CHAPTER 10 — The Voice on the Tape
The sound of Marcus's footsteps disappeared into the forest.
Silence settled over the shattered greenhouse.
Broken glass glittered across the stone floor like scattered ice.
Daniel helped Emma to her feet.
"Are you sure you're not hurt?"
Emma nodded, though her hands wouldn't stop shaking.
"I'm okay."
But she wasn't.
Not really.
Every new answer seemed to uncover three more questions.
Who was Sarah?
Why had Richard Ashford felt responsible for her?
And why had someone risked murder...
...just to steal an old cassette tape?
Marcus returned fifteen minutes later.
Alone.
Breathing heavily.
"He got away."
Daniel wasn't surprised.
"Anything?"
Marcus held up a black object.
"I found this."
It was a spent rifle cartridge.
Ethan accepted it carefully.
He examined the brass casing beneath a magnifying lens.
"No serial number."
Marcus sighed.
"So it's untraceable."
Ethan shook his head.
"Not completely."
He pointed to microscopic scratches around the base.
"Every firearm leaves unique markings."
Daniel nodded.
"So if we ever find the rifle..."
"We'll know."
Emma remained kneeling beside the shattered cedar box.
She carefully gathered the remaining contents.
The photograph.
Richard's letter.
One loose sheet of folded paper she hadn't noticed before.
"Daniel..."
He turned.
"This was underneath the envelope."
She unfolded it carefully.
Unlike the other documents...
This page contained no handwriting.
Only a map.
A hand-drawn map of the Ashford estate.
One location had been circled repeatedly.
The old observatory.
Marcus frowned.
"I forgot we even had one."
Daniel looked toward the northern hill.
"My grandfather built it."
"It hasn't been opened in years."
At the bottom of the map...
Three handwritten words appeared.
Second copy inside.
Ethan's eyes widened.
"The tape."
Daniel nodded.
"There was always a backup."
Meanwhile...
Several miles away...
A black SUV sped down an isolated mountain road.
The masked shooter removed his gloves.
In his hand...
The stolen cassette tape.
He smiled.
"Too late."
The driver glanced over.
"Are you sure?"
The man laughed quietly.
"They'll never hear it."
He rolled down the window.
Without hesitation...
He threw the cassette into a rushing river below.
The tape disappeared beneath the current.
Gone forever.
Or so he believed.
Back at the mansion...
Claire had regained enough strength to speak.
Daniel entered her room carrying Richard's letter.
"We found another box."
Claire closed her eyes.
"So Richard remembered."
Daniel sat beside her.
"Who is Sarah?"
Claire smiled sadly.
"The bravest woman I ever knew."
Daniel waited.
Claire looked toward the window.
"Sarah Lawson."
Daniel frowned.
"Lawson?"
She nodded.
"The wife of Dr. Henry Lawson."
Daniel's heart skipped.
"So Henry Lawson..."
"...is Emma's father?"
Claire didn't answer immediately.
Instead...
She whispered,
"He doesn't know she's alive."
Daniel stared.
"What?"
Claire nodded.
"Victoria told him Emma died during the laboratory fire."
Silence.
Daniel slowly stood.
"For nine years..."
"You let a father believe his daughter was dead?"
Tears filled Claire's eyes.
"I didn't have a choice."
"They were killing everyone."
"If Henry knew..."
"...they would have killed him too."
Outside the room...
Emma had heard everything.
Her knees weakened.
She leaned against the wall.
A father.
Alive.
Somewhere.
Who believed she had died as a child.
She covered her mouth to stop herself from crying.
Her entire identity had been built on lies.
Downstairs...
Ethan finished analyzing the envelope from the greenhouse.
He suddenly called out.
"Daniel!"
Daniel hurried downstairs.
"What?"
Ethan turned his laptop.
"I recovered an invisible imprint."
Marcus frowned.
"From what?"
"The missing cassette."
Daniel looked confused.
"How?"
Ethan smiled faintly.
"When paper sits beneath handwritten notes for years..."
"It keeps pressure marks."
He adjusted the image.
Slowly...
Indented writing appeared.
Not perfect.
But readable.
Daniel leaned forward.
"What does it say?"
Ethan read aloud.
If you're listening...
It means I failed to protect Emma.
Claire's voice.
She had recorded the tape herself.
More lines appeared.
Henry...
Forgive me.
Emma gasped.
It was addressed to her father.
Daniel continued reading.
Emma survived.
Victoria doesn't know where she is.
The room became still.
Claire had hidden Emma successfully.
At least...
For a while.
Then the final recovered sentence appeared.
Ethan's expression changed.
"What?"
Daniel asked.
Ethan swallowed.
"The last line..."
He enlarged the image.
Every letter became visible.
Daniel read it silently.
His face lost all color.
Marcus noticed.
"What is it?"
Daniel looked toward Emma.
Then quietly spoke.
"Claire didn't hide Emma..."
"...alone."
Emma frowned.
"What do you mean?"
Daniel turned the screen so everyone could see.
The recovered sentence read:
Daniel's father isn't the only Ashford who helped us.
Silence.
Marcus whispered,
"Another Ashford?"
Daniel slowly nodded.
"But there was only one person..."
"...who had access to every laboratory."
Emma looked at him.
"Who?"
Daniel answered with growing disbelief.
"My grandfather."
At that exact moment...
The grandfather clock in the mansion's foyer struck noon.
Twelve deep chimes echoed through the house.
Claire suddenly sat upright in bed.
"No."
Daniel rushed to her.
"What?"
She looked terrified.
"The observatory."
"What about it?"
Claire grabbed his arm.
"If Richard left a second copy there..."
"...they already know."
Daniel frowned.
"How?"
Claire's breathing became frantic.
"Because..."
"...there was someone else in the laboratory that night."
Silence.
Emma stepped closer.
"Who?"
Claire looked directly into her eyes.
"The person who betrayed us."
Daniel asked the question everyone feared.
"Who was it?"
Claire opened her mouth to answer.
Then—
BANG!
A deafening explosion shook the entire mansion.
The floor lurched beneath their feet.
Windows shattered across the west wing.
Smoke poured into the hallway.
Emergency alarms screamed.
Marcus grabbed his radio.
"What happened?"
A terrified guard shouted back.
"The observatory!"
"It's exploding!"
Daniel's eyes widened.
Whoever was hunting the truth...
Had just destroyed the next piece of evidence.
May you like
And they had arrived...
Only minutes before him.
