Chapter 17 - THE WITNESS IN THE RAIN|
The caller identified himself as Michael Grant, a former driver who had worked for Claudia Ferrara for nearly fifteen years.
He refused to speak to Roman or the police unless Evelyn agreed to meet him.
Margaret immediately objected.
“This could be a trap. Evelyn is still recovering, and there's no reason to put her in danger.”
Evelyn listened from her hospital bed.
“What does he know?”
“He claims Claudia is preparing to leave the country,” Margaret replied. “He also says he has documents connected to Thomas Hayes's death.”
Evelyn looked at Roman.
“I want to hear him.”
Roman shook his head.
“Not until we know he's safe.”
She met his gaze.
“Then arrange a secure meeting. Don't make the decision for me.”
He exhaled.
“All right. But the police will be there, and you can leave whenever you want.”
The meeting was scheduled for the following afternoon in a private room at a downtown law office. Two detectives occupied the adjoining room, and Dante coordinated security outside.
Michael Grant arrived wearing a rain-soaked coat and carrying a small leather briefcase.
He was in his sixties, with shaking hands and the exhausted expression of someone who had spent too long living with fear.
When he saw Evelyn, he bowed his head.
“Your father was a good man.”
Evelyn sat across from him.
“Did you know him?”
“I drove him home twice after he met with Mr. Ferrara. He was frightened, but he kept saying the truth would protect his daughters.”
Michael opened the briefcase.
Inside were copies of vehicle maintenance records, payment receipts, and a handwritten note.
“Claudia ordered me to arrange a meeting with Thomas Hayes the night before his accident. She said he needed to understand that continuing the investigation would have consequences.”
Evelyn felt her hands go cold.
“Did you hurt my father?”
“No. I drove him to the meeting. I waited outside. When he came back, he told me to take him home immediately.”
Michael lowered his eyes.
“The next morning, Claudia told me his car had crashed. She ordered me to destroy the vehicle's service records because they showed that the brakes had been inspected three days earlier.”
Roman's face hardened.
“You knew the records were important, and you destroyed them?”
Michael nodded.
“I was afraid. Claudia knew where my children went to school. She told me that if I disobeyed, they would suffer.”
Evelyn looked at the documents.
“Why come forward now?”
“Because I saw the news about the gala. I realized that if I stayed silent, she'd destroy another family.”
He handed Margaret a sealed envelope.
“This contains the name of the mechanic who worked on Mr. Hayes's car. He told me someone had tampered with the brake lines.”
The detectives entered the room and began documenting the evidence.
Roman stood beside Evelyn but didn't interrupt.
Michael turned toward her.
“I can't give your father back. I can't undo what I did. But I can tell the truth.”
Evelyn swallowed.
“Then tell all of it. Even the parts that make you look guilty.”
Michael nodded, tears gathering in his eyes.
When the meeting ended, Roman helped Evelyn into the waiting car. Rain streaked the windows as they drove toward the hospital.
“I wanted him to be innocent,” she whispered.
“Michael?”
“My father. I wanted to believe he could have avoided all of this if he'd simply walked away.”
Roman turned toward her.
“He tried to do the right thing. That wasn't his mistake.”
“Then what was?”
“Believing the people who threatened him would stop if he stayed quiet.”
Evelyn looked out at the passing buildings.
“My father never wanted revenge. He wanted people to stop getting hurt.”
Roman nodded.
“That's what we're going to try to do.”
At the hospital, Margaret called with the first confirmation from the detectives.
The mechanic had survived and was willing to testify. His records suggested that Thomas's brakes had been deliberately damaged.
Claudia's case was growing stronger.
But Michael had also revealed something more immediate.
Claudia had contacted a private pilot and arranged a departure from a small airfield outside Chicago.
The flight was scheduled for midnight.
And she had purchased a ticket under Eleanor Ferrara's name.
Roman looked at the message.
May you like
Claudia wasn't simply trying to escape.
She was planning to disappear using the identity of the woman she had already stolen twenty years from.
