Chapter 6
Richard claimed the correspondence box contained nothing important.
Matteo did not believe him.
“Where is it?”
Richard’s nostrils flared.
“Gone.”
Matteo’s fingers slowly turned the ring on his hand.
Richard watched the motion.
His voice lost some certainty.
“What are you going to do?”
Matteo looked at him.
“Find out whether you're lying.”
Forensic review of the old estate inventory showed the box had never been formally destroyed.
A mover remembered transferring it to a private storage unit used by Hayes Security.
The unit still existed.
Richard’s attorney objected to any informal search.
Matteo agreed.
That surprised him.
No threats.
No men breaking locks.
Matteo’s lawyer obtained access through the storage company and property records because the unit’s lease had lapsed into a Vaughn-controlled corporate account years earlier.
The box was still there.
Inside were envelopes.
Elena’s handwriting.
Some addressed to Matteo.
Some to attorneys.
Three to Veronica.
Matteo held the first envelope for several seconds before opening it.
His hand was steady.
His breathing was not.
Elena had written:
You keep telling me Richard can fix this quietly. I no longer want it fixed quietly.
Matteo stopped reading.
Veronica stood across the room.
Her eyes filled.
Richard looked toward the door.
The second letter was worse.
Elena accused Richard of using Vaughn vendor accounts to move money.
She asked Veronica to help her preserve proof.
The third letter had never been opened.
It was addressed to Matteo.
He broke the seal.
Halfway through, he stopped.
Elena wrote that she feared Matteo’s instinct would be to “punish the nearest liar” instead of understanding why everyone around him had learned to hide bad news.
Matteo read that line twice.
Then reached the final paragraph.
One sentence had been underlined.
If anything happens to me, do not let Richard near Lily’s trust accounts.
Matteo looked up.
Richard’s face had gone white.
May you like
The old fraud had not merely involved security invoices.
Elena believed her daughter’s money was next.
