Chapter 14 - The Footage No One Was Supposed to See
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Ethan left immediately.
I wanted to follow him, but Daniel reminded me that the investigation was being handled by professionals and that I had no obligation to enter a situation that could put me at risk.
I stayed with Lily.
For the next several hours, I heard nothing.
Then, shortly after midnight, Daniel called.
“Investigators have secured the archive,” he said. “They found evidence that someone attempted to delete several files.”
“Did they recover the footage?”
“Some of it.”
I sat upright.
“What does it show?”
“I'm not going to speculate until the video has been authenticated and reviewed. But there is footage of Vanessa entering the security office on the evening before your accident.”
“Was she alone?”
“At first, yes. Later, another person appears. The investigators are working to identify him.”
I rubbed my forehead.
“Could it be Grant?”
“Possibly. We don't know yet.”
The following afternoon, Daniel arranged for me to review a verified summary of the footage. I did not watch the raw recording alone. The investigator explained what could be seen and which details remained uncertain.
Vanessa entered the security office at 8:14 p.m. She accessed a folder containing my vehicle information and the schedule I had shared with Ethan's assistant several weeks earlier.
At 8:27 p.m., a man entered.
He remained inside for eleven minutes.
The camera angle did not capture his face clearly, but investigators believed he was connected to Peter Lang's investment firm.
At 8:39 p.m., Vanessa left carrying a small storage device.
The footage did not show her arranging the collision directly. It did show that she had accessed information about my vehicle and schedule shortly before the crash.
The investigator emphasized that the evidence needed to be combined with the financial records, messages, and testimony already collected.
I understood.
But I could no longer convince myself that I had simply been in the wrong place at the wrong time.
That evening, Ethan called through counsel.
“They found the original files,” he said. “Vanessa had been trying to erase the access history.”
“Did she know you were investigating her?”
“I think she suspected.”
“Then why was she still at the office?”
“Because she believed she could get the records before anyone realized what they meant.”
I thought about the email.
The wife must be removed from the equation.
“Ethan, did you ever tell Vanessa where I would be that Friday?”
He was silent.
Then he said, “Yes.”
My heart dropped.
“What?”
“I told her you were picking Lily up from kindergarten. She asked why I wasn't going, and I said you had the afternoon covered.”
I closed my eyes.
“Did you tell her the route?”
“No. But she knew the school and the time you usually left.”
“Because she was in your inner circle.”
“Yes.”
For several seconds, I could not speak.
Ethan's voice broke.
“I never thought she would use that information against you.”
“You never thought she would use anything against you. That's the problem.”
“I know.”
I almost told him to stop saying it again.
Instead, I asked, “What happens now?”
“The investigators are interviewing her. My attorneys have frozen the accounts connected to the suspicious transfers. Peter Lang's firm is cooperating, though they deny any involvement in the accident.”
“And Vanessa?”
“She hasn't been located.”
The room went cold.
“What do you mean?”
“She left the office before the security team arrived. Her apartment is empty. Her phone has been turned off.”
I looked toward Lily's bedroom.
“Does she know where we are?”
“We don't believe so.”
“Belief isn't enough.”
“I've arranged for a security consultant to review the arrangements through your attorney. You can choose whether to use the service.”
I agreed to review the proposal.
Then Ethan said, “Claire, there's one more thing.”
“What?”
“The hospital visitor log shows Vanessa was there the night you heard me speaking to the doctor.”
I stopped breathing.
“She was at the hospital?”
“Yes.”
“Why?”
“We don't know.”
I gripped the edge of the table.
May you like
For three nights, I had believed my husband might want me gone.
Now I wondered whether someone had been standing outside my hospital room, waiting to see whether I would ever wake up.
