Chapter 5 - THE SECRET INSIDE THE CURTAIN RODJessica saw the man before Helena did.
He wore hospital scrubs and pushed an empty supply cart past the ICU room.
For a moment, nothing about him appeared unusual.
Then Jessica noticed the silver measuring tape protruding from beneath a folded towel.
“That is mine.”
The man looked at her.
Then he ran.
The police officer outside Evelyn’s room shouted and followed him down the corridor.
Jessica kicked off her heels and chased them.
The man shoved the supply cart behind him. It struck the wall, spilling trays and linens across the floor.
Jessica jumped over the debris.
“Stop!”
He reached the service elevator, but the doors did not open quickly enough.
The officer tackled him.
The measuring tape slid across the polished floor and stopped beside Jessica’s bare foot.
She picked it up.
The casing felt heavier than before.
The officer handcuffed the man.
“Who sent you?”
He said nothing.
Jessica returned to Evelyn’s room carrying the tape.
Helena took it from her.
“There is a seam.”
Using a small medical tool, she opened the metal casing.
Inside, beneath the coiled tape, was a memory card no larger than a fingernail.
Jessica stared at it.
“David gave me this tape.”
“He wanted you to take something from the compartment,” Helena said.
“He said the measurements were for the new curtains.”
“He expected you to retrieve the card without knowing it.”
Jessica covered her face.
Every romantic gesture, every promise, every secret meeting had been part of David’s strategy.
Even her cruelty toward Evelyn had served him. The more openly Jessica behaved like a triumphant mistress, the more investigators would view her as the obvious accomplice.
Evelyn’s computer spoke.
PLAY IT.
Helena inserted the memory card into a secure laptop Samuel had left in the room.
A folder appeared containing financial ledgers, medical records, private videos, and scanned letters.
The earliest file was twelve years old.
It contained documents related to Edward Sterling’s fatal car accident.
Another folder was labeled HELENA COLE.
Jessica reached for the computer.
Helena stopped her.
“Not yet.”
A third folder bore Samuel’s name.
They opened it.
Dozens of bank transfers appeared.
Millions of dollars had moved from Sterling accounts into companies connected to Samuel.
Jessica whispered, “He was taking money.”
Helena examined the dates.
“No. Look at the payment descriptions.”
The transfers were labeled CONSULTING, SECURITY, MEDICAL TRANSPORT, and SAFE RESIDENCE.
The largest payment occurred eight weeks earlier.
It had been sent to a private rehabilitation facility in Vermont.
The facility where Samuel had found Helena.
“He paid to rescue me,” Helena said.
Jessica exhaled.
Then she noticed another file.
A video.
They played it.
The footage showed David seated in his private study with an unidentified man.
David placed a photograph of Samuel on the desk.
“I want every transaction to lead back to him.”
The man asked, “And if Evelyn survives?”
“She will not.”
“What about Jessica?”
David poured himself a drink.
“She signs the statement blaming Samuel. After that, she has an accident.”
Jessica froze.
The man in the video laughed.
David continued.
“Two grieving women, one corrupt lawyer, and a helpless widow. The public will believe whatever story we give them.”
Jessica stepped away from the screen.
Helena did not comfort her.
“You chose him.”
“I know.”
“You chose him over a woman dying in front of you.”
“I know.”
“You chose him over me.”
Jessica looked at her mother.
“I thought you were dead.”
“And that gave you permission to become this?”
Jessica had no answer.
Evelyn’s computer sounded.
HELP US NOW.
Jessica moved closer to the bed.
“Why would you trust me?”
I DO NOT.
The answer struck harder than an accusation.
Jessica nodded slowly.
“But you need me.”
YES.
“To testify?”
TO FIND DAVID’S ACCESS KEY.
Jessica knew the key Evelyn meant.
David kept a black metal token on a chain beneath his shirt. He claimed it opened a private safe-deposit box.
In reality, it was an encrypted master key for Sterling Global’s internal systems.
“He never removes it.”
Evelyn’s eyes held hers.
Jessica understood.
David had been released pending investigation. He still believed she could be controlled.
She would have to return to him.
At noon, Samuel was released after the hospital intruder confessed that David had paid him to retrieve the measuring tape.
The confession weakened the case against Samuel but did not erase the forged evidence.
Samuel arrived at Evelyn’s room and reviewed the memory card.
He stopped at a ledger dated twelve years earlier.
A payment of five million dollars had been made two days before Edward Sterling’s fatal crash.
The authorization bore Samuel’s name.
Samuel read the line twice.
“That is not my signature.”
Helena pointed to another entry beneath it.
E.S. TERMINATION APPROVED.
Jessica looked toward Evelyn.
“E.S. means Evelyn Sterling.”
Samuel shook his head.
“Twelve years ago, Evelyn was not in control of the company.”
“Then who?”
“Edward Sterling.”
Evelyn’s father.
The door opened.
A detective entered holding a sealed evidence bag.
Inside was a damaged security camera recovered from the roadside where Edward had died.
“We restored part of the footage,” he said.
Samuel’s expression changed.
The detective placed a tablet on the table and played the video.
A younger Edward Sterling stood beside his disabled car on a dark road.
Another vehicle stopped behind him.
A man stepped out and approached.
The camera captured his face for less than two seconds.
It was Samuel Reed.
Evelyn stared at the screen.
Samuel whispered, “That is impossible.”
But the video continued.
The man raised his hand.
May you like
On his finger was Samuel’s distinctive black signet ring.
And in the final frame before the camera went dark, he opened the passenger door and reached for something hidden inside.
Related Stories
