Chapter 13 - THE FATHER WHO DIED PROTECTING US
Victor Voss had not been the villain Catherine feared.
He had been the person who helped her survive.
That was what I learned over the following days.
After Catherine threatened to expose Nathan Whitmore's financial crimes, Victor discovered that someone intended to silence her.
He arranged for her to leave the lake house.
A trusted doctor helped her recover from injuries sustained during an attack.
Her identity was changed.
And she disappeared into a new life.
But Nathan found a way to keep her silent.
He convinced her that her baby had died.
Victor tried to correct the lie.
Then he began receiving threats against Adrien.
His own son.
Catherine looked toward him.
"Your father was trying to protect both of us."
Adrien sat motionless.
For seven years, he'd believed Victor died because of a business dispute.
Now he understood his father had been attempting to expose a conspiracy.
"What happened to him?" Adrien asked.
Catherine looked down.
"He planned to give investigators the original financial records."
"And?"
"He never made it to the meeting."
Adrien closed his eyes.
The evidence recovered from the lake house helped investigators reopen the circumstances surrounding Victor's death.
Financial transfers, witness statements, and old communications connected Martin Hayes and Nathan Whitmore to efforts to obstruct the investigation.
The case grew rapidly.
Several former employees came forward.
Evelyn Shaw agreed to cooperate.
Daniel Mercer provided records showing who paid him to fire me.
And Michael Carter submitted the documents he'd spent decades hiding.
For the first time, the truth was stronger than the people trying to bury it.
Then investigators discovered another extraordinary detail.
Nathan Whitmore had been using the Whitmore Children's Foundation to conceal control of multiple family trusts.
Twenty-three beneficiaries.
Millions of dollars.
Decades of unauthorized transactions.
The entire operation had been designed to keep legitimate heirs from controlling their assets.
I wasn't the only victim.
Other families had been robbed.
Other children had grown up without knowing who they were.
Other mothers had been separated from their children.
The discovery made me furious.
Not because of my inheritance.
Because of everyone else.
I looked at Adrien.
"We need to help them."
He nodded.
"Yes."
"All of them."
"We'll help them find independent legal support and recover whatever records are available."
I took a breath.
"Good."
But then Rebecca called.
Her voice was tense.
"Sophie, Nathan Whitmore has been arrested."
I closed my eyes.
Relief washed through me.
Then she continued.
"He's offered a statement."
My stomach tightened.
"What kind?"
"He claims Catherine wasn't the only woman forced to disappear."
I stared.
"What?"
Rebecca took a breath.
May you like
"He says there are other mothers still alive."
And suddenly, the investigation had become much bigger than my family.
