He pulled a small envelope from inside his jacket.
It was old.
Yellowed at the edges.
My name was written across the front.
Not Faye Morgan.
Not Chloe Morgan.
Both names.
For Faye and Chloe — when you’re eighteen.
I stared at it.
My hands began shaking.
“Where did you get that?”
“Your father gave it to me three days before he died.”
Chloe whispered, “Why didn’t you give it to us?”
“Because he made me promise not to.”
“Why?”
Alan looked toward the closed hospital door.
Then back at us.
“Because he knew someone close to you might be watching.”
Neither of us spoke.
Alan placed the envelope on the table.
“Your father didn’t trust your mother.”
My heart broke in a completely different way.
“What?”
“He loved her,” Alan said. “But he didn’t trust her.”
I stared at the envelope.
“What’s inside?”
Alan’s expression darkened.
“The reason he believed your lives could become dangerous after his death.”
Detective Shaw stepped closer.
“Mr. Morgan, perhaps you should tell them everything.”
Alan shook his head.
“Not yet.”
“Why not?”
“Because if I’m right, the people who hurt these girls weren’t acting alone.”
The room went silent.
Chloe’s fingers found mine beneath the blanket.
Alan looked at both of us.
“Before your father died, he discovered something inside the company.”
“What?”
“I don’t know exactly.”
“You’re lying.”
“No.”
“You just said you knew.”
“I said he discovered something. He never told me what it was.”
“Then why are you afraid?”
Alan looked at the envelope.
“Because your father wasn’t afraid of losing his money.”
He lowered his voice.
“He was afraid of who would come looking for it.”
A soft knock came from the hallway.
Everyone turned.
A nurse stood outside.
“Detective?”
“Yes?”
“There was a man downstairs asking about the Morgan girls.”
Detective Shaw’s face hardened.
“Did you get his name?”
The nurse shook her head.
“He said he was family.”
Alan stood.
“What did he look like?”
The nurse hesitated.
“Dark hair. Mid-forties. Scar near his left eyebrow.”
Alan went completely still.
I had never seen my uncle look frightened before.
Not until that moment.
“Alan?”
He didn’t answer.
Chloe whispered, “Who is he?”
Alan stared toward the hallway.
Then he said something that made my blood turn cold.
“Someone who should have been dead.”
And suddenly, the hospital room didn’t feel safe anymore.
The words hung in the room.
“Someone who should have been dead.”
For several seconds, neither Chloe nor I spoke.
Then Detective Shaw stepped between us and the hallway.
“Alan, I need you to explain.”
My uncle looked at her.
“There was a man named Victor Hale who worked with David.”
My heart tightened.
“Worked with Dad?”
Alan nodded.
“He was David’s business partner. Years ago, your father discovered that Victor was stealing from several clients through a network of fake companies.”
Detective Shaw’s eyes narrowed.
“And Victor?”
“David reported him.”
Alan swallowed.
“Victor disappeared before the investigation was finished. Everyone believed he had fled the country.”
Chloe stared at him.
“So why would he come looking for us?”
Alan looked at the envelope.
“Because David didn’t just expose him.”
He paused.
“David kept copies of everything.”
I suddenly understood.
“The recordings.”
“No,” Alan said. “Something much bigger.”
He opened the envelope.
Inside was a small key and a handwritten letter.
My hands trembled as I unfolded it.
The handwriting was unmistakably Dad’s.
My girls,
If you’re reading this, you’ve made it to eighteen. I’m sorry I couldn’t be there to see it.
My vision blurred.
Chloe leaned against me.
I continued.
There are things I couldn’t explain while I was alive because explaining them could put you in danger. But I never wanted you to live in fear.
