Chapter 7 - THE BROTHER WHO CAME BACKDaniel James arrived at the penthouse the next afternoon without warning.
He was forty-three, six years older than Andrew, with their father's dark eyes and the same practiced smile that had once made him the favorite son at every family gathering.
He entered the living room as though he still belonged there.
“Little brother.”
Andrew did not offer his hand.
“You were in New York the night Emma died.”
Daniel's smile faded.
“Who told you that?”
“The security footage.”
Daniel looked toward the windows.
“Then you've been digging.”
“Answer me.”
Daniel removed his coat and draped it over a chair.
“Emma called me that night. She was upset about a business issue.”
“What business issue?”
“She thought someone had been tracking her. I told her she was overreacting.”
Andrew felt anger flare.
“She was frightened enough to call you, and you dismissed her?”
“I was trying to calm her down.”
“Then why did you lie about being overseas?”
Daniel looked at him.
“Because I didn't want to be dragged into your company's problems.”
“Your company?”
Daniel's expression tightened.
He had once been an executive at James Global, but he'd left after a dispute with Andrew over the acquisition of the security contractor. Andrew had assumed his brother was embarrassed about losing the argument.
Now he wondered what Daniel had known.
“Did you follow Emma?” Andrew asked.
“No.”
“Did you meet her outside Haven?”
Daniel hesitated.
“I went there to talk to her.”
“About what?”
“She'd found a set of emails. She believed someone had used company resources to follow her. She thought it was Victor.”
“Was she right?”
Daniel looked away.
“I don't know.”
Andrew stepped closer.
“You're lying.”
Daniel's jaw tightened.
“You want a villain, Andrew. I understand that. You want someone to blame because you can't bear the possibility that Emma's death was an accident.”
Andrew felt the words strike their target.
For one terrible moment, he wondered whether Daniel was right.
Then he remembered the note, the blue car, and the missing medical records.
“Why did you leave before the ambulance arrived?”
“Because Emma told me to.”
Andrew froze.
“What?”
“She called me again from the house. She said she was dizzy and asked me to come back. When I arrived, Victor was already there. They were arguing.”
“About what?”
“I couldn't hear everything. I saw Victor take a folder from her. She told him to leave. Then she collapsed.”
Andrew could barely breathe.
“You saw her collapse?”
Daniel nodded slowly.
“I ran to her. Victor called the ambulance. By the time the paramedics arrived, he told me you were on your way and that I should go before the press saw me.”
“And you obeyed him?”
Daniel's face hardened.
“I panicked. I thought if the company was involved, everything would be destroyed. I thought you would lose the business, the house, everything Dad had built.”
“So you let me believe Emma died without anyone else present.”
“I thought the doctors would find the truth.”
“They didn't.”
Daniel lowered his eyes.
“No.”
Andrew turned away, fighting the urge to throw something.
“Did Victor give Emma anything?”
Daniel hesitated.
“I saw him hand her a glass of water.”
Andrew went still.
“Did she drink it?”
“I don't know.”
“Was it before she collapsed?”
Daniel nodded.
Andrew's heart hammered.
He called Dr. Kim's recommended forensic consultant, who had been reviewing the medical records. The consultant had already found discrepancies in the original toxicology report, including a missing sample and an unexplained delay in testing.
The evidence was not enough to prove foul play.
But it was enough to reopen the investigation.
Daniel agreed to provide a formal statement.
Before he left, he stopped beside the doorway.
“Andrew, there's something else.”
Andrew looked at him.
“Victor didn't just manage the foundation after Emma died. He was trying to gain control of your voting shares. Emma had discovered that he'd been using Project Lantern to identify families who could be pressured into signing confidential settlements.”
“Why?”
“I don't know. But Emma said he had a list of people who could ruin him.”
Andrew stared.
“Who was on it?”
Daniel swallowed.
“Your father. Emma. Me.”
“And you did nothing?”
“I was afraid.”
Andrew looked at his brother for a long time.
“Fear explains what you did. It doesn't excuse it.”
Daniel nodded.
“I know.”
After he left, Andrew reviewed the evidence with his attorney. They prepared a formal report for the authorities and preserved the security footage, emails, and financial records.
But before the report could be submitted, Marcus called with a new discovery.
The medical file contained an authorization for a second test, signed after Emma's death.
The signature belonged to Victor Hale.
The test had never been completed.
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And the laboratory had recorded a note from the person who delivered the sample:
“Do not release results to the family.”
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