Before I could offer a word of comfort, the dashboard screen lit up again.

The name *Daniel Pierce* flashed once more.

This time, Ethan did not decline it.

He swiped the screen, and the car’s speakers filled with the sound of a heavy sigh.

“Ethan,” Daniel’s voice came through, clear and remarkably calm. “I know you’re not at the house.”

Ethan did not speak. He just stared at the microphone on the rearview mirror.

“I know you took the records from the basement archives,” Daniel continued. “The security guard at the medical center is on my payroll, Ethan. He called me ten minutes ago.”

“You killed her,” Ethan said, his voice a low growl that didn’t sound like him at all. “You and Vance killed her for a signature.”

There was a long pause on the other end of the line.

Only the sound of the windshield wipers scraping against the glass broke the silence.

“That is a very dramatic way of looking at a tragic medical accident,” Daniel said, his tone chillingly conversational. “Vance made a mistake. I merely managed the fallout so your entire life’s work didn’t collapse.”