Chapter 8 - THE WOMAN WHO KNEW TOO MUCH
Victoria sat alone in the interrogation room.
No jewelry.
No designer clothes.
No perfect smile.
For the first time in years, nobody was watching the image she created.
Only the truth remained.
The door opened.
Detective Harris entered.
He placed a file on the table.
“You know this doesn’t look good.”
Victoria looked up.
“I know.”
“Millions transferred overseas.”
“False documents.”
“Attempted fraud.”
She remained silent.
The detective studied her.
“But there’s something strange.”
Victoria looked at him.
“What?”
“You never tried to escape.”
A small smile appeared.
“No.”
“Why?”
Victoria looked down.
“Because running would prove I was guilty.”
Detective Harris leaned forward.
“Are you?”
She didn’t answer.
Instead, she asked:
“Did Daniel find the letter?”
The detective frowned.
“What letter?”
Victoria closed her eyes.
Too late.
She had said too much.
“What letter?” Harris repeated.
Victoria looked away.
“I want a lawyer.”
But the detective already knew.
There was another story underneath.
Meanwhile, Daniel met with Michael at a private office downtown.
The lawyer placed a thick folder on the table.
“Victoria’s background.”
Daniel opened it.
At first, nothing seemed unusual.
Education.
Employment.
Family history.
Then he reached page seventeen.
And froze.
“Her real name…”
Michael nodded.
“Victoria Hale.”
Daniel looked confused.
“She changed it?”
“Yes.”
“Why?”
Michael pointed at an old newspaper article.
Daniel read the headline.
LOCAL WOMAN’S FAMILY DESTROYED AFTER BUSINESS COLLAPSE.
The article described a company that went bankrupt fifteen years earlier.
Owned by a man named Thomas Hale.
Victoria’s father.
Daniel looked at Michael.
“What does this have to do with me?”
Michael didn’t answer.
Daniel continued reading.
Then he saw the connection.
The company that destroyed Thomas Hale…
Was Whitmore Industries.
His father’s company.
Daniel slowly put the paper down.
“No.”
Michael nodded.
“Yes.”
Victoria’s family had lost everything because of his father’s business decisions.
Her childhood.
Her home.
Her future.
Daniel whispered:
“She married me for revenge.”
“Maybe.”
“But why wait five years?”
Michael looked at him.
“Because revenge is usually not about destroying someone immediately.”
A pause.
“It’s about getting close enough to destroy everything they love.”
Daniel felt sick.
Then his phone rang.
This time, it was his mother.
He answered immediately.
“Mom?”
Her voice was shaking.
“Daniel…”
“What happened?”
“I remembered something.”
“What?”
A long pause.
Then Evelyn whispered:
“Your father knew Victoria’s father.”
Daniel stood.
“What?”
“He didn’t just know him.”
Her voice cracked.
“They were friends.”
Daniel looked at Michael.
The lawyer’s expression changed.
“Mom, what are you saying?”
Evelyn whispered:
“Your father didn’t destroy her family.”
A pause.
“Someone else did.”
Daniel’s eyes narrowed.
“Who?”
His mother answered:
“The man who wanted your father’s company.”
Daniel already knew.
May you like
But hearing the name made it real.
“Robert Voss.”
