Chapter 5 - Emily Had Been Watching My Company
I reopened boxes I hadn't touched in years.
Old ledgers.
Partnership agreements.
Correspondence from Reed-Delaney Manufacturing.
Back then, we made industrial components for agricultural equipment.
It was a good business.
Then it became a very good one.
Too quickly.
Frank handled procurement.
I handled sales and expansion.
I trusted him completely.
Emily worked in the office one summer.
She was supposed to answer phones and file invoices.
Instead, apparently, she noticed discrepancies.
Maisie's existence gave me a reason to search differently.
Not for memories.
For patterns.
I found three supplier companies that vanished within months of Emily's disappearance.
All had received substantial payments.
All used mailing addresses connected to Frank.
I called Thomas.
He warned me not to jump to conclusions.
So I didn't.
We hired a forensic accountant.
Meanwhile, Maisie stayed under temporary protective arrangements while her identity and family situation were verified.
I visited every day.
On the fourth day she asked:
“Are you really my grandpa?”
“I think so.”
“That means you're Mom's dad?”
“Yes.”
“Why didn't she come see you?”
That question nearly broke me.
“I don't know.”
Maisie studied me.
“Mom said you weren't bad. Just easy to fool.”
I almost laughed.
Instead I asked:
“Did she talk about Veronica?”
“Sometimes.”
“What did she say?”
“She said Veronica kept finding us.”
That stopped me.
“Finding you where?”
“Different places.”
“How many?”
Maisie counted on her fingers.
“Three.”
My fiancée hadn't simply known Emily was alive.
According to a seven-year-old child, Veronica had been tracking her.
Then Maisie told me why they kept moving.
“Mom said the champagne lady always wanted the papers.”
Same thing again.
Documents.
May you like
Whatever Emily had seen at nineteen, she had apparently kept evidence.
And Veronica wanted it.
