The line went dead.

I stared at the black screen of my phone, my heart racing.

I wanted to feel angry at her, but all I felt was cold dread.

Daniel’s anger had always been a slow, calculated burn, but this was different.

He was desperate.

I knew what lay in those old files from our early development projects.

We had taken out construction loans that never seemed to align with the actual progress on the waterfront site.

At the time, Daniel had laughed it off as creative accounting to keep the subcontractors happy.

Now, with Robert’s forensic team tearing through the corporate ledger, those anomalies would look very different.

I paced the small kitchen, the floorboards groaning under my boots.

Outside, the wind rattled the single-pane windows, spraying fine sea mist against the glass.

I checked on the children once more.

They were both fast asleep, untroubled by the storm gathering around their father.

I sat at the kitchen table and opened my laptop.

My email inbox was empty, but I knew Robert was working late at his city office.