Chapter 13 - The Man Who Was Supposed to Be DeadRichard's uncle, Jonathan Hawthorne, had supposedly died in a boating accident fifteen years earlier.
His body was never recovered.
The family accepted the death.
The fortune passed to Richard's father.
But Sarah had discovered something else.
Jonathan had secretly controlled several offshore companies.
Companies that were still active.
The detective searched international records.
One name appeared repeatedly.
J. Hawthorne.
Then a recent security photograph surfaced.
An older man.
Silver hair.
Cold eyes.
Standing outside the lodge in the forest.
Richard stared at the image.
“That's him.”
Sarah stepped closer.
“He's alive.”
The detective nodded.
“And he's been moving money through the Hawthorne network for years.”
Richard felt something inside him collapse.
The nightmare wasn't over.
Eleanor wasn't the mastermind.
Thomas wasn't the mastermind.
They were pieces.
Jonathan had been watching from the shadows.
Then the phone rang.
Richard answered.
Silence.
Then a man's voice.
“Hello, nephew.”
Richard froze.
Jonathan continued.
“You should have left the past buried.”
Richard's grip tightened around the phone.
“Where are you?”
A soft laugh.
May you like
“Closer than you think.”
The line went dead.
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