Chapter 12 - Arthur Bell
Arthur Bell was alive.
He lived under the name Art Benson in a small Vermont town where nobody asked why he paid cash and never used social media.
Detective Reese found him chopping wood behind a cabin.
When she said Thomas Carter’s name, the ax fell from his hand.
“I told them I was done,” he whispered.
Michael stepped out of the car.
Arthur looked at him and nearly cried.
“You have his face.”
“Then tell me what happened to him.”
Arthur invited them inside.
He made coffee he didn’t drink.
“Thomas found the theft,” Arthur said. “Victor designed it. Sophia approved fake consulting invoices. Paul moved cash. I discovered the pattern.”
“Why didn’t you go to police?”
“I was going to. Thomas told me to wait until he had the trust amendment signed.”
Michael leaned forward. “Then what?”
“The night before he died, Victor came to me. He knew I’d been helping Thomas.”
Arthur’s hands shook.
“He showed me photographs of my daughter’s house. My granddaughter’s school. He said accidents happen to families that interfere.”
Emily went cold.
“So you ran.”
“I ran.”
“And my father died.”
Arthur looked down. “Yes.”
The brutal honesty cut deeper than an excuse.
Arthur opened a floor safe.
Inside was a flash drive.
“I kept this because I was a coward, but not a complete one.”
The drive held account ledgers, emails, and a scanned invoice from a garage owned by Paul’s cousin.
BRAKE LINE SERVICE - CASH.
The date was one day before Thomas’s crash.
Reese said, “This can tie them to the vehicle.”
Arthur nodded. “There’s an email too.”
The sender was Victor.
The recipient was Sophia.
Subject: SUNDAY.
Body: P. will handle car. Keep Michael away until Monday.
Michael stopped breathing.
The lie about Helen falling had not just removed him from the lake house.
It had removed him from his father’s last day.
Emily reached for his hand, then paused.
Michael looked at her.
She chose to take it.
Only for a second.
Then Reese’s phone rang.
She listened.
“What?” Michael asked.
Reese ended the call.
“Victor Hale just walked into Carter Holdings with two armed security contractors.”
Michael stood.
“Why?”
“Because the board is meeting in twenty minutes.”
Helen’s face went pale.
“The emergency succession vote.”
Emily understood first.
“If Victor controls the vote before the real trust amendment is filed...”
May you like
Helen finished the sentence.
“He can legally take the company.”
