Chapter 4 – Isabella’s Final Insurance
The rain began just before dawn.
Daniel hadn't slept.
The image of the black SUV following Isabella's car replayed in his mind over and over. Every time he closed his eyes, he imagined her driving alone, unaware that someone she trusted might have been behind her.
Detective Laura Bennett sat across from him at the dining table, reviewing every file Michael Turner had brought.
"This isn't enough for an arrest," she admitted. "But it's enough to reopen Isabella's case."
Daniel nodded slowly.
"I don't want revenge."
Laura looked at him carefully.
"I just want the truth."
Upstairs, Sofia finally smiled for the first time in days.
She was drawing with her crayons while Mateo watched over her.
"What are you making?" he asked.
"Our family."
Mateo looked at the picture.
Daniel stood in the middle.
Isabella stood beside him with bright yellow wings.
Sofia and Mateo held hands.
Rebecca wasn't in the drawing.
Sofia quietly said,
"Mommy told me angels never really leave."
Mateo forced a smile.
"I think she's still watching us."
Neither of them noticed Daniel standing quietly outside the bedroom door.
His eyes filled with tears.
That afternoon, Laura received a call from the state forensic laboratory.
"The metadata on Rebecca's phone messages is fake," the technician reported.
"They weren't created years ago."
"They were generated just three weeks ago using editing software."
Laura smiled grimly.
"So she forged everything."
"There's more."
The technician lowered his voice.
"We also recovered deleted GPS data from the phone."
"It places Rebecca..."
"...on Black Ridge Road."
"...twenty-three minutes before Isabella's crash."
Laura's expression hardened.
Now they had something real.
Meanwhile, Michael Turner drove Daniel to an old storage facility on the edge of town.
"I rented this unit for Isabella," Michael explained.
"She told me that if anything happened to her..."
"...I was only to open it after Rebecca exposed herself."
Daniel frowned.
"She expected this?"
Michael unlocked the rusted metal door.
"I think she feared it."
Inside were dusty boxes stacked neatly against the walls.
Most contained family photographs.
Children's drawings.
Old birthday decorations.
But in the far corner sat a small fireproof safe.
A yellow envelope rested on top.
Written across it in Isabella's unmistakable handwriting were the words:
For Daniel. Only when you finally know Rebecca lied.
Daniel's hands trembled as he broke the seal.
Inside was a handwritten letter.
My dearest Daniel,
If you're reading this, it means I wasn't paranoid.
Rebecca finally tried to destroy our family.
I prayed I was wrong.
I prayed this letter would never be needed.
But if I'm gone...
please don't blame yourself.
I hid things from you because I thought I could protect everyone alone.
That was my greatest mistake.
Rebecca wasn't always like this.
After our parents died, she changed.
She became obsessed with money...
with status...
and with anything that belonged to someone else.
When you inherited your father's company, she stopped seeing you as family.
She saw you as a prize.
If anything happens to me...
don't stop searching.
Because my accident...
wasn't the first attempt.
Daniel stopped reading.
His breathing became uneven.
"What does she mean?" he whispered.
Michael looked down.
"There was another incident."
"When Sofia was a baby."
Daniel stared at him.
"No one ever told me."
"Because Isabella begged me not to."
Michael opened another box.
Inside lay photographs of a wrecked SUV.
Glass everywhere.
The front brakes had been deliberately cut.
Daniel's knees nearly gave out.
"Someone tried to kill her..."
"...twice."
Michael nodded.
"And both times..."
"...Rebecca was nearby."
Across town, Rebecca sat alone in her hotel room.
A television reporter appeared on the screen.
Authorities Officially Reopen the Death of Isabella Morgan Following New Evidence.
Rebecca switched the television off.
For the first time...
her hands shook.
Then her burner phone vibrated.
A text from K.
The warehouse has been compromised.
They're getting closer.
Rebecca closed her eyes.
Then she whispered one chilling sentence.
"Then no witnesses can be left alive."
At that exact moment...
Daniel's home security system suddenly went offline.
May you like
Every camera...
went black.
