Chapter 9: The Last Bellamy Secret
The emergency lights flickered on.
Paul moved immediately.
“Stay behind me!””
The investigator closed the laptop and secured the USB drive in a protective case.
Daniel pulled Olivia away from the entrance.
I reached for my phone.
No signal.
“Paul, what's happening?””
“Someone has disabled the main security system.””
He looked down the corridor.
“I have two guards outside. I'm trying to reach them.””
A metallic crash echoed from the far end of the building.
Olivia grabbed my arm.
“Eleanor, we need to leave.””
“Not without the evidence.””
Rachel held up the case.
“I have it.””
Paul nodded.
“Then we're moving.””
We exited through the rear corridor.
The storage facility had a second loading entrance used by delivery trucks. Paul led us toward it, keeping one hand near his radio.
As we reached the exit, a figure appeared in the doorway.
A man in a black jacket.
He looked directly at us.
Then he raised his phone.
“Andrew wants the documents.””
Paul stepped forward.
“Move.””
The man didn't.
“I don't think you understand.””
Paul pushed him aside.
The man stumbled against the wall.
We rushed through the exit.
Outside, rain fell heavily.
Two security vehicles were parked beside the loading bay.
One guard stood near the passenger door.
The other was nowhere to be seen.
“Where's Michael?”” Paul shouted.
The guard pointed toward the far side of the building.
“He went to check the power room.””
Paul cursed under his breath.
“Get everyone into the vehicles.””
I turned toward the building.
A shadow moved behind the glass.
Then a voice called my name.
“Eleanor!””
I looked up.
Andrew Bellamy stood beneath the loading entrance canopy.
His expensive coat was soaked.
His expression was furious.
“Give me the drive!””
I stepped forward.
“No.””
He laughed.
“You have no idea what you're holding.””
“I know exactly what I'm holding.””
“You think a few old recordings will destroy us?””
“Your father threatened mine. Your family helped forge ownership documents. Your brother-in-law's associates stole millions from my company.””
Andrew shook his head.
“Richard is an idiot. Thomas is a coward. James is a professional liar. But you're making a mistake if you think I'm the one you should be worried about.””
“Then who?””
He smiled.
“Daniel.””
I turned.
Daniel stood beside the vehicle.
“Don't listen to him.””
Andrew laughed.
“Of course you'd say that.””
He looked at his brother.
“You've always been very good at pretending to be the honorable one.””
Daniel stepped forward.
“Andrew, this is over.””
“No. It isn't.””
Andrew pointed toward me.
“Tell her what happened to Dad.””
Daniel's expression changed.
I looked between them.
“What does he mean?””
Andrew smiled.
“Ask your dear friend Daniel why our father signed that agreement with Robert Hayes.””
Daniel shook his head.
“Andrew, stop.””
“Tell her!””
I looked at Daniel.
“Explain.””
He took a breath.
“Our father discovered that Andrew had been using Northbridge to acquire businesses through false authorizations.””
Andrew laughed.
“That's not the whole story.””
Daniel continued.
“He created Meridian Legacy Partners with your father to protect the assets.””
“Why didn't you tell me?””
“Because I didn't know it existed until today.””
Andrew stepped closer.
“That's convenient.””
Daniel ignored him.
“Eleanor, I swear to you, I had nothing to do with the fraud.””
Andrew shook his head.
“Then why did you approve the first transfer?””
Silence.
I stared at Daniel.
“What transfer?””
Andrew reached into his coat and produced a document.
“Four years ago, Daniel approved a payment to Northbridge Capital.””
Daniel looked furious.
“That was a legitimate investment.””
“Was it?””
Andrew held up the document.
“Twenty million dollars. Approved through Bellamy Holdings. Transferred to a company that later acquired shares in Hayes Meridian Group.””
My heart stopped.
I turned toward Daniel.
“Did you invest in my company?””
He nodded.
“Yes.””
“When?””
“Four years ago.””
“Why didn't you tell me?””
“Because it was a minority investment made through an independent fund. I wasn't involved in the management.””
I stared at him.
“You've been an investor in my company for four years, and you've been negotiating its acquisition without disclosing your position?””
Daniel looked pained.
“I was going to tell you.””
“When?””
“Before the agreement closed.””
I shook my head.
“You keep saying that.””
Andrew laughed.
“Welcome to the Bellamy family business.””
Daniel moved toward him.
“Shut up.””
Andrew raised both hands.
“See? That's the real Daniel. The man who believes he can control every conversation because he's the chairman.””
Paul stepped between them.
“Enough. Everyone into the vehicles.””
Andrew backed away.
“This isn't finished, Eleanor.””
I looked at him.
“No. It isn't.””
He smiled.
“Good. Because there's one thing you still haven't discovered.””
He turned toward Daniel.
“Tell her who really arranged the first meeting with her father.””
Daniel's expression went blank.
Andrew leaned closer.
“It wasn't our father.””
He pointed at Olivia.
“It was hers.””
I turned toward my sister.
Olivia's face had gone completely white.
“What is he talking about?””
She shook her head.
“I don't know.””
Andrew smiled.
“Ask Olivia why she was at the Bellamy estate the night Robert Hayes died.””
I felt the world tilt.
“Olivia?””
She looked at me.
Then at Andrew.
Then she began crying.
“Eleanor, I was seventeen.””
My throat tightened.
“What happened?””
She shook her head.
“Dad asked me to deliver something.””
“What?””
“A folder.””
“What folder?””
“The original trust agreement.””
I stared at her.
“Why?””
“He said he wanted me to give it to Andrew's father.””
Daniel stepped forward.
“Olivia, what are you saying?””
She wiped her face.
“I went to the estate. Andrew was there. His father was there. Richard was there.””
I felt my stomach turn.
“What happened?””
“They argued. Dad arrived later. He told me to leave.””
“Did you?””
She nodded.
“But before I left, I heard Andrew's father say that Dad had to be stopped.””
Andrew's expression changed.
“That's a lie.””
Olivia continued.
“I went back inside because I forgot my purse. I saw Andrew standing near the study.””
She looked directly at him.
“He was holding Dad's phone.””
Andrew stepped forward.
“Enough.””
Paul moved between them.
Olivia's voice trembled.
“He told me Dad had collapsed. He said not to tell anyone about the documents because it would destroy the family.””
I stared at her.
“Why didn't you tell me?””
“Because Andrew said he would make it look like I'd stolen the trust agreement. He said you'd lose everything if I spoke.””
I felt tears burning behind my eyes.
“Did you see Dad alive?””
Olivia nodded.
“Before I left, yes.””
“Did you see him after he collapsed?””
She shook her head.
“No.””
Andrew laughed.
“You have no proof.””
Olivia looked at him.
“I kept the voicemail.””
Andrew froze.
“What voicemail?””
“The one you left me that night.””
She took out her phone.
Her fingers trembled as she opened an old recording.
The date was eleven years earlier.
She pressed play.
Andrew's voice emerged.
“Olivia, listen carefully. Your father is refusing to cooperate. We need the original documents. If he won't hand them over, we'll find another way.””
A pause.
Then:
“Don't tell Eleanor. She'll interfere.””
The recording ended.
Andrew's face changed.
Daniel stared at his brother.
“Did you threaten Robert?””
Andrew looked at him.
“You don't understand what happened.””
“Did you threaten him?””
Andrew said nothing.
I stepped forward.
“Did you have anything to do with my father's death?””
Andrew's eyes met mine.
Then he smiled.
“Your father died because he couldn't accept that the world had changed.””
Paul moved closer.
“That's enough. You're coming with us.””
Andrew suddenly turned and ran toward the far end of the parking lot.
One of the guards intercepted him.
Andrew struggled, shouting that nobody had the authority to detain him.
Paul called the police.
Within minutes, officers arrived.
Andrew was taken away for questioning.
Richard Whitmore was arrested later that evening after investigators discovered that he had attempted to destroy several financial records.
Thomas Mercer and James Holloway were also placed under investigation.
But the most important discovery came two hours later.
At the police station, Olivia handed over the original voicemail and a separate file recovered from the storage unit.
The file contained an email from Andrew to Richard, dated the morning after my father's death.
*The problem has been handled. Robert will not be signing anything. Make sure the original trust documents disappear.*
Beneath it was Richard's reply.
*What about the daughters?*
Andrew had answered:
*They won't know what they're entitled to. Not unless we let them.*
I read the messages twice.
Then I looked at Daniel.
He was standing across the room, speaking quietly with his legal team.
I approached him.
“Daniel.””
He turned.
“Yes?””
“Your brother has been involved in this for eleven years.””
He nodded.
“I know.””
“Your father knew?””
Daniel hesitated.
“I believe he suspected it.””
I looked at him.
“And you?””
He lowered his eyes.
“I knew Andrew was dishonest. I didn't know how far he'd gone.””
I studied his face.
For the first time, I couldn't tell whether he was telling me the truth.
My phone rang.
It was Melissa Grant, the forensic accountant.
“Eleanor, we've found something important.””
“What?””
“The original acquisition agreement has been modified.””
I frowned.
“Modified how?””
“Someone inserted an additional clause into the final version.””
“What clause?””
“An automatic transfer of your controlling shares to Northbridge Capital if the acquisition closes.””
My blood went cold.
“Who inserted it?””
Melissa paused.
“We traced the document revision history.””
I gripped the phone.
“And?””
“The modification was made from a device registered to Bellamy Holdings.””
I looked toward Daniel.
He was watching me.
Melissa continued.
“But there's a problem.””
“What problem?””
“The revision wasn't made by Andrew.””
I felt my heart pound.
“Then who?””
She read the name.
“Daniel Bellamy.””
I lowered the phone.
Daniel stepped toward me.
“Eleanor, what's wrong?””
May you like
I looked at him.
And for the first time since this nightmare began, I wondered whether the man who had helped me uncover the truth had been guiding me toward a trap all along.
