Chapter 8 - The Last 17 Minutes
The clinic still had the data.
Not because of foresight.
Because of litigation.
Vincent’s cardiology practice had been purchased by a hospital group, and archived cardiac monitoring files had been retained during the acquisition.
Jonathan obtained them through Alessia’s authorization as next of kin.
A cardiologist named Dr. Naomi Keller reviewed the recording.
They met in a private office in Boston.
Dr. Keller displayed a series of lines on a monitor.
“This is Mr. Moretti’s heart rhythm beginning at 7:12 a.m.”
Alessia watched meaningless waves cross the screen.
“He collapsed at approximately 7:31.”
“Yes.”
“What happened before that?”
Dr. Keller pointed.
“His heart rate was elevated.”
“How elevated?”
“Consistent with physical stress or significant emotional distress.”
“Could that cause a heart attack?”
“Yes.”
“But?”
Dr. Keller enlarged another section.
“At 7:24, there is an abrupt rhythm disturbance.”
Alessia leaned forward.
“What causes that?”
“Many things.”
“Poison?”
“Some substances could.”
Jonathan spoke.
“Would those substances have appeared on a standard postmortem examination?”
“Not necessarily, especially if toxicology was not ordered.”
Alessia looked at him.
It had not been.
“Can we prove anything from this?”
Dr. Keller shook her head.
“Not by itself.”
Then she pointed to another line.
“But there is something unusual.”
“What?”
“The monitor had an acoustic event feature.”
Alessia stared at her.
“Audio?”
“Not continuous recording. It captured short environmental samples when the device detected sudden movement associated with cardiac events.”
Dr. Keller opened a file.
A 17-second audio clip began.
At first there was static.
Then Vincent’s voice.
Weak.
Angry.
“You need to leave.”
A woman answered.
Evelyn.
“You should have thought about that before you destroyed my husband.”
Vincent coughed.
Then another voice.
Garrett.
“Where’s the trust?”
Alessia stopped breathing.
Vincent answered.
“You’ll never touch Lily’s money.”
Something struck the floor.
Evelyn said, “Then you’ve made your choice.”
The recording ended.
Alessia stared at the speakers.
Jonathan whispered, “Oh my God.”
Dr. Keller looked between them.
“I assume you recognize the voices?”
“Yes.”
Alessia’s hands were shaking.
“They were there.”
Jonathan nodded.
“They were definitely there.”
“Can this reopen the death investigation?”
“It should.”
The district attorney’s office agreed to review the case.
But Jonathan warned Alessia not to expect an immediate arrest.
The recording proved Garrett and Evelyn were present during Vincent’s medical crisis.
It did not prove they caused it.
Still, the Hales’ entire story had begun to collapse.
The greater problem was keeping them unaware.
Garrett believed Alessia knew nothing.
That advantage was temporary.
At 9:10 that evening, he called her.
“Where are you?”
“Boston.”
“For what?”
“Foundation meeting.”
“You didn’t tell me.”
“I didn’t know I needed permission.”
A pause.
Garrett laughed.
“Don’t start.”
“Start what?”
“You’ve been strange lately.”
Alessia looked across the hotel room at Jonathan.
He wrote 2 words on a notepad.
Stay calm.
Alessia softened her voice.
“I’m exhausted.”
“I told you. You’re taking on too much.”
There it was again.
The narrative.
Tired.
Unstable.
Overwhelmed.
Garrett continued.
“Maybe after the gala you should take a few months off.”
“Maybe.”
“I can handle the company.”
“I know.”
His voice relaxed.
“I love you.”
Alessia looked at the waveform of her father’s final recorded moments.
“I’ll see you tomorrow.”
She ended the call.
Jonathan exhaled.
“He suspects something.”
“Not enough.”
“Yet.”
Alessia looked at the calendar.
7 days until the gala.
“Then we move faster.”
The following morning, investigators obtained a warrant to examine certain stored biological samples retained from Vincent’s death.
There was little material left.
But enough.
A forensic toxicologist found something unexpected.
A concentrated level of a prescription medication used to influence heart rhythm.
Vincent had never been prescribed it.
The amount was not automatically fatal.
But for a man with severe coronary disease, it could have triggered catastrophic arrhythmia.
Jonathan called Alessia at 6:30 p.m.
“They’re reopening the case.”
She closed her eyes.
“Will they arrest them?”
“Not yet.”
“Why?”
“They need to connect the drug to Garrett or Evelyn.”
Alessia understood.
Evidence.
Always evidence.
Then Jonathan added, “There’s another problem.”
“What?”
“Garrett moved the gala forward.”
Alessia looked at the invitation on her desk.
“What are you talking about?”
“He called the event team. The gala is now in 4 days.”
“Why?”
“We don’t know.”
Alessia thought of his growing suspicion.
Then she remembered the recording from his study.
The gala is perfect.
Too many witnesses.
We provoke her, she loses control.
May you like
The trap was coming early.
And Garrett had no idea Alessia was preparing one of her own.
