Chapter 15 - Ethan’s Secret.
Serena refused to answer.
Rachel called the police while Ethan contacted his private security team.
Mara stayed near the office door, watching Serena’s hands.
No one raised their voice.
The quiet made the room more dangerous.
Ethan’s security chief arrived within twelve minutes.
He brought two investigators and a portable evidence kit.
Serena protested immediately.
“You cannot search this property.”
“We’re not searching without permission,” Rachel said.
“We are preserving material voluntarily shown to us while law enforcement is on the way.”
Serena looked at the black case.
“You have no right to that.”
“Then don’t touch it,” Rachel replied.
Mara almost admired how calmly lawyers could threaten people with grammar.
Ethan stepped into the hallway.
Mara followed.
“We need to finish the conversation,” she said.
“I know.”
“What did you know before tonight?”
Ethan looked through the glass wall toward the empty dining room.
“Three weeks ago, my internal audit team flagged unusual payments tied to one of the seller’s subsidiaries.”
“Northstar.”
“Yes.”
“Why didn’t you stop the acquisition?”
“Because the payments were too small to explain the valuation gap.”
“So you kept looking.”
“Yes.”
“And you came here to inspect Aurelia.”
“No.”
Mara frowned.
“The reservation was made seven weeks ago.”
“Before the audit flag.”
“That’s true.”
“So dinner really was dinner.”
“At first.”
Mara stared at him.
“What does that mean?”
“After the audit report, Daniel suggested I keep the reservation.”
“Why?”
“He said seeing the flagship restaurant as a normal customer might be useful.”
Mara’s expression hardened.
“And you agreed.”
“Yes.”
“So Daniel steered you here after Northstar was flagged.”
Ethan closed his eyes briefly.
“Yes.”
“And you still don’t want to call him guilty.”
“I want to call him exactly what the evidence proves.”
Mara crossed her arms.
“What does it prove?”
“That he lied about being at Aurelia.”
“That he had access to my schedule.”
“That his initials appear beside Claire’s escape.”
“That someone using company credentials connected to his access level initiated a fraudulent payment.”
“And that he told me not to trust you before he could know what you had said.”
Mara nodded.
“Sounds great for him.”
Ethan looked at her.
“It also proves Claire met him voluntarily six months ago.”
Mara fell silent.
“That matters.”
“Yes.”
Ethan leaned against the wall.
“There’s something else I didn’t tell you.”
Mara gave a tired laugh.
“At this point I’d be concerned if there wasn’t.”
“Northstar appeared in one of my company’s internal investigations four years ago.”
Mara’s expression changed.
“Four years?”
“Yes.”
“Before Claire disappeared.”
“Yes.”
“What happened?”
“The investigation was closed.”
“Why?”
“Insufficient evidence.”
“Who closed it?”
Ethan’s jaw tightened.
“My predecessor.”
“Who was that?”
“My father.”
Mara stared at him.
Ethan continued before she could ask.
“He died the following year.”
“I’m sorry.”
“Thank you.”
His voice stayed even.
“I found the old report after the new audit flag appeared.”
“Did your father know about Aurelia?”
“I don’t know.”
“Did Daniel work for him?”
“Yes.”
Mara’s eyes narrowed.
“Now we’re getting somewhere.”
Ethan looked at her.
“Daniel joined Cole Meridian under my father.”
“How close were they?”
“Very.”
“Closer than Daniel is to you?”
Ethan did not answer immediately.
“Yes.”
Mara thought about Claire meeting Daniel.
Maybe Daniel had not been protecting Northstar.
Maybe he had been trying to finish something Ethan’s father started.
Or maybe that was exactly the story someone wanted them to believe.
A security investigator approached.
“We found something in the black case.”
Ethan and Mara followed him back into Serena’s office.
Rachel had opened Victor’s sealed folder in Serena’s presence.
Inside were photographs, printed emails, and access logs.
One photograph showed Daniel entering Aurelia with Claire two years earlier.
Another showed Ethan’s father meeting Serena in Private Room Three four years ago.
Ethan went completely still.
Mara looked at him.
“You said you didn’t know whether your father knew Aurelia.”
“I didn’t.”
Serena watched Ethan with a strange expression.
Not triumph.
Pity.
Rachel lifted the final document from the folder.
It was a handwritten note signed with Ethan’s father’s initials.
The message contained one sentence.
IF NORTHSTAR SURVIVES ME, DO NOT LET ETHAN BUY THE ARCHIVE.
Ethan stared at the words.
Claire had given him the same warning in different language.
Mara looked at Serena.
“What archive?”
May you like
Serena finally answered.
“The one hidden inside the acquisition.”
