Chapter 16 - THE FINAL CHOICEMy hands trembled as my fingers brushed the small USB drive. The entire truth, every piece of evidence, everything Grace had spent a lifetime gathering and hiding — all of it fit inside a device no bigger than my thumb. If I handed it to Richard, every proof would vanish. No one would ever know the truth. No one could ever hold him accountable. Daniel would die. And then Lily and I would be next.
I spent the entire night waiting. Watching the window. Waiting for a knock on the door. Waiting for news.
When morning came, there was silence. No call. No message. No sign of Daniel.
I contacted the police. I gave them everything—Grace’s letter, Richard’s name, the events of the previous night. They went to the mansion. They searched every room.
They found nothing. No sign of Richard. No sign of Daniel. No sign of a struggle. The mansion stood empty and silent. As if no one had ever been there at all.
The investigating officer looked at me gravely. “Emma—there is no evidence Richard Vance exists. No records. No identification. No property. Nothing.”
I stared at him. “That’s impossible. Evelyn is his sister. Daniel knows him. Martha knows him.”
“Evelyn says she has no brother. Martha… Martha is gone. She left the city early this morning. No forwarding address.”
My blood turned to ice. “Martha is gone?”
“Her apartment is empty. She took nothing but her daughter. She left a note. It says: Forgive me. I had no choice.”
I sank into a chair. Everything was unraveling. Richard had vanished. Daniel had vanished. Martha had fled. And the letter—Grace’s letter, the only proof we had—was still in my hand, but it was just paper. Words. Without witnesses, without evidence, it meant nothing.
“Emma,” the officer said gently. “I know this is difficult. But without witnesses, without proof… there is nothing we can do. Until we find Daniel or this Richard… we cannot act.”
He left me alone. I sat there, holding Lily’s hand, staring at the wall.
Richard had planned this perfectly. He had removed every witness. Every trace. Every link. He had made himself invisible. And now he was free to do whatever he wanted.
That afternoon, I received a single envelope. Delivered by courier. No return address.
I opened it. Inside was a photograph.
Daniel. Sitting in a chair. Bound. Gagged. His face bruised.
On the back, written in elegant handwriting:
**He is alive. For now. Bring me the USB drive and the remaining documents. Come alone. Or Daniel dies. And then Lily.**
I gripped the photograph until my knuckles turned white. Richard didn’t just want the letter. He wanted everything Grace had hidden. Every file. Every record. Every piece of evidence that could ever link him to any crime.
May you like
He would not stop until he had destroyed every last trace of Grace’s proof. And then he would destroy us.
I looked at the USB drive sitting on the table beside me
