Chapter 14 - Daniel’s Deal
Daniel asked for a meeting after the toxicology report reached his attorney.
Not with police.
Not with ADA Brooks.
With me.
The answer should have been no.
ADA Brooks said the answer should have been no.
Detective Mercer used stronger language.
But Daniel’s attorney made the request formally, and Brooks saw an opportunity. If Daniel wanted to talk, he wanted something. If he wanted something, he was afraid of losing more than bail.
So we met in a controlled interview room at the DA’s office with cameras recording from three angles, attorneys present, and Detective Mercer standing behind the glass.
Daniel entered wearing county-issued clothing instead of a tailored suit.
I expected satisfaction.
I felt none.
Without the blue suit, the expensive shoes, the watch, Daniel looked almost ordinary. That offended me more than his arrogance had. Evil should look like something. It should announce itself. It should not share coffee with you for twenty years and remember your mother’s birthday.
He sat across from me.
“Marcus.”
“No.”
His eyebrows lifted.
“No?”
“You don’t get to say my name like we are still standing at my father’s funeral.”
Something flickered in his eyes.
Regret?
Fear?
Calculation?
With Daniel, they wore the same face.
He leaned back.
“I can give Brooks Vivian.”
“She already has Vivian.”
“Not really. She has smoke. I can give her structure.”
“Then give it.”
“I want protection.”
“You are in jail.”
“I want protection from Vivian.”
That got my attention.
Daniel’s fingers moved restlessly on the table. Without his ring, his hand looked naked.
“She doesn’t leave loose ends,” he said.
“Neither do I.”
He smiled faintly.
“There he is.”
I said nothing.
Daniel looked at the camera in the corner.
“I did not kill your father.”
The air changed.
My hand closed slowly.
“But you know who did.”
Daniel looked back at me.
“I know who arranged the meeting.”
“Preston.”
“Yes.”
“Who brought the sedative?”
His jaw tightened.
“I didn’t know what it was then.”
“Liar.”
“I knew they wanted him weakened,” Daniel snapped. “I thought they wanted leverage. A hospital scare. A delay. Thomas was going to remove me from the company.”
“So you watched.”
“I was twenty-nine.”
“So was I.”
The words hit him.
For the first time, Daniel looked away.
“Vivian was already involved,” he said. “Not directly. Through Preston. She wanted access to the patent structure. Your father blocked it. He saw through all of us.”
“All of us?”
Daniel swallowed.
“I wanted control. Preston wanted fees and influence. Vivian wanted the licensing rights.”
“And Celeste?”
“She came later.”
“How much later?”
He hesitated.
“Before the wedding.”
The room went very quiet.
I felt something inside me detach.
“Say that again.”
Daniel’s voice lowered.
“Celeste met me before she met you.”
For a moment, I heard nothing but the hum of the light above us.
“She targeted me?”
Daniel did not answer quickly enough.
I stood so fast the chair legs screamed against the floor.
His attorney moved.
ADA Brooks spoke sharply from the side.
“Mr. Hale.”
I leaned over the table.
“My marriage was part of this?”
Daniel’s face had gone pale.
“At first, no. She liked you. Maybe she even loved you in her way.”
“In her way.”
“But she knew you were useful.”
I laughed once.
It sounded nothing like me.
Daniel continued quickly.
“After your father died, the trust structure was too locked down. Evelyn became the key. But she was healthy, active, surrounded by friends. There was no opening. Then she had the stroke.”
“And you saw an opening.”
“Celeste did.”
I stared at him.
The man I had called my oldest friend had just handed me the final shape of my life.
My marriage.
My company.
My father’s death.
My mother’s abuse.
Not separate tragedies.
One long con that adjusted whenever opportunity appeared.
“Who gave my father the sedative?” I asked.
May you like
Daniel whispered one name.
“Preston.”
