Chapter 5: My Dead Father's Voice
“Daniel, if you're watching this, it means Patricia has finally gone too far.””
My father's voice crackled through the speakers.
I grabbed the back of a chair.
For twelve years, I had remembered his voice through ordinary things: the way he sang off-key while making pancakes, the way he called me his little star, the way he laughed whenever I tried to convince him that I could beat him at chess.
Now that same voice was speaking from a screen at my sister's wedding.
It sounded tired.
Afraid.
Alive in a way I had never allowed myself to imagine.
“Daddy?”” I whispered.
Lily wrapped both arms around my waist.
“Mom, that's Grandpa?””
I couldn't answer.
On the screen, the image changed to a dimly lit room. A younger Daniel sat at a desk, wearing the blue shirt he'd owned when Lily was a baby.
He looked straight into the camera.
“Claire, if this reaches you, I'm sorry. I should have told you sooner. Your father asked me to keep these records safe because he believed someone in the family would eventually try to destroy them.””
A chill crept up my spine.
Someone in the family.
Daniel continued.
“Your father discovered that money was being transferred out of his company through accounts he didn't recognize. He thought it was a bookkeeping error. Then he found the signatures.””
A document appeared on the screen.
I recognized the name at the bottom.
Vanessa Whitmore.
My sister's maiden name had been Bennett, but the signature was unmistakable.
My stomach turned.
“No,” Vanessa whispered.
“That's not real.””
Graham turned toward her.
“Why is your name on that document?””
“I was twenty-two! I didn't understand what I was signing!””
The video continued.
“Daniel confronted Patricia about the accounts,” my father's recorded voice said.
“He gave her a chance to explain. She told him the money had been borrowed to help Vanessa start her first business.””
I looked at my mother.
She stood motionless, her face drained of color.
Daniel appeared again.
“But the money wasn't borrowed. It was transferred without authorization, and your father discovered that some of the signatures on the withdrawal forms had been forged.””
Martin Hale's voice came from somewhere off-camera.
“Daniel, we should stop here.””
“No,” Daniel replied.
“She deserves to know.””
The image shook slightly.
Then Daniel leaned toward the camera.
“Claire, your father was planning to report the missing money. Three days before his accident, he told me he had evidence that would prove who took it.””
My hands went numb.
“On the night he died, he was driving to meet someone who promised to help him recover the original records.””
The video paused.
The screen displayed a scanned police report.
My father's accident had occurred at 11:42 p.m. on a rainy Thursday. The road was wet, visibility was poor, and his vehicle had crossed the center line before striking a concrete barrier.
The report concluded that there was no evidence of another vehicle.
Then a second document appeared.
An insurance claim.
The beneficiary was Patricia Bennett.
The payout had been deposited into an account connected to a company I had never heard of.
Graham leaned closer to the screen.
“Is that account yours, Patricia?””
My mother looked at him sharply.
“This has nothing to do with you.””
“I'm about to marry your daughter. I think it has everything to do with me.””
Vanessa grabbed his arm.
“Graham, don't listen to this. These documents could have been altered.””
“Then we'll have them verified.””
“You can't seriously believe my mother had anything to do with Dad's death!””
I turned toward my sister.
“Did you know about the money?””
Her eyes filled with tears.
“I didn't know about the accident.””
“That's not what I asked.””
She looked down.
And that was answer enough.
My father had spent his final months trying to understand where his money had gone. My mother had benefited from his insurance policy. My sister's name appeared on suspicious transfers.
And Daniel had somehow discovered the connection.
The video resumed.
“Your father didn't believe Patricia had planned his death,” Daniel said.
“He thought she had become desperate to hide the financial records. But he was afraid she would do something reckless if she knew how much evidence he had collected.””
A date appeared on the screen.
The day before the accident.
Then Daniel spoke again.
“I found a message your father sent to Patricia. He told her he was going to the police the next morning.””
My mother made a strangled sound.
The next image showed a text conversation.
Dad: I know about the withdrawals. We need to talk before I go to the police.
Patricia: Please come home. We can fix this.
Dad: There is nothing left to fix.
The timestamp on the final message was 9:17 p.m.
Two hours and twenty-five minutes before the crash.
I looked at my mother.
“Did you know he was going to the police?””
She pressed both hands against her chest.
“I was frightened.””
“Did you know where he was going?””
“I didn't kill your father!””
Her scream silenced the room.
I hadn't accused her of murder.
Not yet.
But she had answered the question I was afraid to ask.
Graham moved away from Vanessa.
“I'm calling the police.””
Vanessa caught his sleeve.
“Please, Graham. Don't do this tonight.””
“Tonight?”” He stared at her.
“Your family has spent years hiding something that could involve a death. When exactly would be a good time?””
My mother looked at me.
“Claire, I loved your father.””
“Then tell me what happened.””
“I can't.””
“You can.””
She shook her head violently.
“You don't understand. If I tell you everything, you'll lose more than your father.””
I felt Lily's hand tighten around mine.
“What else could we possibly lose?””
My mother looked at Vanessa.
Then she looked at Graham.
Finally, she turned toward the screen.
“Your father wasn't supposed to die that night,” she whispered.
The words fell into the ballroom like stones.
I took a step toward her.
“What does that mean?””
Patricia's tears spilled over.
“I went to meet him. I wanted him to come home. We argued, and he drove away. I thought he was going to cool off and come back.””
“Why didn't you tell the police?””
“Because I was afraid.””
“Of what?””
She covered her mouth.
Before she could answer, a phone began ringing near the head table.
Vanessa glanced down at her clutch.
The color drained from her face.
Graham noticed.
“Who's calling you?””
She didn't respond.
He took one step closer.
“Vanessa, answer me.””
She pulled out her phone.
The screen displayed a name.
*DANIEL BENNETT.*
I stared at it, unable to move.
My husband had been missing for three years.
My father had been dead for twelve.
And somehow, the man whose voice had just shattered my family was calling my sister during her wedding.
Vanessa rejected the call.
A second later, a message appeared.
She read it.
Then she whispered, “Oh, God.””
Graham reached for the phone.
“What does it say?””
May you like
Vanessa clutched it to her chest.
“It says he's outside.””
