Chương 7
“I don’t know what to say.”
“That’s new.”
He looked at her.
She gave a small shrug.
“You usually know what to say.”
“Usually I’m talking to people who don’t know what they’re doing.”
“And now?”
Daniel looked at the screen.
“Now I’m talking to someone who might know more than me.”
The admission sat between them.
Rachel softened.
Only slightly.
But he noticed.
“You can ask for a meeting.”
“He might not want one.”
“He emailed you.”
“That doesn’t mean he trusts me.”
“No.”
Rachel picked up the water bottle she had bought earlier.
“It means he wants something.”
Daniel stared at the message.
That was the part that bothered him.
Everyone wanted something.
Lauren wanted him to stop digging.
Michael wanted him to know something.
The person who entered his house wanted whatever was inside that folder.
Even Rachel wanted something.
Maybe not from him.
Maybe from the truth.
But still.
Everyone had a reason.
Everyone had a side.
His phone buzzed.
A text message appeared.
Unknown number.
Daniel opened it.
Do not reply to Michael.
Rachel saw his face change.
“What now?”
He turned the phone toward her.
The message had no name.
No context.
Just the warning.
Rachel read it twice.
“Did they know he emailed you?”
Daniel looked at the laptop.
The question bothered him more than the threat.
Because it meant someone was watching.
Or someone had access.
“Check the account,” Rachel said.
Daniel nodded.
He moved quickly this time.
Not because he was certain.
Because uncertainty had finally become something he could work with.
He checked login history.
Recent activity.
Connected devices.
There were two unfamiliar sessions.
One from earlier that evening.
One from three days ago.
Rachel watched his expression.
“What?”
“Someone accessed my account.”
“Can you see who?”
“No.”
“Can you find out?”
“Maybe.”
The word sounded different than it used to.
Less confident.
More honest.
Rachel noticed.
“You changed.”
Daniel kept looking at the screen.
“I’m scared.”
She did not respond immediately.
He almost wished she would argue.
Tell him he was being dramatic.
Tell him he had handled worse.
Anything would have been easier.
Instead, she sat beside him.
“I know.”
The simple answer hurt more than comfort.
Because she was right.
He was scared.
Not just because someone had broken into his home.
Not just because his job was disappearing.
He was scared because the one thing he trusted most about himself had always been his ability to see clearly.
Now every conclusion felt like a trap.
“I should call Michael,” he said.
Rachel nodded.
“Then call him.”
“What if it makes things worse?”
“It might.”
He looked at her.
“You’re supposed to say it won’t.”
“No.”
A small smile appeared.
“You’re terrible at encouragement.”
“I’m excellent at encouragement.”
“That is a lie.”
“I’m excellent at realistic encouragement.”
“That’s not a thing.”
“It is tonight.”
For a moment, the fear loosened.
Only for a moment.
Then Daniel called.
The number from the email appeared automatically.
The phone rang once.
Twice.
Three times.
Daniel almost expected voicemail.
Then someone answered.
Neither person spoke.
Finally, a voice came through.
Older than Daniel remembered.
Tired.
“Hello?”
Daniel swallowed.
“Michael?”
Silence.
Then a quiet breath.
“Daniel Carter.”
The way Michael said his name carried something Daniel could not place.
Not anger.
Not relief.
Something in between.
“I got your email.”
“I figured you would.”
“Why now?”
Another pause.
Michael had always been careful with words.
That was one of the reasons Daniel had trusted him.
He never rushed to fill silence.
“Because they took the folder.”
Daniel froze.
Rachel looked at him.
“What folder?”
Daniel ignored her.
“How do you know about that?”
“Because I had the same folder.”
The room felt smaller.
“What are you talking about?”
“The reports.”
Michael’s voice dropped.
“The copies. The emails. Everything you found.”
Daniel stood.
“You had them?”
“I had evidence.”
“Of what?”
“Of the changes.”
Daniel walked away from the desk.
“Then why didn’t you say anything?”
A long silence followed.
When Michael answered, his voice was quieter.
“I did.”
The words hit harder than Daniel expected.
“What?”
“I told them.”
“Who?”
“Everyone who needed to know.”
Daniel shook his head.
“That doesn’t make sense.”
“It does if you understand what happened.”
“Then explain it.”
Michael exhaled.
“I was twenty-nine years old. I had a mortgage, a newborn daughter, and a company that controlled my entire career.”
Daniel said nothing.
“I thought telling the truth would protect me.”
Michael laughed softly.
There was no humor in it.
“I was wrong.”
Daniel looked at Rachel.
She was listening now.
Not because she knew Michael.
Because she understood fear.
“What did they do?”
“They made it about me.”
Michael’s voice tightened.
“They said I misunderstood the data. They said I was unstable. They said I was angry because I didn’t get promoted.”
Daniel closed his eyes.
The details felt familiar.
Too familiar.
“Who said those things?”
“You already know.”
Lauren.
Neither of them said the name.
They did not need to.
“Why didn’t you fight?”
The question came out harsher than Daniel intended.
Michael was quiet.
Then he answered.
“Because I was tired.”
Daniel looked down.
A memory surfaced.
Michael sitting alone in the cafeteria after a meeting.
A half-eaten sandwich untouched beside him.
Daniel had walked past.
He had noticed.
He had chosen not to ask.
Because he was busy.
Because he assumed someone else would.
“I’m sorry,” Daniel said.
Michael did not respond.
The silence was worse.
“I should have listened.”
“No.”
Daniel frowned.
“No?”
“You should have asked.”
The words were not cruel.
That made them harder.
“I needed someone to ask.”
Daniel sat down slowly.
Rachel looked away.
Giving him privacy without leaving.
“What happened to the evidence?”
Michael hesitated.
“I kept copies.”
Daniel looked at the missing drawer.
“Where?”
“Somewhere safe.”
“Michael.”
“No.”
The firmness surprised him.
“I’m not telling you over the phone.”
“Why?”
May you like
“Because if someone is inside your accounts, they may be listening.”
Daniel looked at his laptop.
