Chapter 15 - The Letter
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It was a rainy Tuesday afternoon. Daniel was sitting in his home office, reviewing a quarterly earnings report, when his private courier delivered the day's mail.
He sorted through the stack of corporate briefings and invitations. Near the bottom was a plain, white envelope. There was no return address. It was postmarked from a maximum-security women’s correctional facility in upstate New York.
It was from Vanessa.
Daniel’s stomach churned. He almost threw it directly into the shredder. He didn't want any contact with the monster who had broken his daughter's leg.
But a dark, nagging curiosity forced his hand. Why would she write to him after an entire year of total silence?
He grabbed a silver letter opener and sliced the envelope open.
Inside was a single piece of lined prison paper, covered in Vanessa’s sharp, immaculate handwriting.
Daniel,
I know you hate me. I know you will probably burn this letter. But sitting in this cell has given me a lot of time to think. You think I am the worst thing that ever happened to your family. You think I destroyed your perfect life.
But I didn't start the fire, Daniel. I just walked into a house that was already burning.
Daniel frowned, his eyes scanning the page rapidly.
You loved Caroline so much. You still look at her picture like she was a saint. You think she died of a tragic hospital infection when Lily was two.
But you never bothered to ask why her charts were sealed by the hospital administration. You never questioned why the nurse on duty that night was abruptly fired and paid a massive settlement to leave the state.
I know, Daniel. Because before I met Julian, before I married you to steal your company, I was working in the HR department of Chicago General.
Caroline didn't die of a fever.
The paper trembled in Daniel’s hand. The air in the office suddenly felt incredibly thin.
May you like
Check the archived medical records for room 412. Check the toxicology screen that was mysteriously redacted from the official coroner's report. If you think I am a monster, Daniel, wait until you find out who actually killed your first wife.
Daniel dropped the letter onto the desk, his heart hammering a frantic, terrifying rhythm against his ribs. The nightmare wasn't over. It had just begun.
