Chapter 13 - The Deal Beneath the IslandThe police already had the manager's bank transfer and testimony, and Lily's photograph gave investigators another lead. I didn't try to turn it into an accusation. I simply sent it along.

Naomi and I examined the land deal. Baystar planned to build luxury villas over the northern service zone. The purchase documents contained a clause requiring demolition of the old utility structures within forty-eight hours of closing.

"They weren't buying land," I said. "They were buying the chance to destroy the records."

"Possibly," Naomi replied. "But the buyer may not know anything about the records. Let's separate what we can prove from what we suspect."

I called the Baystar managing director, Anika Shah. She sounded furious when I explained the signature dispute.

"We relied on certified documents," she said. "If they're forged, we've been misled as well."

"Then pause construction and cooperate with the investigators."

"Already done. Our lawyers are reviewing everything."

That night, Marcus showed me a still from the resort's loading bay. A man in a baseball cap entered the staff corridor minutes before the attempted fire. The face was partly hidden, but his jacket carried a bright orange diving-school logo.

Ruth recognized it. "That's the jacket Robert wears on fishing trips."

"We need more than a jacket," I said.

"We have more," Marcus replied. "A vehicle plate led to a rental contracted under a false name. The emergency contact number was your father's."

I closed my eyes. I had spent years making excuses for him. He shouted because he worried. He insulted me because he had high standards. He humiliated me because he thought I'd do better afterward.

But a pattern stops being confusing when you finally call it a pattern.

Mia appeared in the doorway, holding her stuffed sea turtle. "Mom?"

I shut my laptop. "What's wrong?"

"Someone is outside."

I crossed to the window. A black car idled at the edge of our driveway, just beyond the gate. Its headlights were off.

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My phone lit up with a message from my father.

OPEN THE GATE. WE NEED TO DISCUSS YOUR DAUGHTER.