Chapter 12 - THE PAYMENT
“I didn’t make that payment,” Richard told Ortiz.
They met at the police station while Emily stayed with the boys. Priya joined by video and examined the record.
“It came from a company account,” she said. “The approval looks like it went through an old executive assistant’s login.”
Richard remembered the assistant. He had left Hawthorne Technologies a month before Grace died.
Priya traced the invoice. It was labeled as a consulting fee for a product launch that had never happened.
“Adrian submitted it,” she said. “Someone approved it without checking the work.”
Richard looked sick. “Did Grace know?”
Elaine brought out a copy of a note Grace had given her near the end of her pregnancy. Grace suspected Adrian had been paid after threatening to expose private company information. She had asked Elaine to investigate quietly.
“She didn’t want another fight while she was expecting,” Elaine said. “We found the payment, but not who authorized it. After she died, you asked me to focus on the trust.”
Richard rubbed his face. Every path seemed to lead back to something he had stopped asking about.
Ortiz explained that the old payment might show how Adrian had first gained access to company information. It did not change what the boys had experienced this week, but it gave investigators another trail to follow.
Back at the hotel, Richard found Emily helping Liam tape a drawing to the wall. It showed five stick figures beside a house: three small ones, Emily in a blue dress, and Richard standing a little apart.
Liam noticed where his father was looking.
“I didn’t know if you wanted to stand next to us,” he said.
Richard swallowed. “I do.”
Liam picked up a marker and drew a long line from Richard’s hand to Ethan’s.
Richard sat down beside him.
A little later, Emily received a call from Rachel. The officers had told her she could go home, and she planned to stay with a classmate for a few days. Her voice was steady, but Emily could hear the exhaustion beneath it.
“I’m sorry,” Emily said.
“You didn’t cause this,” Rachel replied. “You kept those boys safe. I’m proud of you.”
After they hung up, Emily stepped onto the balcony for air. Richard followed a few minutes later.
“Rachel okay?”
“She will be.”
He leaned on the railing, leaving space between them. “When this is over, I want to make things right with you.”
Emily shook her head. “Start with your sons.”
“I am.”
“Good.”
Inside, Noah called for her. Emily went back in.
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Richard stayed on the balcony until Elaine phoned with news: Victoria wanted a deal, and she had offered to identify the person who approved Adrian’s old payment.
It was someone Richard still employed.
