Chapter 18 - WHAT THE RECORDER HEARD
The officers entered before Owen reached the door.
They secured the recorder under the authority they had obtained while the meeting was underway.
He demanded an explanation.
They gave him one.
Then they took him for further questioning.
At first, I thought we had won.
Leah stopped me from saying it.
“We have the card.
We haven’t heard it.”
The audio was rough.
My voice came first, practicing a wedding toast that now hurt to hear.
“I never expected to find someone who made this house feel—”
A pause.
Footsteps.
Elise’s voice.
“Ethan, come look at something.”
I remembered leaving the desk.
The recorder remained on it.
The office door was open.
Our voices grew faint as we crossed toward the landing.
Then Owen.
“We need to speak before tomorrow.”
My recorded voice sounded irritated.
“About what?”
“The waiver.”
“I told you Leah is reviewing it after the wedding.”
A scrape.
Elise said, “Owen, don’t.”
Then a heavy impact.
My shout.
The sound of me falling.
For several seconds, nobody in the interview room moved.
Then Owen’s voice came through again.
“Get his phone.”
Elise was crying.
“You said you were only going to scare him.”
“Go downstairs.”
The recording ended when someone handled the device.
I looked at the investigator.
He didn’t give me a verdict.
He said they would compare the audio with physical evidence and the statements already obtained.
That was enough.
We had something that could be tested.
Leah sent notice of the recovered evidence to the board.
The acquisition was paused.
Calder withdrew its deadline.
I finally let myself breathe.
Then Nora called.
A scheduled transfer had already begun moving Briar funds through an overseas intermediary.
It had been set to execute if the acquisition was delayed.
Millions could disappear before the banks completed their reviews.
May you like
Owen had planned for failure too.
And the approval attached to the transfer carried my name.
