My Wife Died 4 Years Ago — Then I Saw Her Holding Another Man’s Hand on a Luxury Cruise
Chapter 10
My mother’s yacht appeared through the fog.
It was enormous.
White.
Silent.
Armed men stood along the deck.
A helicopter circled above.
Claire whispered:
“She’s been waiting for this.”
My mother called again.
“You have one hour.”
“One hour for what?”
“To decide whether your wife lives.”
I looked at Claire.
My mother continued.
“The ledger for Claire.”
I grabbed the radio.
“You can’t threaten me anymore.”
She laughed.
“You still don’t understand.”
“What?”
“Claire never found the ledger.”
I froze.
“She found a copy.”
“What?”
“The real ledger has always been with me.”
Claire looked at Adrian.
He shook his head.
My mother continued:
“Your father hid the copy because he knew I would find it.”
“Then why all this?”
“Because I needed you.”
“Why?”
“Because you’re the only person I trust to open the original.”
I laughed.
“You expect me to help you?”
“I expect you to remember who you are.”
I looked at Claire.
My mother said:
“Come aboard.”
I refused.
She gave an order.
One of the men raised a rifle.
Claire grabbed my arm.
“Don’t.”
Then the radio went silent.
The helicopter descended.
Adrian whispered:
“There’s another way.”
He showed me a small device.
“We can disable their communications.”
Claire nodded.
The plan was simple.
Board the yacht.
Find the original ledger.
Rescue my mother.
Expose the network.
But nothing went according to plan.
Because when we entered the yacht, we discovered the truth.
My mother wasn’t alone.
Arthur Vale was waiting.
The man who had supposedly died with my father.
He smiled.
“Welcome home, Daniel.”
