Chapter 6 - THE WOMAN RYAN TRUSTED MOST
Margaret Collins was sixty-seven.
Widowed.
Elegant.
Respected.
The woman who had raised Ryan and Evan after their father died.
The woman currently sleeping inside Ryan’s house with Ava one room away.
Ryan called Maya immediately.
“Get my daughter out of that house.”
“Why?”
“Now.”
Police arrived within nine minutes.
Margaret appeared confused.
Ava was unharmed.
Ryan reached the house twenty minutes later.
Margaret stood in the living room surrounded by officers.
“What is happening?”
Ryan stared at her.
“Evan says you’re the architect.”
Margaret’s expression did not move.
“He’s been shot.”
That changed her.
“How badly?”
“Why?”
“He’s my son.”
“So am I.”
Silence.
Ryan had never spoken to his mother that way.
Margaret lowered herself into a chair.
“Evan is frightened.”
“He says you built the financial scheme.”
“He’s lying.”
“Emily suspected you.”
Margaret looked up sharply.
That reaction was tiny.
But Ryan saw it.
“You knew Emily was investigating.”
Margaret stood.
“Your wife was paranoid about Evan.”
“She was right.”
“About some things.”
Ryan felt cold.
“What does that mean?”
Margaret turned toward the windows.
“Your father left this company buried in debt.”
Ryan frowned.
“What?”
“When he died, Collins Development was weeks from collapse.”
“That isn’t true.”
“It is.”
Margaret explained that she began moving money through unreported partnerships twenty years earlier.
At first, she claimed it was temporary.
A way to protect projects.
Then the company recovered.
But the hidden financial network became useful.
She used shell corporations for political payments.
Quiet land purchases.
Bribes.
Anything that kept Collins Development growing.
Ryan stared at her.
“You built a criminal enterprise.”
“I built what you inherited.”
“And Daniel?”
“I never ordered anyone to hurt Daniel.”
“Emily?”
“No.”
Ryan watched her carefully.
Margaret did not look away.
For the first time, he believed her.
At least partly.
“Then who did?”
Margaret’s voice dropped.
“Natalie became more dangerous than I expected.”
“You knew her?”
“Yes.”
“How long?”
“Seven years.”
Ryan laughed bitterly.
Everyone had known Natalie except him.
Margaret said Natalie had originally worked for a law firm that helped structure offshore accounts.
She learned about the Collins network.
Then she began stealing from it.
Evan became useful.
Daniel became dangerous.
Emily became more dangerous.
Ryan felt sick.
“You knew Natalie might have killed Daniel and still let me marry her?”
Margaret’s composure broke.
“I didn’t know you were seeing her until you were already serious.”
“You could have told me.”
“I was afraid she would expose everything.”
Ryan stared at his mother.
“So you let her into my daughter’s home.”
Margaret looked down.
“You protected the company.”
No answer.
“Not Ava.”
Margaret started crying.
Ryan felt nothing.
Maya entered.
“We need Margaret downtown.”
Margaret stood.
Before leaving, she turned.
“There’s something else.”
Ryan said nothing.
“Natalie didn’t meet you by accident.”
“I know.”
“No.”
Margaret shook her head.
“You don’t.”
May you like
Ryan waited.
“She knew Emily was dead before the police told you.”
