Chapter 4
Marcus was already running when I reached the hospital corridor.
His mother's room was on the seventh floor.
My wrist throbbed.
My knees burned.
But I followed him anyway.
We reached the elevator just as the doors closed.
Marcus slammed the button.
"Come on!"
I looked at the photograph on his phone.
Evelyn lay in the hospital bed.
Her eyes were closed.
The image had clearly been taken from inside the room.
Someone had been close enough to photograph her.
My stomach twisted.
"Call security."
Marcus pulled out his phone.
Within seconds, he was speaking to the hospital's security department.
He explained the threat.
The photograph.
The attempted attack.
Then he called Detective Walker.
She told him to avoid confronting anyone and wait for security personnel.
He nodded.
But his hands wouldn't stop shaking.
When the elevator opened, two hospital security officers were already waiting.
They escorted us toward Evelyn's room.
The door stood partially open.
Marcus froze.
"Mom?"
A nurse stepped out.
"Mr. Whitmore?"
He rushed forward.
"Is she okay?"
The nurse looked confused.
"Yes. She's resting."
Marcus exhaled.
I nearly collapsed with relief.
Then he showed her the photograph.
Her expression changed.
"Who took this?"
"We don't know."
She called the charge nurse.
Within minutes, hospital security began reviewing access records and camera footage.
Evelyn woke during the commotion.
When she saw Marcus, she reached for him.
"Baby?"
He knelt beside her bed.
"I'm here."
She looked frightened.
"What happened?"
He hesitated.
Then showed her the message.
Her face drained of color.
"Oh, God."
I stood near the doorway.
She looked toward me.
"Nia."
I stepped closer.
"Yes, ma'am?"
She reached for my hand.
"Please don't leave."
I felt my throat tighten.
I had met Evelyn only hours earlier.
Yet she held my hand as though I were someone she'd known for years.
I sat beside her.
"I'm here."
She looked toward Marcus.
Then whispered, "Vanessa knows."
He frowned.
"Knows what?"
Evelyn closed her eyes.
"The accounts."
Marcus leaned forward.
"Mom, what did you find?"
She swallowed.
"She moved money."
I felt the room go still.
"How much?" Marcus asked.
Evelyn hesitated.
Then whispered, "Forty-six million dollars."
My heart stopped.
Forty-six million.
I couldn't even imagine that amount.
Marcus stared at her.
"What?"
Evelyn nodded.
"Over six years."
He looked devastated.
"Why didn't you tell me?"
"Because I wanted proof."
I watched her struggle to breathe evenly.
She continued.
"I hired an independent forensic accountant last month."
Marcus squeezed her hand.
"And?"
"The preliminary report came yesterday."
Her eyes filled.
"Vanessa diverted funds through companies I didn't recognize."
I felt sick.
Marcus looked toward the hospital door.
"Then we need to give the records to the police."
Evelyn nodded.
"Yes."
Then she gripped his sleeve.
"But there's something else."
He leaned closer.
"What?"
She looked frightened.
"Camille."
Marcus went completely still.
Evelyn continued.
"She's involved."
His face changed.
"Mom, are you sure?"
Evelyn nodded.
"Vanessa introduced her to you."
I stared at Marcus.
He looked devastated.
Evelyn continued.
"I thought it was coincidence."
Her voice cracked.
"But now I know Vanessa arranged it."
I felt cold.
Marcus shook his head.
"No."
Evelyn began crying.
"Camille was supposed to marry you and gain access to the family trust."
Marcus stared at her.
His face was pale.
The wedding.
The expensive ceremony.
The beautiful bride.
The perfect photographs.
All of it might have been part of a plan.
I felt sick.
Then I remembered the envelope.
Daniel had handed Vanessa something before the push.
I looked at Evelyn.
"Did Vanessa threaten you with documents?"
She turned toward me.
"What?"
"Before she pushed you, my supervisor gave her an envelope."
Evelyn's eyes widened.
"Daniel Price?"
I nodded.
She covered her mouth.
"Oh, no."
Marcus looked between us.
"Mom?"
Evelyn whispered, "Daniel was supposed to deliver evidence to my attorney."
I stared at her.
"What evidence?"
"Copies of the financial records."
My heart pounded.
Evelyn continued.
"I asked him to help because I believed he was trustworthy."
I felt betrayed.
Daniel had been my supervisor for three years.
He had controlled my schedule.
Scolded me for minor mistakes.
And now he was involved in something that could have killed a woman.
I looked at Marcus.
"Why would he give the evidence to Vanessa?"
Evelyn shook her head.
"I don't know."
Then she whispered, "Unless she paid him."
The room fell silent.
A security officer entered.
"Mr. Whitmore?"
Marcus stood.
"Yes?"
"We reviewed the hallway footage."
My stomach tightened.
"What did you find?"
The officer looked serious.
"A woman entered this floor wearing medical scrubs."
I froze.
"Who?"
He held up a tablet.
The image showed a woman walking toward Evelyn's room.
Her face was partly hidden behind a surgical mask.
But something about her movements looked familiar.
Marcus leaned closer.
Then his face changed.
"Camille."
I stared at him.
"Your bride?"
He nodded slowly.
The woman who was supposed to marry him had entered his mother's hospital floor in disguise.
I felt cold all over.
The officer continued.
"She left before hospital staff could identify her."
Marcus rubbed his face.
Then whispered, "She came back to finish it."
Detective Walker arrived shortly afterward.
She examined the footage.
Then asked us to remain inside the secured area while officers searched for Camille.
I sat beside Evelyn.
She held my hand.
Her fingers trembled.
I looked at her.
"You're safe here."
She shook her head.
"Not until the truth comes out."
Then she looked toward Marcus.
"Baby, I need to tell you something about the trust."
He leaned forward.
"What?"
Evelyn took a shaky breath.
"I changed the beneficiary instructions last week."
Marcus frowned.
"Why?"
"Because I discovered Vanessa's transfers."
I felt my heart pounding.
She continued.
"I moved certain assets into a protected structure pending review."
Marcus nodded slowly.
"And?"
Evelyn looked directly at me.
Her eyes filled.
"One of the people helping me investigate was someone who had no idea how much danger she was in."
I froze.
"What?"
Evelyn squeezed my hand.
"Nia, your supervisor wasn't the only person collecting evidence."
My stomach tightened.
She continued.
"You've been helping my investigators without knowing it."
I stared at her.
"How?"
Evelyn looked toward Marcus.
Then whispered, "The missing documents from the housekeeping department."
I stopped breathing.
Because suddenly, I remembered the strange incidents at the hotel.
The misplaced invoices.
The missing staff records.
The locked storage room.
And the anonymous message that made me start recording on the rooftop.
May you like
Someone had been using my ordinary work to uncover a financial crime.
And now the people responsible knew my name.
