Chapter 14 - THE FILE WITH MY NAME
The accusation sounded absurd.
Until Collins showed me the file.
Raymond had emailed a copy to Mom as leverage.
It contained messages supposedly sent from my military email account to Dad.
They referenced technical specifications.
Ship maintenance schedules.
Procurement information.
Material that, if authentic, could end my career.
I stared at the screen.
“I never sent these.”
Collins nodded.
“We expected you’d say that.”
“They’re fake.”
“Probably.”
“Probably?”
“We need forensic confirmation.”
My stomach twisted.
For years, I had built my reputation around trust.
One forged leak could destroy it before truth caught up.
“What does Ray want?”
“The sale.”
“Of course.”
Helen reviewed the company documents.
Raymond had a buyer waiting.
If I signed within ten days, the deal could close.
If not, financing expired.
That gave him a deadline.
It also gave us leverage.
I asked to contact my command before anyone else did.
I reported the forged emails.
I submitted my devices for review.
I told the truth before Raymond could weaponize a lie.
My commanding officer listened quietly.
Then said something I needed more than I expected.
“Your father taught you well.”
I closed my eyes.
“You knew him?”
“Met him once.”
“When?”
“At your promotion ceremony.”
I remembered.
Dad talking too long with everyone.
Proud enough to embarrass me.
My commanding officer continued.
“Handle your family.”
“We’ll handle your record.”
For the first time in days, I breathed normally.
Cyber specialists confirmed the messages were forged within forty-eight hours.
Raymond’s leverage disappeared.
So he changed tactics.
He called me directly.
“Claire.”
I recognized his voice immediately.
“Where are you?”
“You sound like a cop.”
“You sound like a fugitive.”
He laughed.
“You always were Thomas’s favorite.”
“Is that why you killed him?”
Silence.
Then.
“Careful.”
“Did Lawson give Dad the extra dose?”
“Lawson is a coward.”
“That wasn’t my question.”
“Your father was dying.”
“So you decided the timing?”
Another silence.
I looked at Collins.
She was recording everything.
Raymond continued.
“Thomas was going to destroy sixty years of family work because he hated me.”
“No.”
“He didn’t trust you.”
“Same thing.”
“No.”
“That difference is why you never understood him.”
Raymond’s breathing changed.
I had hit something.
“You think that uniform makes you better than us?”
There it was.
Not money.
Not entirely.
Resentment.
Dad’s approval.
My career.
Control.
Family grudges cultivated for decades.
“What do you want?”
“You know.”
“I’m not selling.”
“You haven’t heard the offer.”
“I heard enough.”
“Then maybe you should hear what really happened to your father.”
My heart stopped.
“What do you mean?”
“Lawson didn’t give him the final dose.”
I gripped the phone.
“Who did?”
May you like
Raymond laughed softly.
“Ask your mother what she poured into his water.”
