Chapter 6 - The Man Who Remembered the Road
Victor Haines was sixty-two years old.
He sat in a wheelchair beside the window of a rehabilitation center, his right hand resting against a folded blanket.
Daniel expected to hate him.
For five years, Victor had been the man whose truck struck Rebecca's car.
The man who took his wife away.
The man whose name Daniel couldn't bear to read.
But the person sitting in front of him looked frightened and exhausted.
Detective Reed had arranged the meeting after Victor agreed to speak to investigators.
Daniel was there only with Victor's consent.
"I don't know if I can forgive you," Daniel said.
Victor looked down.
"I'm not asking you to."
Daniel sat opposite him.
"I need to know what happened."
Victor took a slow breath.
"I was working nights for a hauling company. Needed the money. My wife was sick."
Daniel nodded.
"Go on."
"A man offered me five thousand dollars to make a delivery that wasn't on my schedule."
"What kind of delivery?"
"He said I needed to follow a car for a few miles and report where it went."
Daniel's heart began pounding.
"Whose car?"
Victor's eyes filled with tears.
"Your wife's."
Daniel gripped the arm of his chair.
"Did they tell you to hit her?"
"No."
Victor shook his head.
"No, sir. They told me it was surveillance for a legal dispute. I was supposed to keep my distance."
"Then why did you cross the road?"
Victor covered his face.
"I was tired. I looked at my phone because the man was calling. I drifted over the line."
Daniel stared at him.
"You're telling me you killed my wife because you were checking a phone?"
Victor began sobbing.
"Yes."
For a moment, Daniel wanted to stand up and leave.
He wanted to scream.
He wanted to make Victor understand what it felt like to explain death to a two-year-old.
But Detective Reed had warned him that the interview could be emotionally difficult.
And Daniel needed the truth.
"Who hired you?"
Victor wiped his face.
"I never met him in person."
"Did he give you a name?"
"Mr. V."
Daniel exchanged a look with Reed.
"Adrian Vale?" the detective asked.
Victor hesitated.
"I didn't know his name then."
"Do you know it now?"
Victor nodded.
"After the accident, a man came to the hospital."
"What did he want?"
"He said I should admit I'd fallen asleep and forget the phone call."
Daniel's voice rose.
"Why?"
"He told me if I mentioned the surveillance job, they'd make sure I lost everything and my wife wouldn't get the care she needed."
"Did he pay you?"
Victor nodded.
"Not money I could keep. They paid bills."
Detective Reed leaned forward.
"Do you have records?"
"My daughter might."
"Will she speak to us?"
"Yes."
Daniel stared at the old man.
"Was the man Adrian Vale?"
Victor nodded.
"I saw his picture last night. I told the detectives it was him."
Daniel's eyes burned.
Rebecca hadn't died in a random accident.
She had been followed.
The driver had become distracted while carrying out that surveillance.
And then somebody had pressured him to conceal the connection.
Whether anyone intended the collision remained unanswered.
But the accident had not happened in isolation.
By the time Daniel left the rehabilitation center, he was shaking.
Peter met him outside.
"Daniel."
Daniel walked past him.
"Daniel, stop."
He turned.
"I should've been there."
"Where?"
"With Rebecca. At home. On that road. Somewhere."
Peter approached slowly.
"You didn't know what she was investigating."
"Because I didn't ask enough questions."
"You couldn't have anticipated this."
Daniel looked at him.
"I didn't anticipate Marissa either."
Peter didn't argue.
That was the worst part.
Meanwhile, Naomi faced another meeting with the school district.
This time, Marissa had submitted a formal complaint alleging professional misconduct.
The complaint included selective excerpts from Naomi's phone conversations with Daniel.
It claimed Naomi had interfered with a family custody matter and encouraged Lily to distrust her stepmother.
Naomi listened as the district attorney explained the allegations.
"Where did she get recordings of my calls?"
"We don't know yet."
Naomi thought of Rosa's camera.
The anonymous messages.
The possibility that somebody had been recording the family for months.
"Am I suspended?"
"You're being placed on temporary administrative leave while the district completes its review."
Naomi stared at him.
"With pay?"
"Yes."
"Can I contact Lily?"
"Not in your professional capacity until this is resolved."
Naomi's chest tightened.
She could handle being investigated.
She could handle losing time with the team.
But Lily had finally trusted an adult enough to tell the truth.
Now the person who had listened to her was being removed from school.
Principal Harper followed Naomi into the hallway.
"I'm sorry."
Naomi shook her head.
"Don't apologize. Just protect that little girl."
That evening, Lily found out Naomi wouldn't be at practice.
She was sitting at Rachel's kitchen table drawing when Daniel told her.
Lily put down her crayon.
"Because of me?"
"No."
"Because I told her about Marissa?"
"No, sweetheart."
"Then why?"
Daniel took a breath.
"Some grown-ups are checking to make sure everything was handled correctly."
Lily's eyes filled.
"Marissa said people get in trouble when they believe me."
Daniel reached for her hand.
"Lily, listen to me."
She pulled away.
"You said it was safe to tell."
"It was."
"Then why did Coach Naomi lose her job?"
"She hasn't lost her job."
"But she can't coach?"
"Not right now."
Lily slid off her chair.
"I shouldn't have said anything."
Daniel followed her into the living room.
"Lily."
She shook her head.
"I made everything bad."
Daniel crouched.
"No. Marissa made bad choices. You didn't."
Lily began crying.
"Then why does everybody keep getting hurt?"
Daniel had no answer that would erase what she'd seen.
So he sat beside her on the rug.
And for once, he didn't rush to explain.
He just stayed.
At 11:38 p.m., Peter called.
He'd received an emergency notice from the bank.
An attempted transfer had been rejected.
But the request had come through an unfamiliar business account tied to the Bennett property sale.
The submitted documents included a certificate of authority.
And a notarized statement supposedly signed by Daniel.
Peter had checked the notary commission.
The commission number was valid.
But it belonged to a notary who had died four months earlier.
Daniel stared at the screen.
"Somebody forged it."
"That's what the evidence suggests."
"Who submitted it?"
"The bank is preserving its records for investigators."
Daniel looked toward Lily's bedroom.
"Marissa's desperate."
Peter was quiet.
Then he said, "There's something else."
"What?"
"She filed a petition this afternoon."
"For what?"
"Emergency temporary guardianship of Lily."
Daniel's blood ran cold.
"On what grounds?"
"She claims you've become unstable and that Lily is at risk in your care."
Daniel nearly shouted.
"She's the one who abused her!"
"I know."
"Then how could a judge even consider it?"
"Filing a petition doesn't mean she'll win. We have the evidence, and we're responding."
Daniel paced the kitchen.
"When is the hearing?"
"Tomorrow morning."
He stopped.
"Tomorrow?"
"Yes."
Peter hesitated.
"And Daniel, the petition includes a sworn statement from someone who claims to have witnessed you mistreating Lily."
"Who?"
Peter's voice grew heavy.
"Your own sister."
Daniel went still.
"Rachel?"
"The statement bears her name."
From the hallway, a quiet voice interrupted.
"Daniel?"
He turned.
Rachel stood in the doorway holding her phone.
Her face was white.
"I just got an email saying I testified against you."
May you like
She shook her head.
"I've never signed anything."
