Chapter 3 - THE WOMAN WHO KNEW TOO MUCH
The flash drive contained hundreds of files.
Financial records.
Emails.
Names.
Dates.
Transfers.
My father's company had been receiving payments from several contractors.
Some were legitimate.
Others weren't.
Ethan called someone he trusted.
A Navy legal officer.
I called the Air Force inspector general liaison I had known for years.
Neither wanted details over the phone.
By afternoon, we were in a secure conference room.
The evidence was worse than I expected.
My father hadn't simply hidden money.
He had used family members to move it.
Madison's car.
My mother's medical bills.
Even my scholarship.
I stared at one spreadsheet.
My scholarship had been funded by an account connected to one of his companies.
Then I saw the date.
The transfer occurred three days before my ROTC appointment.
He had used my success as a cover.
My mother had discovered it.
She had wanted to expose him.
Then she got sick.
I remembered her final months.
How often my father told her to rest.
How often he answered her phone.
How often she looked at me like she wanted to say something.
I had thought she was afraid of dying.
Maybe she had been afraid of leaving me alone with him.
That evening, Madison called.
I almost didn't answer.
“Why?”
Her voice was shaking.
“Why did you let Ethan embarrass me?”
I stared at the wall.
“I didn't.”
“You knew what would happen.”
“No.”
“You ruined my engagement.”
“You did that yourself.”
Silence.
Then she whispered:
“Dad says you're trying to destroy him.”
“I haven't done anything.”
“You found Mom's box.”
I froze.
“How do you know?”
She didn't answer.
“Madison.”
“I heard them talking.”
“Who?”
“Dad and his attorney.”
My stomach tightened.
“What did they say?”
“He wants the flash drive.”
I looked at Ethan.
“Why?”
“Because it proves something.”
“What?”
“I don't know.”
Her voice broke.
“I'm scared, Avery.”
That was the first time my sister had ever admitted that to me.
“Where are you?”
“At home.”
“Leave.”
“What?”
“Get somewhere safe.”
“I can't.”
“Why?”
“Because Dad is here.”
The line went dead.
I stood.
Ethan was already moving.
We reached Madison's house forty minutes later.
The front door was open.
Madison stood inside.
She looked terrified.
Our father was sitting in the living room.
Two attorneys sat beside him.
He looked at me.
“You always were dramatic.”
I stared at him.
“Let Madison go.”
“She is my daughter.”
“So am I.”
His face tightened.
“You stopped being my daughter when you chose the military over this family.”
“No.”
I stepped forward.
“You stopped being my father when you chose your reputation over the truth.”
He stood.
For a moment, nobody moved.
Then he smiled.
“Your mother poisoned you against me.”
I froze.
“My mother?”
“Yes.”
“She left evidence.”
His smile disappeared.
I pulled out my phone.
“I have copies.”
That was a lie.
But he didn't know that.
He took one step toward me.
“You don't understand what you're doing.”
“I understand enough.”
One of his attorneys whispered something.
My father looked at him.
Then back at me.
“You have no idea how dangerous this is.”
I answered quietly.
“Neither did the six men trapped under that deck.”
His face changed.
He knew.
He finally understood that I remembered everything.
May you like
And suddenly, the family war wasn't about an engagement party.
It was about twelve years of lies.
