Chapter 5 - Charles Knew About the Basement
Victoria reached her law office before sunrise.
Melissa Crane was already there.
That made it worse.
Her office light glowed through frosted glass.
Victoria walked in without knocking.
Melissa looked up.
“Vic? What happened?”
Victoria locked the door.
“You tell me.”
Melissa frowned.
Victoria placed the forged injunction on her desk.
Melissa read.
Her face changed.
“What is this?”
“My signature.”
“I can see that.”
“It came from inside this firm.”
Melissa pushed back.
“That’s impossible.”
Victoria set down the server log.
Login:
MCRANE.
Melissa went still.
Then she looked at Victoria.
“I can explain.”
“Good.”
Victoria sat.
“Start.”
Melissa’s eyes filled.
“I never meant for Lily to be involved.”
Victoria’s blood went cold.
“Wrong sentence.”
Melissa covered her mouth.
Victoria leaned forward.
“What did Charles pay you to do?”
“Access archived files.”
“How much?”
“Two hundred thousand.”
Victoria laughed once.
“Your mortgage.”
Melissa closed her eyes.
“Yes.”
“What files?”
“Daniel’s.”
“Why?”
“I didn’t know.”
“Stop.”
Melissa flinched.
“You knew enough.”
“I thought he wanted financial records.”
“What did he really want?”
“Anything connected to Vance Textile.”
“And?”
Melissa swallowed.
“Lily’s birth certificate.”
Victoria stopped.
“Why?”
“I don’t know.”
“You opened it?”
“Yes.”
“You sent it?”
“Yes.”
“To Charles?”
“Yes.”
Victoria stood.
Her chair slid backward.
Melissa cried.
“Vic, I swear I never thought—”
“You saw my daughter at Christmas.”
“I know.”
“You bought her books.”
“I know.”
“And you gave a man watching her the one document that ties her to Daniel.”
“I’m sorry.”
Victoria’s hands shook.
She put them flat on the desk.
“Sorry is not useful.”
Melissa looked down.
Victoria hated that the sentence sounded like Daniel.
She took Melissa’s phone.
“Show me the payment trail.”
Melissa did.
Baird shell company.
Consulting fee.
Then a second request.
Daniel Harrington’s paternal genealogy.
Victoria frowned.
“Genealogy?”
Melissa wiped her face.
“Charles wanted Daniel’s birth records too.”
“Why?”
“I don’t know.”
Victoria searched the archive Daniel left.
Family tree.
Most branches redacted.
One note:
C.B. - BLOODLINE NOT PUBLIC.
Her pulse climbed.
Arthur called.
“We found the thirteenth drum’s full index.”
“What?”
“One file missing from the boxes.”
“Which?”
“Daniel’s personal family research.”
Victoria stared at Melissa.
Charles had wanted the same thing.
She opened Daniel’s encrypted genealogy folder.
One scanned birth certificate.
Daniel Harrington.
Father:
James Harrington.
Then a sealed amendment.
Biological father unknown.
Victoria stopped breathing.
“What?”
Melissa whispered, “I found that.”
“And gave it to Charles.”
“Yes.”
Victoria scrolled.
Daniel’s notes.
JAMES NOT BIOLOGICAL.
MATERNAL LINE CONFIRMED.
PATERNAL MATCH THROUGH BAIRD FAMILY.
Her heartbeat kicked.
Baird.
Charles.
No.
She kept reading.
Daniel’s biological father had been the unacknowledged son of Charles Baird’s daughter.
That made Charles—
Daniel’s grandfather.
Lily’s great-grandfather.
Victoria sat down.
Melissa whispered, “Vic?”
Victoria could barely hear.
Charles had not only watched Lily as leverage.
He had been watching his own blood.
Her phone rang.
Charles.
She answered.
“What do you want?”
His voice was calm.
“To correct Daniel’s misunderstanding.”
Victoria gripped the phone.
“You’re Lily’s great-grandfather.”
Silence.
Then:
“Yes.”
Her stomach turned.
“Stay away from her.”
Charles laughed softly.
“Victoria, Lily is not the heir I’m worried about.”
A pause.
“You are.”
May you like
CUT.
