Chapter 11 - The Truth Daniel Hid
The ledger changed everything.
Walter Briggs had been diverting bakery money into shell accounts.
He had also tried to secretly purchase neighboring properties.
His plan had been simple.
Make the bakery appear unstable.
Pressure Samuel into selling.
Then profit when the developer bought the block.
Daniel had discovered the scheme.
But the ledger revealed something worse.
Walter had not worked alone.
Several payments were marked with the initials M.B.
Marcus Briggs.
Samuel looked at the dates.
“Marcus was twenty-six.”
Grace nodded.
“He was involved from the beginning.”
Noah turned another page.
His father had written a timeline.
Daniel confronted Walter.
Walter denied everything.
Daniel threatened to tell Samuel.
Then Daniel’s motorcycle brakes failed the next morning.
Grace covered her mouth.
“Daniel always said the brake line snapped.”
Samuel stared at Marcus’s initials.
The police reopened the old incident for review.
There was no guarantee they could prove sabotage after fourteen years.
But the ledger established motive.
Marcus reacted quickly.
By afternoon, his lawyer demanded the notebook be surrendered for authentication.
Samuel refused until police documented it.
Erica arrived just before closing.
She had been crying.
“My brother knows you found it.”
Samuel said nothing.
“He called me.”
Grace stepped closer.
“What does he want?”
Erica looked terrified.
“The original.”
Samuel’s voice hardened.
“He isn’t getting it.”
Erica shook her head.
“You don’t understand.”
“My father was afraid of Marcus.”
Noah watched her carefully.
“Your father?”
Erica nodded.
“Marcus started helping him with the accounts.”
“Then he started controlling everything.”
Samuel frowned.
“Why didn’t Walter tell me?”
“Because Marcus threatened to expose him.”
Erica wiped her face.
“My father stole first.”
“Marcus took over after.”
Grace looked at the ledger.
“So Walter was guilty.”
“Yes.”
Erica’s voice broke.
“But he tried to stop.”
She looked toward Noah.
“The night Daniel came to our house, my father gave him the ledger.”
Noah froze.
“He wanted Daniel to expose Marcus.”
Samuel whispered.
“Then Marcus went after Daniel.”
Erica nodded.
“I think so.”
A loud bang came from the alley.
Everyone turned.
Then the lights went out.
Lily screamed upstairs.
Noah ran toward the staircase.
Smoke began curling beneath the back door.
Samuel grabbed a fire extinguisher.
Grace shouted for Lily.
Erica pulled out her phone.
The smoke thickened.
May you like
Someone had set the bakery’s trash bins on fire.
And the flames were climbing toward the wooden rear wall.
