Chapter 8 - The Second Phone
Digital forensics opened Vanessa’s second phone.
Most messages had been deleted.
Not all.
The contact labeled G appeared repeatedly.
Ruiz traced the number.
Gregory Vale.
The Howard family’s longtime estate manager.
Adrian trusted him.
Margaret adored him.
I barely knew him.
Gregory handled property maintenance.
Insurance.
Private staffing.
Security vendors.
He had access to almost everything Vanessa needed.
Camera schedules.
Floor plans.
Insurance policies.
Trust correspondence.
The missing puzzle pieces began connecting.
Gregory had disabled two hallway cameras the month before.
He had approved replacement locks near Adrian’s study.
He had requested copies of family medical emergency procedures.
And three weeks earlier, he had increased the liability insurance on the staircase.
When Ruiz confronted him, Gregory denied wrongdoing.
Then she showed him the messages.
Vanessa:
The landing is still covered?
Gregory:
Only during events.
Vanessa:
And cameras?
Gregory:
Normally off upstairs.
Vanessa:
Good.
Ruiz asked:
“What were you planning?”
Gregory insisted he thought Vanessa was preparing a “private confrontation.”
Then another message appeared.
Vanessa:
If E is gone before the birth, the branch stays open.
Gregory:
You said no one gets hurt.
Vanessa:
I said no one will know.
Gregory asked for an attorney.
The interview ended.
Adrian sat beside me afterward.
“I brought him into our house.”
“So did Margaret.”
“So did I.”
He nodded.
For the first time, he was not trying to distribute blame.
That mattered.
Then Ruiz said:
“We think Gregory helped her manipulate the security system.”
“Did he know about the push?”
“We don’t know.”
“Did he know about Lucas?”
Ruiz’s expression changed.
“That is what makes this bigger.”
Gregory had also worked for Lucas Mercer’s family.
Five years earlier.
May you like
At the lake house.
The night Lucas fell.
