Chapter 7
I read the sentence three times.
My father had died four years earlier.
A heart attack.
At least that was what everyone had told me.
He had collapsed in his study during a family dinner.
Daniel had found him.
Daniel had called 911.
Daniel had performed CPR.
For years, I had thanked my husband for trying to save my father.
Now I stared at those words.
Remind Emily what happened the night her father died.
Ashley whispered, “What does that mean?”
“I don’t know.”
But I was already remembering.
Dad and Daniel had argued that night.
I remembered raised voices behind the study door.
When I asked what happened, Daniel said Dad had been criticizing an investment decision.
Dad came to dinner looking angry.
He barely ate.
Then later, he went into the study.
Twenty minutes later, Daniel found him on the floor.
I called my mother.
She answered immediately.
“Emily?”
“What happened the night Dad died?”
Silence.
My pulse exploded.
“Mom.”
“Why are you asking me that?”
“Because Daniel wrote a note about it.”
“What note?”
“What happened?”
Ashley watched me.
My mother started breathing quickly.
“Your father and Daniel argued.”
“I know.”
“Your father discovered something.”
“What?”
“Emily, this is not a conversation for the phone.”
“Then I’m coming over.”
“No.”
That frightened me more than anything.
“Why not?”
“Because Daniel is here.”
My blood ran cold.
“What?”
“He came twenty minutes ago.”
“Why did you let him in?”
“He said he needed to talk.”
“Get out of the house.”
“Emily—”
“Mom, listen to me. Walk outside.”
Daniel’s voice appeared in the background.
“Who are you talking to?”
My mother whispered, “I have to go.”
The line disconnected.
I called 911.
Then I grabbed my keys.
Ashley stepped in front of me.
“You shouldn’t go.”
“My mother is there.”
“The police are going.”
“So am I.”
“I’m coming.”
“No.”
“Emily.”
“You’re pregnant.”
“And you shouldn’t be alone either.”
There wasn’t time to argue.
We drove separately.
Two police cars were already outside Mom’s house when I arrived.
Daniel stood on the lawn.
An officer was speaking to him.
Mom was on the porch.
She looked shaken but unharmed.
I ran to her.
“What happened?”
“Nothing.”
Daniel laughed from the lawn.
“Exactly. Nothing happened.”
The officer looked at me.
“Are you Emily Mercer?”
“Yes.”
“Your mother says there was no physical altercation.”
“I never said there was.”
Daniel shook his head.
“She called the police because I came to speak to my mother-in-law.”
I looked at Mom.
“Why was he here?”
Daniel answered.
“Because your family is destroying itself.”
“I didn’t ask you.”
He stared at Ashley, who had just stepped from her car.
His face changed.
“What is she doing here?”
Ashley stayed near the sidewalk.
Daniel looked at her purse.
Then at me.
“You gave her the phone.”
Ashley went pale.
That was all the confirmation I needed.
Daniel started toward her.
The officer stepped in his path.
“Sir.”
Daniel stopped.
He looked at Ashley.
“You have no idea what you’ve done.”
Ashley’s voice shook.
“I know exactly what you did.”
Daniel smiled.
“You think Emily is your friend now?”
“No.”
Ashley glanced at me.
“She has every reason to hate me.”
“Then why are you here?”
“Because being hated by her doesn’t make you innocent.”
For once, Daniel had nothing to say.
The officer told him to leave.
Daniel looked at my mother.
“Tell her.”
Mom’s face went white.
“Daniel, go.”
“Tell her what her father found.”
I stepped off the porch.
“What did he find?”
Daniel smiled bitterly.
“Ask your mother why your father changed his will three weeks before he died.”
Mom grabbed my arm.
“Don’t listen to him.”
I looked at her.
“Did Dad change his will?”
“Yes.”
“Why?”
Daniel laughed.
“Because he found out his perfect daughter’s husband was stealing from him.”
The world stopped.
I looked at Daniel.
“What?”
“It wasn’t stealing.”
Mom shouted.
“You forged his signature!”
The officers turned toward us.
Daniel’s expression hardened.
Mom covered her mouth like she couldn’t believe she had said it.
I stared at her.
“Forged his signature on what?”
She began crying.
Daniel spoke first.
“Your father invested in North Shore.”
Mom shook her head.
“No. You invested his money without permission.”
Daniel pointed at her.
“He verbally approved it.”
“He did not.”
“He told me he wanted growth.”
“He told you to stay away from his accounts.”
Daniel laughed.
“This is exactly why I never wanted to discuss this with you people. Your father changed his mind every week.”
I looked at Mom.
“What happened that night?”
She wiped her face.
“Your father discovered Daniel had moved two hundred thousand dollars from one of his accounts.”
My stomach turned.
“North Shore?”
“Yes.”
“Did he get it back?”
“No.”
Daniel jumped in.
“Because the investment was still active.”
Mom ignored him.
“Your father told Daniel he was going to the police.”
I looked at Daniel.
He didn’t blink.
“What happened next?”
Mom swallowed.
“They argued.”
“I know.”
“Your father came to dinner.”
“I know.”
“After dinner, he went into the study.”
“And?”
Mom looked at Daniel.
“When I passed the hallway later, Daniel was already inside.”
I frowned.
“He told me he found Dad on the floor.”
“I know.”
“Mom, what are you saying?”
“I don’t know.”
Daniel laughed angrily.
“Be careful.”
Mom shook her head.
“I’m not accusing you of hurting him.”
“Good.”
“But you lied.”
Daniel stopped smiling.
Mom looked at me.
“He told everyone he discovered your father after he collapsed.”
“Yes.”
“That wasn’t true.”
“How do you know?”
“Because I heard them arguing again.”
My skin prickled.
“How long before Dad collapsed?”
“Minutes.”
Daniel shouted, “He was alive when I left!”
Everyone became still.
Daniel seemed to realize what he had just said.
I whispered, “Left?”
Mom closed her eyes.
Daniel stepped backward.
“You said you found him.”
“I did.”
“You just said he was alive when you left.”
“I left the study and came back.”
“That’s not what you told me.”
“It doesn’t matter.”
“It matters to me.”
Mom started crying again.
“Emily, the doctors said his heart attack was natural.”
I turned toward her.
“Why didn’t you tell me any of this?”
“Because you had just lost your father.”
“No. Why?”
“Because Daniel begged me not to.”
I laughed through tears.
Of course.
Daniel always begged.
And everyone always protected him.
Mom continued.
“He said if the financial issue became public, he could lose his job. You had already lost your father. I couldn’t let you lose your husband too.”
I stared at her.
“So you covered up fraud.”
“I didn’t understand everything.”
“You understood enough.”
“I was trying to keep you from falling apart.”
“You kept giving him weapons.”
Her face crumpled.
I stepped away.
Daniel looked at me.
“Your father’s death had nothing to do with me.”
I held up the second phone.
“Then why did you write about using it against me?”
His face changed.
“Give me that.”
“No.”
“It contains private information.”
“The company will love hearing that.”
“You stole it.”
“Ashley brought it.”
Daniel looked at Ashley.
“If you hand that over, you’re finished.”
The officer stepped between them again.
“You need to leave.”
Daniel picked up his jacket from the lawn.
Then he looked at me.
“This is going to get uglier before it gets better.”
I stared at him.
“No, Daniel.”
May you like
For the first time, I wasn’t afraid.
“It’s going to get honest.”
