Chapter 2 - The Flash Drive She Refused to Surrender
Evelyn looked at her husband for a long moment.
Then she asked a question that made his expression change.
"If I tell you where the flash drive is, Nolan, will you give it to the police?"
He stared.
"What?"
"You heard me."
His jaw tightened.
"Evelyn, somebody nearly killed you."
"And somebody has been stealing money from injured dockworkers. I want to know whether you care about that as much as you care about me."
He stepped backward.
For six years, Nolan had been accustomed to protecting Evelyn from his business affairs. He told himself that keeping her away from the darker parts of his life was an act of love.
Now she was looking at him as though those locked doors had helped create the danger.
"Of course I care," he said.
"Then answer."
Nolan looked toward the rain-streaked windows.
"I'll have the evidence examined."
"By your people?"
"By someone qualified."
"Someone independent?"
Silence.
Evelyn gave a weary smile.
"That's what I thought."
She tried to sit down.
A sharp pain caught beneath her ribs.
Her knees buckled.
Nolan caught her before she struck the floor.
"Enough."
"Nolan—"
"You're going to a hospital."
She began protesting, but he was already calling for medical assistance.
This time, however, he looked at her before making another decision.
"Will you let me help you?"
Evelyn stared at him.
Then nodded.
"Yes."
The emergency physician examined Evelyn that night.
Imaging confirmed multiple rib fractures and significant bruising. Fortunately, no immediate internal bleeding was identified, but the doctor explained that the injuries required monitoring, appropriate pain management, and recovery time.
Nolan stood beside the bed looking as though someone had emptied his entire world.
"How long before she's better?" he asked.
The doctor gave a measured explanation.
Then turned to Evelyn.
"Have you been able to breathe comfortably at home?"
"Not entirely."
"Why didn't you seek treatment sooner?"
Evelyn looked toward her husband.
"Because I was afraid."
Nolan closed his eyes.
The doctor asked whether Evelyn wanted to speak privately.
She said yes.
Nolan immediately stepped outside.
That hurt him.
But he went.
Near two in the morning, Evelyn was resting when Nolan returned.
He placed a chair beside her bed.
For a while, neither spoke.
Then Evelyn whispered, "You want to know what happened at Warehouse Twelve?"
"Yes."
She looked at the ceiling.
"I found the ledger behind the electrical cabinet, just where Martin said it would be. There was a small flash drive taped inside the back cover."
Nolan leaned closer.
"I heard someone come in through the loading entrance."
"Who?"
"I couldn't see his face."
Her voice trembled.
"I heard him talking on the phone. He said the accountant's wife had better not be there."
Nolan frowned.
"Accountant's wife?"
Evelyn nodded.
"Whoever sent him was expecting Martin's wife, not me."
"What happened next?"
"I hid behind the old conveyor machinery. When I tried to get out, someone grabbed my shoulder."
Nolan's hands curled into fists.
"I fought him. He shoved me against a metal rack. I fell onto the edge of a loading platform."
She touched her injured side.
"Then he kicked me."
Nolan's face went white.
Evelyn looked at him sharply.
"Don't."
He stared.
"Don't what?"
"Turn this into an excuse to kill someone."
For several seconds, he said nothing.
Then he slowly relaxed his hands.
"Did you see anything about him?"
"A tattoo. On his wrist."
"What kind?"
"Three black stars."
Nolan became motionless.
Evelyn saw it immediately.
"You know who that is."
He didn't answer.
"Nolan."
His voice came out barely above a whisper.
"Only one man in my organization has that tattoo."
"Who?"
Nolan stared at her.
"Caleb Rourke."
Evelyn frowned.
"Your security director?"
He nodded.
The man who had personally inspected the mansion's security system.
The man who had driven Evelyn to appointments.
The man Nolan once described as the most trustworthy person in Boston.
Evelyn closed her eyes.
"Then Martin was right."
Nolan stared at her.
"About what?"
She opened her eyes again.
"Someone inside your family is destroying it."
The following morning, Evelyn requested an independent attorney through the hospital.
Her name was Rebecca Hale.
Evelyn authorized Rebecca to arrange secure preservation and independent analysis of the evidence.
Nolan watched quietly.
He wanted to ask where she'd hidden the flash drive.
He wanted to take the investigation into his own hands.
But then he remembered her question.
Will you give it to the police?
For the first time, Nolan understood that protecting Evelyn meant allowing her to make decisions he couldn't control.
As Rebecca prepared to leave, Evelyn caught her sleeve.
"There's something else."
The attorney turned.
"What?"
"Martin didn't call me only because I'm an accountant."
"Why else?"
Evelyn swallowed.
"Because eleven days before he disappeared, he told me something about Nolan's father."
Nolan looked up.
His father, Victor Voss, had been dead for eight years.
"What did he say?"
Evelyn looked directly at her husband.
May you like
"He said Victor Voss didn't die from natural causes."
And suddenly the missing fourteen million dollars seemed like only the first secret waiting to be uncovered.
