conversation?""
Vanessa shook her head.
"I knew they were going to retrieve the documents. I didn't know Derek wanted them to stop Sarah.""
"Did you understand what 'make sure she understands' meant?""
"I thought he meant scare her.""
I stared at her.
"And you thought that was acceptable?""
She began crying.
"No.""
"Then why did you remain silent?""
Vanessa looked at Emily.
"Because I was afraid.""
Emily stepped forward.
"You were afraid of losing your money. I was afraid of losing my home.""
Vanessa's face crumpled.
"I never wanted you to suffer.""
"You took my mother's money.""
"I know.""
"You made me pay rent.""
"I know.""
"You told me my father wanted me to pay you.""
Vanessa couldn't answer.
Emily wiped her cheeks.
"I spent my seventeenth birthday working an extra shift because I thought I was going to be kicked out.""
I closed my eyes.
That was the moment I stopped looking at Vanessa as the woman I'd married.
She had become someone my daughter needed protection from.
Karen turned to Laura.
"Is there another recording?""
Laura nodded.
She opened the final file.
This one was longer.
It began with the sound of a car door closing.
Thomas spoke first.
"Vanessa, get in. We need to find her.""
Vanessa answered.
"Just let her go.""
"She has the documents.""
"Then leave them!""
Derek's voice came through the phone, apparently on speaker.
"You two have no idea what's at stake.""
Thomas sounded furious.
"I'm not going to prison for you.""
Derek replied.
"Then you'd better make sure she doesn't reach Michael.""
The engine started.
A few minutes later, Thomas spoke.
"There she is.""
Vanessa's voice became frightened.
"Thomas, slow down.""
"She won't stop!""
"Just flash the headlights. Don't get too close.""
Then came the sound of a horn.
A sudden crash.
Metal twisted.
Glass shattered.
Vanessa screamed.
The recording continued for another minute.
Thomas was breathing heavily.
"Sarah!""
Vanessa cried.
"Call an ambulance!""
Thomas answered.
"Give me the phone.""
"No! Call them now!""
The audio captured a second voice.
Derek.
He was still on the phone.
"What happened?""
Thomas answered.
"We've crashed.""
"Is she dead?""
Vanessa shouted, "Derek, stop!""
There was a pause.
Then Derek said:
"Listen carefully. You don't mention the documents. You don't mention me. You don't mention why you were following her.""
The recording ended.
I sat with my hands pressed against my forehead.
For seven years, I had believed that Sarah had been the victim of an unfortunate traffic accident.
Now I knew she'd been deliberately followed by people trying to silence her.
I looked at Karen.
"Can this be used?""
"It needs authentication. But it provides investigators with a clear reason to reopen questions about the circumstances of the collision.""
She gathered the recording, the photographs, and the original agreements.
"I'm contacting the investigators now.""
Vanessa began sobbing.
"Michael, please don't let this destroy Brianna's life.""
Brianna turned toward her.
"You already destroyed the part of my life where I trusted you.""
Vanessa looked at her daughter.
"You're my baby.""
Brianna shook her head.
"I'm your daughter. But I'm not your excuse.""
That sentence silenced everyone.
An hour later, two investigators arrived at the house.
They interviewed Vanessa separately and requested that the original records be preserved.
Thomas was contacted later that afternoon.
He initially denied everything.
But when investigators presented him with the recording, his story changed.
He admitted that he had followed Sarah's vehicle and attempted to force her to stop. He claimed he'd only wanted to retrieve the documents.
He also admitted that Vanessa had been in the car.
Most importantly, he confirmed Derek had instructed him to prevent Sarah from reaching me with the financial evidence.
Thomas's lawyer arranged for him to provide a formal statement.
Derek was contacted, too.
He refused to answer questions without legal representation.
But his silence didn't erase the recordings, the bank documents, or the witness evidence.
Over the following weeks, the investigation uncovered something even more disturbing.
Derek had retained copies of the forged financial authorizations.
He had also kept a spreadsheet documenting every transfer connected to Emily's college account, the home-equity loan, and the original agreement.
The spreadsheet contained twenty-five entries labeled:
*EMILY — HOUSEHOLD CONTRIBUTION.*
Every rent payment my daughter had made was recorded.
Beside each payment was a destination.
Car installment.
Personal loan.
Derek repayment.
Shopping.
Household account.
The total was more than twenty thousand dollars.
I stared at the spreadsheet when Karen brought it to me.
"She really kept records of every dollar.""
Karen nodded.
"Yes.""
I looked at Emily.
She was sitting beside Brianna.
For the first time, the two girls weren't looking at each other as enemies.
They were looking at the same collection of lies.
Then Karen handed me another document.
"The bank has agreed to reverse the fraudulent home-equity loan after its investigation. The disputed college withdrawal is also being pursued for recovery.""
I looked at her.
"And Vanessa?""
Karen paused.
"She has agreed to cooperate. But cooperation doesn't eliminate her responsibility.""
I nodded.
Then my phone rang.
It was the investigator handling Sarah's case.
"Mr. Carter, there's something else we need you to know.""
"What?""
"We've located an additional witness from the night of the collision. She was a driver who stopped shortly afterward.""
My heart began pounding.
"Did she see the accident?""
"She saw what happened after it.""
I waited.
"She remembers a man removing a folder from Sarah's vehicle before the ambulance arrived.""
I gripped the phone.
"Who?""
The investigator paused.
"She identified Derek Collins.""
I looked at Karen.
For seven years, Derek had held the missing pieces of Sarah's story.
Now there was evidence he'd taken them directly from the wreckage.
And the investigator wasn't finished.
"Mr. Carter, the witness also remembers seeing someone else beside him.""
"Who?""
A few seconds passed.
May you like
Then he answered:
"Your wife, Vanessa.""
