Chapter 4 - The Secret Account
I read the message three times.
Then a fourth.
Your father didn't steal the money alone.
Your brother is next.
The words sat on my screen like a warning carved into stone.
For years, I had believed my family was simply cold.
Distant.
Selfish.
I thought my father cared more about appearances than emotions.
I thought my mother cared more about control than love.
I thought Chloe was just spoiled.
But this was different.
This wasn't neglect.
This wasn't favoritism.
This was something planned.
Something hidden.
Something that had been happening long before I ever sat inside that military clinic.
I immediately called Daniel.
He answered after one ring.
"Vivienne?"
"I got another message."
His voice changed instantly.
"What does it say?"
I read it.
Silence followed.
"Daniel?"
"I'm here."
"Someone knows about the investigation."
"Yes."
"And they know about Leo."
Another pause.
"That worries me."
I looked toward the living room.
Leo was sitting on the couch, watching television with the volume low.
Completely unaware.
"Can you trace the number?"
"I'm already trying."
"Can you find out who sent it?"
"I'll do everything I can."
I looked at my brother.
The person who had sold his future for me.
The person my family was apparently willing to target next.
"Daniel."
"Yes?"
"Whatever you find..."
I lowered my voice.
"Protect Leo first."
He didn't answer immediately.
Then:
"I understand."
I ended the call.
But I didn't feel better.
Because now the fight wasn't only about me.
Leo noticed something was wrong before I said anything.
He always did.
"You look worried."
I looked up from my phone.
"I'm fine."
He gave me the same expression I had given him yesterday.
The one that said he didn't believe me.
"Vivienne."
I sighed.
"Someone knows about the investigation."
His face changed.
"What investigation?"
I hesitated.
Then I told him.
Not everything.
Not the worst parts.
But enough.
I told him my parents may have taken money from the trust.
I told him someone had warned me.
I told him they mentioned him.
The room became silent.
Leo looked down at his hands.
The same hands that had worked on cars since he was a teenager.
The same hands that had held Grandpa's tools.
"What did they say?"
I repeated the message.
His jaw tightened.
For a moment, I saw anger.
Then fear.
Not for himself.
For me.
"Vivienne."
"What?"
"You need to stop."
I stared at him.
"No."
"Listen to me."
"No."
He looked frustrated.
"You don't understand."
"I understand perfectly."
"They're dangerous."
I became quiet.
Because that was the first time Leo had ever said that.
Not angry.
Not dramatic.
Just honest.
"They're our parents," he whispered.
I looked away.
"That doesn't mean they can't hurt us."
Leo didn't respond.
Because he knew I was right.
The next morning, Daniel asked me to meet him immediately.
That alone told me something was wrong.
When I arrived at his office, he didn't waste time.
He placed a thick folder on the table.
"I found the transfers."
I sat down.
My heart started beating faster.
"How much?"
Daniel opened the folder.
"Your trust originally contained six million dollars."
I nodded.
"And?"
He turned the documents toward me.
"Four years after your grandfather created it, your mother began moving funds."
I looked at the pages.
Several transfers.
Several accounts.
Several dates.
"How much did she take?"
Daniel's expression hardened.
"Almost all of it."
My hands went cold.
"Almost?"
"Five million dollars disappeared."
Five million.
The exact number I had heard before.
The number from the bank transfer.
"But where did it go?"
Daniel pointed at the records.
"At first, it went into a personal account under your mother's name."
"Then?"
"Then it moved."
"Where?"
He opened another page.
A company name appeared.
I frowned.
"What is Carter Holdings?"
Daniel looked at me.
"Your father's private investment company."
I stared at the page.
"So they transferred my trust money into his company?"
"Yes."
"Why?"
"That's what we need to prove."
I looked through the documents.
The dates.
The amounts.
The signatures.
Then something caught my attention.
A signature.
Not my mother's.
Not my father's.
Someone else's.
"Who is that?"
Daniel followed my finger.
His expression changed.
"I was hoping you wouldn't notice that yet."
"Who?"
He hesitated.
Then answered.
"Leo."
The room went silent.
"What?"
"His name appears on one document."
I stood up.
"No."
"Vivienne—"
"No."
I pushed the paper back.
"Leo didn't do this."
"I didn't say he did."
"Then why is his name there?"
Daniel looked serious.
"Because someone used it."
I stared at him.
"Explain."
He took a breath.
"Your brother was listed as a beneficiary connected to one of the accounts."
"But he didn't know."
"Probably not."
"Probably?"
Daniel looked at me.
"Vivienne, this is why your parents may be trying to control the situation."
I understood.
They weren't just hiding stolen money.
They were creating a trail.
A trail that could make innocent people look guilty.
Including Leo.
That evening, I returned home earlier than expected.
Leo was working on a small engine part at the kitchen table.
When he saw my face, he stopped.
"What happened?"
I placed the documents down.
"Your name is on one of the accounts."
His face went pale.
"What?"
"I don't think you did anything."
"Then why?"
I sat across from him.
"Because someone used your name."
For several seconds, he didn't speak.
Then he laughed quietly.
Not because it was funny.
Because it was unbelievable.
"They really did it."
I looked at him.
"What?"
He stared at the table.
"They always said I was the easy one."
I frowned.
"What does that mean?"
"They never worried about me."
He shook his head.
"They thought I was too busy working. Too simple. Too trusting."
His eyes became angry.
"They thought I wouldn't notice."
I reached across the table.
"Leo."
He looked at me.
"I'm sorry."
"For what?"
"That you got dragged into this."
He looked almost offended.
"Vivienne."
"What?"
"You think I regret helping you?"
I didn't answer.
He shook his head.
"I sold Grandpa's tools because you needed me."
A pause.
"I would do it again."
My eyes burned.
"You shouldn't have to."
"Neither should you."
That sentence stayed with me.
Because he was right.
Neither of us should have been fighting this battle.
The next day, Daniel found something else.
Something worse.
He called me while I was at the clinic for a follow-up appointment.
"Vivienne, you need to hear this."
I stepped into an empty hallway.
"What happened?"
"I found the reason your parents were moving the money."
My stomach tightened.
"What reason?"
"There was a second account."
"What kind of account?"
"One created after your grandfather died."
I waited.
"Who owns it?"
Daniel was silent.
Then he said:
"Your parents."
I closed my eyes.
"How much?"
Another pause.
"Three million dollars."
Three million.
Not missing.
Not transferred.
Not hidden.
Still there.
"Daniel..."
"There's more."
I felt my chest tighten.
"What?"
"The account has been active recently."
"Recently?"
"Yes."
"When?"
He looked at the records.
"Two days ago."
My blood went cold.
The same day I asked my father for help.
The same day he told me they couldn't give me five thousand dollars.
They had three million dollars available.
And they still said no.
"Who accessed it?"
Daniel's answer was quiet.
"Your father."
I looked down the empty hallway.
Everything suddenly became clear.
The yacht.
The party.
The refusal.
The lies.
They didn't just choose Chloe over me.
They chose themselves.
But then Daniel said something that changed everything.
"Vivienne."
"Yes?"
"The account wasn't only accessed by your father."
My heart stopped.
"Who else?"
A pause.
Then:
"Leo."
I froze.
"No."
"I checked the records twice."
"Leo doesn't know anything about that account."
"I believe you."
"Then how?"
Daniel didn't answer.
Because neither of us knew.
And that scared me.
Because if someone had used Leo's name once...
They could use it again.
My phone suddenly buzzed.
Another message.
Unknown number.
I opened it.
Only four words.
Ask your brother why.
I stared at the screen.
Then slowly looked toward the street outside.
Because for the first time...
May you like
I wondered if the person warning me was trying to protect us.
Or trying to destroy the only person I trusted.
