Your brother is not the man you think he is.
He did not destroy my business.
He destroyed something much more important.
And beneath those words was a final sentence.
One that made every hair on my arms stand upright.
Ask him what happened to Daniel Mercer.
At that exact moment, my mother’s phone began ringing downstairs.
We both looked toward the staircase.
It was 2:21 in the morning.
Mom whispered:
“Who would call at this hour?”
I walked downstairs.
The screen showed an unknown number.
I answered.
“Hello?”
For several seconds, there was only breathing.
Then a man’s voice spoke.
Low.
Older.
Terrified.
“Are you Iris Holloway?”
“Who is this?”
“I knew your father.”
My heart slammed against my ribs.
“Who are you?”
The man hesitated.
Then he said six words that changed the entire story.
“Your brother knows I’m still alive.”
The call ended.
I stood frozen in the kitchen.
Then my mother’s phone lit up again.
This time, it wasn’t a call.
It was a text message.
From Derek.
Iris, we need to talk.
A second message appeared.
I know what you found.
