CHAPTER 7 THE PRESCOTT FAMILY’S DARKEST SECRET
CHAPTER 7
THE PRESCOTT FAMILY’S DARKEST SECRET
The message remained on my phone for several minutes.
Five words.
One name.
One promise.
I KNOW WHERE ALL THE BODIES ARE BURIED.
Not literally.
I knew that.
But people who worked around powerful families learned to speak in codes.
“Bodies” meant secrets.
Mistakes.
People who had been sacrificed to protect an empire.
I had heard that phrase before.
In intelligence briefings.
In investigations.
In places where powerful people believed consequences were something that happened to others.
I looked at the name again.
Claire Whitmore.
Former employee of Margaret Prescott.
Former member of the inner circle.
Someone close enough to see behind the curtains.
Someone who knew where the truth was hidden.
I replied:
WHERE ARE YOU?
The response came quickly.
NOT SOMEWHERE SAFE.
A pause.
Then another message.
BUT SOMEWHERE THEY HAVEN’T FOUND YET.
I did not sleep that night.
Not because I was afraid.
Because I was calculating.
The Prescott family had changed tactics.
First, they tried denial.
Then intimidation.
Then legal pressure.
Now someone from inside their organization had appeared.
That meant one thing.
They were not as united as they wanted everyone to believe.
Every powerful organization had the same weakness.
People.
People who eventually got tired of carrying someone else’s secrets.
At 0430, Daniel arrived at my house.
He took one look at my face.
“You found someone.”
I handed him my phone.
He read the messages.
Then looked up.
“Claire Whitmore.”
“You know her?”
“I know the name.”
“Tell me.”
Daniel sat down.
“She was Margaret Prescott’s personal assistant for eight years.”
“Eight years?”
“Yes.”
“That means she knows everything.”
“Maybe.”
I looked at him.
“Daniel.”
He sighed.
“Victoria, people that close to Margaret don’t leave peacefully.”
“What happened?”
“She disappeared six months ago.”
My expression hardened.
“Disappeared?”
“Resigned. No announcement. No explanation.”
I stood.
“Find her.”
“I’m already trying.”
“Try harder.”
Daniel looked at me.
“You think she’s in danger.”
I looked at the message again.
“I think anyone who knows the Prescott family’s secrets is in danger.”
Claire agreed to meet at an abandoned church outside the city.
A strange place.
But I understood why.
People hiding from powerful enemies did not choose comfortable locations.
They chose places with exits.
Places with distance.
Places where they could see danger coming.
Daniel checked the area before we entered.
“Clear.”
I nodded.
Inside, the church was empty.
Dust covered the wooden seats.
Sunlight entered through broken windows.
Then I heard footsteps.
A woman appeared from the shadows.
Late forties.
Thin.
Tired.
Holding herself like someone who had spent months looking over her shoulder.
“Colonel Hart?”
“Yes.”
She looked at Daniel.
“Who is he?”
“Someone I trust.”
She studied us.
Then slowly nodded.
“My name is Claire Whitmore.”
“I know.”
Her expression tightened.
“You know my name.”
“I know you worked for Margaret Prescott.”
Claire looked down.
“Then you know I’m risking everything.”
“Yes.”
“Do you?”
I looked at her.
“Yes.”
Something in my answer made her relax slightly.
Because she did not need sympathy.
She needed someone who understood the danger.
We sat inside the old church.
Claire placed a folder on the table.
“I worked for Margaret for eight years.”
“Why leave?”
She laughed softly.
“I didn’t leave.”
A pause.
“She removed me.”
“Why?”
“Because I asked questions.”
“What kind of questions?”
Claire opened the folder.
Inside were financial records.
Emails.
Internal documents.
“I started noticing patterns.”
“What patterns?”
“People who became problems disappeared.”
I looked at the documents.
“Disappear how?”
“Not physically.”
Claire looked at me.
“They lost everything.”
Career.
Relationships.
Reputation.
Money.
“Just like Rachel.”
Claire nodded.
“Rachel was one of the first.”
My jaw tightened.
“How many?”
Claire looked away.
“I don’t know.”
The answer was worse than a number.
Because it meant there were too many.
“Tell me about Emily.”
Claire became quiet.
Then:
“I knew when they chose her.”
The words were painful.
“They chose her?”
“Yes.”
My voice became colder.
“Explain.”
Claire swallowed.
“Margaret liked families with influence.”
I stared at her.
“She wanted Ethan married to someone who improved the Prescott image.”
“And Emily?”
“Emily was perfect.”
I felt anger rising.
“Perfect?”
“Educated. Kind. A military family. Good reputation.”
Claire shook her head.
“They weren’t looking for a wife for Ethan.”
Silence.
“They were looking for an asset.”
The word made my stomach turn.
My daughter.
An asset.
A piece on a chessboard.
Claire continued.
“At first, they treated Emily well.”
“Of course.”
“That’s how they work.”
She looked at me.
“They don’t begin with cruelty.”
“What do they begin with?”
“Trust.”
The word hung in the air.
“They make you believe you are special.”
Then:
“They slowly separate you from everyone who protects you.”
I thought about the calls Emily stopped making.
The excuses.
The distance.
I had thought marriage changed her.
I should have looked deeper.
“They convinced Emily that coming home was embarrassing.”
Claire’s voice softened.
“They told her you were too controlling.”
My eyes closed.
That hurt.
Not because it was true.
Because they used my love against her.
Then Claire said something I did not expect.
“Margaret has a file on you.”
I looked up.
“Me?”
“Yes.”
“What kind of file?”
“Everything.”
Claire opened another folder.
Inside were documents.
My military career.
My assignments.
My family.
My history.
They had researched me.
Studied me.
Prepared for me.
Daniel whispered:
“They knew you would fight.”
Claire nodded.
“Yes.”
“Then why attack Emily?”
Claire looked directly at me.
“Because they knew Emily was the only person who could stop you.”
The room went silent.
I understood.
They did not attack Emily because she was weak.
They attacked her because she was my strength.
“Where is the original evidence?” I asked.
Claire hesitated.
“What evidence?”
“The evidence Margaret is most afraid of.”
Her expression changed.
“You already understand her.”
“Yes.”
Claire looked around.
Then lowered her voice.
“There is a private archive.”
“Where?”
“No one knows.”
I stared at her.
“You do.”
She looked down.
“I helped create it.”
Daniel leaned forward.
“What is inside?”
Claire answered:
“Everything.”
That night, we returned with a plan.
But before we could act, something happened.
Something unexpected.
Emily called me.
Her voice was shaking.
“Mom?”
I immediately stood.
“What happened?”
“There’s someone outside.”
My heart stopped.
“Who?”
“I don’t know.”
“Are you safe?”
“Yes. The security system alerted me.”
I grabbed my jacket.
“I’m coming.”
Then Emily whispered:
“Mom…”
“Yes?”
“I think they want me to see something.”
When I arrived home, the police were already there.
The person outside was gone.
But they left something behind.
A package.
No name.
No address.
Inside was a flash drive.
And a note.
I read the words slowly.
YOU WANT THE TRUTH?
WATCH THIS.
I plugged the drive into my computer.
A video appeared.
The screen turned black.
Then a familiar voice spoke.
Margaret Prescott.
But this recording was not from today.
It was years old.
And the words she said froze everyone in the room.
“Emily Hart is exactly what we need.”
A pause.
Then:
“She just doesn’t know it yet.”
Nobody spoke.
Not me.
Not Daniel.
Not Claire.
Because we finally understood.
Emily’s marriage was not a mistake.
It was planned.
From the beginning.
The Prescott family had not discovered my daughter.
They had selected her.
And now…
May you like
We were going to find out why.
END OF CHAPTER 7
