CHAPTER 4: THE LETTER HER HUSBAND DIED TO PROTECT
CHAPTER 4: THE LETTER HER HUSBAND DIED TO PROTECT
Marcus broke the seal.
Inside was a handwritten letter.
The paper was old.
The ink had faded.
It began with one sentence.
Lily, if you're reading this, I may already be dead.
Marcus stopped breathing.
He continued.
Someone inside Green Enterprises is stealing millions through fake contractor accounts.
I found the records by accident.
Daniel Brooks isn't the real boss.
He's taking orders from someone much higher.
If I disappear... don't go to the police immediately.
They've already paid people to look the other way.
Hide the flash drive.
Protect Sophie.
Trust no one wearing an expensive suit.
Signed,
Ethan Parker
Marcus read the final line twice.
Trust no one wearing an expensive suit.
A bitter smile crossed his face.
He was wearing one.
Rachel arrived moments later.
"You found something."
Marcus handed her the letter.
She read silently.
Then looked up.
"Flash drive?"
Marcus nodded.
"If Ethan was right, someone is still looking for it."
Rachel's eyes widened.
"The apartment wasn't searched for valuables."
"It was searched for evidence."
At that exact moment...
Daniel Brooks entered the underground parking garage.
A luxury black SUV waited with its engine running.
He climbed inside.
The man in the back seat never showed his face.
"Well?"
Daniel wiped sweat from his forehead.
"Marcus knows about Lily."
"And?"
"She's in surgery."
The unseen man was silent for several seconds.
Then asked one question.
"Did her husband ever tell her where he hid the drive?"
"I don't think so."
"You don't think?"
Daniel's voice cracked.
"We searched everything."
The man's gloved hand tapped the leather armrest.
"Then search the child."
Daniel looked horrified.
"Sophie?"
"Children hide things adults overlook."
"If the drive exists..."
"...it's probably already in her backpack."
Daniel's blood ran cold.
Back upstairs...
Sophie hugged the faded purple backpack tightly.
Marcus noticed she hadn't let go of it once.
Not in the lobby.
Not in the car.
Not in the hospital.
Never.
He remembered Ethan's letter.
Hide the flash drive.
A terrible thought entered his mind.
"Sophie..."
She looked up.
"Can I ask you something?"
She nodded.
"Did your daddy ever give you something to keep safe?"
The little girl became unusually quiet.
Very slowly...
She unzipped the smallest pocket of the backpack.
Reached inside.
And pulled out...
A worn purple teddy bear with one button eye missing.
"I've had him forever."
Marcus smiled gently.
"He's cute."
"My daddy said..."
She hugged the bear tighter.
"...never let anyone fix his tummy."
Marcus's smile disappeared.
His eyes locked onto the uneven stitching running across the teddy bear's stomach.
Someone had sewn it shut by hand.
Just then—
The lights in the pediatric waiting area flickered.
One.
Two.
Three times.
The security alarms suddenly went offline.
Rachel looked toward the hallway.
"Marcus..."
Three men dressed as hospital maintenance workers were walking calmly toward them.
None of them looked at the nurses.
None of them looked at the patients.
They were looking only at one thing.
May you like
The little girl...
...and the purple teddy bear in her hands.
