CHAPTER 5: The Man Behind the Shadows
CHAPTER 5: The Man Behind the Shadows
A heavy silence settled over Daniel Harper's office.
No one spoke.
The only sound was the ticking of the antique grandfather clock in the hallway.
Daniel looked at Lily, keeping his voice calm despite the storm building inside him.
"Lily… are you sure?"
She nodded slowly.
"I couldn't see his face."
"He was wearing a dark coat and a baseball cap."
"But I remember his voice."
Margaret gently placed a hand on Lily's shoulder.
"Take your time, sweetheart."
Lily closed her eyes, replaying the memory.
"He said, 'This is enough to ruin him.'"
"And then he left through the back door."
Richard Bennett immediately turned to Daniel.
"Do your security cameras cover the rear entrance?"
Daniel frowned.
"They should."
Missing Footage
Within minutes they were back in the security room.
The technician loaded recordings from every exterior camera.
Front gate.
Driveway.
Garden.
Garage.
Everything appeared normal.
Until they reached the rear entrance.
The screen suddenly turned black.
12:03 A.M.
SIGNAL LOST
12:18 A.M.
Recording resumed.
Richard frowned.
"Fifteen minutes."
Daniel's jaw tightened.
"Someone disabled the camera."
The technician quickly checked the system logs.
"It wasn't a power failure."
"The camera was manually disconnected."
"From inside the security cabinet."
Daniel slowly turned toward Victoria.
She shook her head repeatedly.
"I don't even know where the security cabinet is."
For once...
Daniel believed her.
Whoever had helped remove the document clearly knew the mansion well.
Very well.
An Unexpected Discovery
Margaret suddenly spoke.
"Mr. Harper..."
"I remembered something."
Everyone turned.
"Three weeks ago a man came to the house."
Daniel frowned.
"What man?"
"He said he was servicing the security system."
Richard immediately asked,
"Did anyone verify his appointment?"
Margaret shook her head.
"Mrs. Harper told me you had scheduled it."
Victoria looked stunned.
"I never said that."
Margaret blinked.
"You did."
"You told me not to bother calling Mr. Harper because he was busy in New York."
Victoria's face turned pale.
"I..."
She stopped.
Her eyes widened.
"Oh my God."
Daniel stepped closer.
"What?"
"The security company."
"I never called them."
Richard's expression darkened.
"So someone impersonated a technician."
The Business Card
Margaret hurried toward the kitchen.
A minute later she returned holding a small plastic container.
"I keep things that don't seem right."
Inside was an old business card.
Daniel took it.
The company logo looked familiar.
Almost.
But not quite.
Richard examined it carefully.
"This logo is fake."
"The real company changed its branding two years ago."
Daniel immediately handed the card to his head of security, Marcus Cole, who had just arrived.
"Run everything."
"Fingerprints."
"Phone number."
"Printing company."
"I want a name."
Marcus nodded.
"Right away."
Sophie Remembers
As everyone prepared to leave, Sophie tugged gently on Daniel's sleeve.
"Daddy?"
He knelt beside her.
"What is it?"
"I remember something too."
Daniel smiled reassuringly.
"You can tell me anything."
"The man..."
She hesitated.
"He gave me chocolate."
Victoria looked confused.
"What man?"
"The repair man."
Daniel's smile vanished.
"He talked to you?"
Sophie nodded.
"He asked where your office was."
Lily gasped.
"You never told me that."
"I forgot."
Sophie looked guilty.
"He said he was fixing Daddy's computers."
Daniel felt a chill run through him.
"Did you show him?"
The little girl nodded.
"I pointed upstairs."
Richard exchanged a grim look with Daniel.
Whoever that man was...
He hadn't come to repair anything.
He had come to study the house.
To learn its layout.
To locate Daniel's office.
And perhaps...
To prepare for the night Lily witnessed.
The Phone Call
Just as Daniel stood, Marcus's phone rang.
He answered.
His expression changed instantly.
"Sir..."
"What is it?"
"We have a match."
"So fast?"
"The phone number on the fake business card was used once before."
Daniel waited.
Marcus swallowed.
"It belongs to a private investigator."
Richard frowned.
"Who hired him?"
Marcus looked down at the report.
Then back at Daniel.
"According to the payment records..."
"...the client wasn't Mrs. Harper."
Victoria stared in disbelief.
"Then who was it?"
Marcus took a slow breath.
"The payment came from someone using an account under the name..."
He stopped.
Daniel's heart pounded.
"Whose name?"
Marcus finally answered.
"Emily Harper."
The room fell into stunned silence.
Daniel whispered,
"That's impossible."
"My wife has been dead for almost a year."
May you like
Yet the payment record had been created...
Just six weeks earlier.
