Chapter 6
He started at the beginning.
Six months ago.
He’d been at the hardware store on a Saturday morning.
A woman approached him.
Mid-fifties.
Expensive clothes.
Perfect hair.
She’d smiled and said, “Richard Hale. It’s been a long time.”
He didn’t recognize her.
Until she said her name.
“Victoria.”
She’d bought him coffee.
Sat with him for two hours.
Told him she’d been living in Europe.
Made a fortune in real estate.
Had come back to Boston to make amends.
And then she’d dropped the bomb.
“Evelyn has four million dollars hidden in seven different bank accounts. Money she inherited from your father-in-law. Money she never told you about. She’s been planning to divorce you for over a year, Richard. She’s going to leave you with the house and nothing else. You’ll spend the rest of your life trying to pay the property taxes on a pension that’s half what you need.”
My father had told her she was lying.
But then she’d showed him the bank statements.
The account numbers.
The balances.
And he’d believed her.
Because it explained everything.
Why Evelyn had been so distant lately.
Why she’d started spending more time with her lawyer.
Why she’d changed all her passwords.
“I felt like a fool,” he told me through the glass. “Thirty-eight years of marriage. And she’d been lying to me the whole time.”
Victoria had been sympathetic.
Told him she had a plan.
A way to protect himself.
“Megan works for Evelyn,” she’d said. “She’s been helping me gather evidence. We can move the money into accounts you control. Slowly. One transfer at a time. By the time Evelyn realizes what’s happening, it’ll be too late. And you’ll have the money to take care of yourself. No more living in her shadow.”
My father hesitated.
But Victoria had kept pushing.
Week after week.
Dinner.
Drinks.
Late-night phone calls.
She’d become his confidante.
His only friend.
And then the final push.
“Evelyn is going to change the will next week,” she’d told him three days before my mother collapsed. “She’s cutting you out entirely. Everything goes to Daniel. You’ll get nothing. Not even the house. We have to move now.”
The medication had been her idea.
Just enough to keep Evelyn confused and disoriented.
To make her seem incompetent.
To buy them time to move the rest of the money.
“I never wanted to hurt her,” my father whispered. “I just didn’t want to be poor. I didn’t want to be alone.”
I stared at him.
This man I’d admired my whole life.
Reduced to this by a woman he’d known six months.
By lies and fear.
“Did you know she was going to try to kill Mom last night?”
He flinched like I’d slapped him.
“No! God, Daniel, no. Victoria said the medication was harmless. Said it was the same stuff doctors give people for anxiety. I never would have touched that bottle if I’d known it could kill her. And last night… I had no idea she hired someone. If I’d known, I would have warned you. I would have done something.”
I believed him.
He was many things.
A fool.
A coward.
A man who’d made the worst mistake of his life.
But he wasn’t a killer.
“Dad. The DA is going to offer you a deal. Testify against Victoria. Tell them everything you know. And they’ll reduce the charges. Maybe manslaughter instead of attempted murder. Maybe even probation if you cooperate fully.”
He shook his head.
“Daniel, you don’t understand. Victoria has connections. People who do things for money. If I testify, she’ll find a way to get to me. Even in prison. And she’ll go after you. And Sarah. And Evelyn.”
“Then we put her in prison first.”
A guard knocked on the door.
“Five more minutes, Hale.”
My father leaned closer to the glass.
“There’s something else. Something I didn’t tell the police.”
“What?”
“Victoria has a son.”
I froze.
“A son?”
“He’s about your age. Maybe a little younger. She never told anyone who the father was. But she brought him back with her from Europe. He’s been here the whole time. Helping her.”
“What’s his name?”
“Ethan. Ethan Ward.”
“Ethan Ward.” I repeated the name. “Do you know what he looks like? Where he lives?”
“Victoria showed me a photograph once. Tall. Dark hair. Blue eyes. Works in finance somewhere downtown. She said he’s the brains behind the money transfers. The one who set up all the shell companies.”
Ethan Ward.
Another player.
Another person who’d been in the shadows this entire time.
“I’ll find him, Dad.”
“Be careful, Daniel. Ethan is worse than Victoria. Cold. Ruthless. She’s driven by revenge. He’s driven by profit. He doesn’t care who gets hurt as long as he gets paid.”
The guard opened the door.
“Time’s up.”
My father stood up.
“Daniel. Tell your mother I’m sorry. For everything. I was weak. And stupid. And I destroyed the only good thing I ever had.”
He hung up the phone.
And walked away.
I left the precinct with a new name burning in my brain.
Ethan Ward.
I called Sarah.
She picked up on the first ring.
“Hey. How is he?”
“A broken man. But he gave us something. Victoria has a son. Ethan Ward. Works in finance downtown. He’s the one who laundered the money.”
Sarah was quiet for three seconds.
“Ethan Ward. I know that name.”
“You do?”
“He’s an analyst at the same firm where my brother works. Second Vice President at Meridian Capital. Specializes in offshore structuring.” She paused. “And get this. He’s been dating Megan for the last eight months. We went to their housewarming party in April.”
My head spun.
We’d been in the same room as him.
Shaken his hand.
Drunk his wine.
And all the time, he’d been helping his mother destroy my family.
“Sarah. We need to find him. Now. Before he disappears like his mother and Megan.”
“I’m already on it. My brother says Ethan called in sick today. Said he had a family emergency. I have his address in Back Bay. Let’s meet there in twenty minutes.”
I hung up.
Started the car.
Ethan Ward.
Victoria’s son.
Megan’s boyfriend.
The mastermind behind the money.
May you like
And we’d had dinner at his house four months ago.
This just kept getting worse.
