Chapter 7: The Record They Could Not Erase
“Take your hand off her,” Matteo said.
The officer locked Liana’s second wrist.
“Mr.
Varric, Dr.
Cole says these women entered restricted areas and stole patient files.”
“They exposed fraud involving my foundation.”
Cole spread his hands.
“He’s grieving.
They have manipulated him.”
Leah held out Sofia’s recorder.
“Listen to this.”
The officer took it, pressed a button, and frowned.
“It’s empty.”
Leah’s face drained.
“No.
I played it less than an hour ago.”
Jonas checked the device.
“The memory card is gone.”
Cole looked at Liana.
“Your sister has made accusations before.
She was dismissed for altering records.”
“You dismissed me after I found yours,” Leah said.
The officer guided Liana toward the door.
Marcus appeared at the end of the corridor in a clean suit.
“Thank goodness you’re safe, sir,” he told Matteo.
“These women disabled the mansion cameras and attempted to take Nico.”
Liana stopped walking.
“You held a g*n near him.”
“Do you have proof?”
Jonas lifted his phone.
The screen was black.
Marcus smiled.
“Security devices are unreliable during power failures.”
For one terrible moment, nobody moved.
Cole stood beside Marcus, and the officers kept their hands on Liana and Leah.
Then Walter cleared his throat.
“Hospital devices are less temperamental.”
He pointed to a small camera over the archive door.
Cole laughed.
“That system hasn’t worked in years.”
“It didn’t,” Walter said.
“I repaired it last month after you cut my hours.”
A police sergeant entered behind him.
“Release both women.”
The first officer stiffened.
“Sergeant?”
“Your body camera transmitted everything, including Dr.
Cole offering a settlement and admitting the records were changed.”
The cuffs opened.
Liana rubbed her wrists.
Marcus backed toward the stairwell.
“Cole acted alone.”
Cole stared at him.
“You gave me the account numbers.”
“You have no evidence of that.”
Matteo raised his phone.
“Sofia’s recording was automatically copied when I played it.”
Sofia’s voice filled the corridor once more.
“Marcus knows I found the transfers.
Adrian Cole signed every false discharge.”
Marcus lunged for the phone.
Jonas caught his arm.
“You were paid to protect this family,” Jonas said.
“I built this family’s security,” Marcus snapped.
“Without me, Matteo would have lost everything years ago.”
“You took my wife,” Matteo said.
Marcus stopped fighting.
“You cannot prove the crash,” he replied.
Leah opened the ledger to a marked page.
“Payment to the mechanic who serviced Sofia’s car.
The transfer came from your private account.”
Marcus shoved Jonas into the wall and ran.
Liana pointed toward the service stairs.
“He’s going to the roof.”
They found Marcus beside the hospital helicopter pad, burning papers in a metal bin.
Matteo kicked the bin over, scattering the flames.
Marcus held up a second g*n.
“Stay back.”
Liana stepped beside Matteo.
“There’s nowhere left to run.”
Marcus aimed at her.
“Elias would still be gone even if I had never touched that money.”
“You don’t get to use my grief as your defense.”
“I can give you names,” Marcus said.
“Board members, contractors, donors.
Let me leave, and you can have all of them.”
Matteo shook his head.
“You already gave us the names.
They’re in the ledger.”
The sergeant approached with officers behind him.
Marcus lowered the weapon.
As they restrained him, he looked at Liana.
“You think this gives your son back?”
“No,” she said.
“It makes sure you never take another child’s chance.”
Cole was brought onto the roof in handcuffs.
His hospital badge had been removed.
“You ruined a respected career,” he told Leah.
“You traded it,” Leah replied.
“Tonight, the bill arrived.”
The officers led both men toward the stairs, but the sergeant remained.
“We recovered Marcus’s laptop,” she said.
“There are forty-three children in those false files.”
May you like
Liana looked at Matteo.
“Then this isn’t over,” she said.
