Chapter 4 - The Person Nathan Trusted Before Me
The picture on Samantha's phone stayed on the screen.
I stared at it.
Then I stopped breathing.
Because the person standing beside Nathan in that photo was someone I had trusted for years.
Someone who had sat at my dinner table.
Someone who had held my baby clothes and smiled while telling me everything would be okay.
My father.
Richard Vale.
But that wasn't what shocked me.
It was the date.
The photo had been taken two months before Nathan died.
Two months before the accident.
Two months before my entire life changed.
"What is this?" I whispered.
Samantha didn't answer immediately.
She looked at Richard.
And for the first time since she arrived, she looked uncertain.
Richard saw the expression on her face.
Then he moved.
Fast.
He stepped toward the phone.
"Give me that."
Samantha pulled it away.
"No."
"You don't understand."
"No," she said calmly. "I understand exactly enough."
I looked between them.
"Someone explain this."
Nobody spoke.
That silence hurt more than the picture.
Because silence meant there was something they were all afraid to say.
Richard looked at me.
"Elena, your husband was investigating things he didn't understand."
I felt my stomach tighten.
"Investigating?"
Richard shook his head.
"He was stressed. He was paranoid."
The words felt wrong.
Because Nathan was many things.
Careful.
Thoughtful.
Protective.
But paranoid?
Never.
"He didn't trust you," I said quietly.
Richard's face changed.
Only for a second.
But I saw it.
"You don't know what you're saying."
"No."
I looked at him.
"I think I finally do."
A police siren sounded in the distance.
Emergency services were getting closer.
For the first time, Richard looked nervous.
Bianca noticed too.
She stepped toward him.
"Richard, we should go."
He ignored her.
His eyes stayed on me.
"You have no idea what Nathan was involved in."
Samantha stepped between us.
"That's enough."
Richard looked at her.
"You think you know everything because you have some documents?"
"No."
Samantha held up the phone.
"I know because Nathan prepared for this exact conversation."
Those words changed his expression.
"Prepared?"
Samantha nodded.
"Before he died, Nathan created a timeline."
I frowned.
"A timeline of what?"
"Every suspicious action connected to his estate."
She looked at Richard.
"Every unusual request. Every unauthorized document. Every person who tried to access information."
I felt a cold feeling move through me.
"How long did he know?"
Samantha looked down.
"Longer than he told you."
That hurt.
More than I expected.
Because Nathan and I had never kept secrets from each other.
At least, I thought we hadn't.
I remembered all those nights when he came home quiet.
All those moments when he stared out the window and said he was just tired.
I thought he was grieving his own stress.
I never thought he was protecting me.
"Why didn't he tell me?"
Samantha's expression softened.
"Because he loved you."
I looked away.
"That doesn't make it easier."
"No."
Her voice became gentle.
"But it explains why he did what he did."
A loud knock came from the front door.
Everyone froze.
Two officers stood outside.
Samantha opened the door and quickly explained what happened.
I watched Richard carefully.
The man who had walked into my home believing he could control everything was now standing silently.
Watching.
Waiting.
Calculating.
That scared me.
Because Richard never accepted losing.
Not once.
After the officers asked questions and documented what happened, they told Richard he had to leave the property until the situation was reviewed.
He didn't argue.
That was unusual.
Very unusual.
Instead, he walked toward the door.
Then he stopped beside me.
His voice became low.
"You really think Nathan protected you?"
I looked at him.
"Yes."
Richard smiled.
But there was no kindness in it.
"Then you should ask yourself why he needed to."
My heart skipped.
"What does that mean?"
He walked away.
He didn't answer.
And somehow that was worse.
Later that afternoon, I was finally taken to the hospital.
The doctors checked my baby.
Thankfully, everything was stable.
But emotionally, I felt like I was falling apart.
My husband was dead.
My father had betrayed me.
And now I had discovered Nathan had been hiding a secret investigation.
Samantha sat beside my hospital bed.
The black box was on the table between us.
"You should open it."
I looked at it.
"I don't know if I'm ready."
"I understand."
"No, you don't."
I looked at her.
"My husband knew something was wrong. He knew someone was dangerous. And he still went to work every day. He still came home. He still kissed me goodnight."
My voice cracked.
"He carried this alone."
Samantha looked down.
"You're right."
She was quiet for a moment.
"There's something else you should know."
I wiped my eyes.
"What?"
"Nathan didn't just create protection for the house."
"What else?"
"He created protection for your child."
My hand immediately moved to my stomach.
"What kind of protection?"
Samantha opened the box.
Inside was a small key.
A handwritten letter.
And a flash drive.
My heart started racing.
"Nathan left all of this?"
"Yes."
I picked up the letter.
The handwriting was unmistakable.
My fingers shook.
Elena,
If you are reading this, something happened that I hoped would never happen.
I stopped.
Because I already knew.
This wasn't a goodbye letter.
It was a warning.
I continued reading.
I need you to understand one thing.
I never doubted you.
I doubted the people around you.
My eyes filled with tears.
Samantha looked away, giving me privacy.
The letter continued.
There are things I discovered about my family. Things I should have told you sooner.
My breathing became heavier.
My family.
Not your father.
His family.
Nathan's family.
I looked at Samantha.
"Why did he say my father?"
She didn't answer.
I kept reading.
The person helping Richard is someone who has access to information about both of us.
Someone who knows our routines.
Someone who knew where every important document was kept.
I looked up.
"Someone close."
Samantha nodded.
"Yes."
I looked back at the letter.
The final paragraph was shorter.
And it was the one that terrified me.
If anything happens to me, do not trust anyone who says they are trying to protect you.
Because the person who caused the danger will be the first person pretending to save you.
My hands started shaking.
Samantha noticed.
"Elena?"
I looked at her.
"Who knew about this?"
She didn't answer.
That scared me.
"Who knew Nathan created this protection?"
Samantha slowly closed the box.
"Only three people."
"Who?"
She looked toward the hospital room door.
"Me."
A pause.
"Nathan."
Another pause.
"And..."
I waited.
"And someone else."
The room became silent.
"Who?"
Samantha looked uncomfortable.
"I don't know if I should tell you yet."
I stared at her.
"After everything that happened today, you still think there are things I shouldn't know?"
She looked down.
Then she reached into her bag.
She pulled out an old envelope.
"This was delivered to my office the morning after Nathan died."
My heart stopped.
"Why didn't you give it to me?"
"Because Nathan's instructions were very specific."
"What instructions?"
She handed me the envelope.
"Only give this to Elena after Richard attempts to take the house."
My fingers froze.
The envelope had my name written on it.
But beneath my name was another sentence.
A sentence Nathan had written himself.
I read it slowly.
"Open this only when you know who betrayed you."
My blood ran cold.
Because I thought I knew.
I thought it was Richard.
But then I turned the envelope over.
There was something written on the back.
A name.
A name I never expected to see.
May you like
And when Samantha saw it, her face turned completely pale.
Because the person Nathan accused of betraying me was already standing outside my hospital room...
