CHAPTER 113: Found Dead

POV: Avalon Pierce

Diana called before he could call her.

"You've seen it," she said.

Avalon gazed out the window, his phone still pressed to his ear, as he spoke to the person on the other end. Selene stood beside him, her eyes fixed on her own screen, where she was reading the same article that had caught Avalon's attention. "What happened?" he asked, his voice low and curious, as he tried to make sense of the news that was unfolding before him.

The cause of death was cardiac arrest, it happened sometime during the night, and a guard found the body while doing a routine check.

"Officially."

"The prison where he was being held had cameras all over the place, but for some reason, his cell was the one spot where they didn't work so well. There was this one area near the door that was basically a blind spot, and it wasn't like it was a secret or anything - it had been pointed out in not one, but two inspection reports before. But somehow, nobody had ever gotten around to fixing it. Diana's voice was strained as she talked about it. 'I just don't buy into coincidences anymore,' she said, her words laced with a mix of frustration and suspicion. 'Not after all we've been through.'"

Selene looked up from her phone.

"Who benefits," she said.

Diana wondered, "What's going on here?" Whitmore was on the verge of being sentenced, and you'd think he'd want to make a deal. He had a lot to gain by cooperating with the authorities, maybe even get his sentence reduced. All he had to do was give names, tell them who helped him out thirty years ago. And yet, he was still talking to prosecutors just last week, so what's really going on?

"And now he can't," Avalon said.

"And now he can't."

The apartment was very quiet.

"The investor list," Avalon said suddenly. " Henderson's threat against James. Was that connected to this?”

"Diana spoke up, her voice filled with a mix of uncertainty and curiosity. 'To be honest, I'm not really sure,' she admitted. 'But I do think it's worth looking into before we just assume it's not possible. We might be surprised at what we find out.'"

James arrived within the hour.

He looked like he hadn't slept either.

"He had something important to share," he began, taking a seat across from them. "It turns out Henderson Capital has a history with the same investment group that Whitmore was involved with, but this was all years ago, before Henderson shifted its focus to philanthropic work."

Selene went very still.

"Is there a link between Henderson and Whitmore?" she asked.

"I'm telling you, I just don't know," James said, his voice laced with concern. "That email I got this morning is really bothering me now, even more than it did a few hours ago. I mean, think about it - Henderson lost the vote, he lost the foundation's support, and then the one guy who could have blown the whole thing wide open, who could have implicated some really powerful people, he's dead just hours later. It's just too much of a coincidence, you know?"

"That's a significant claim," Avalon said.

James spoke calmly, "I'm not trying to convince you of anything, I'm just sharing what I've observed. You can take it or leave it, the decision is yours."

Selene stood and walked to the window.

The city down below was slowly coming to life, but it didn't seem to care, it just went about its business as usual.

"She spoke softly, her voice barely above a whisper. 'He was supposed to testify again,' she said. 'At the formal sentencing hearing. We had planned to submit a statement, to tell the court about the impact his actions had on us. We wanted to stand up in that room and explain what he had taken from your father, from Nene, from our entire family.'"

"I know," Avalon said.

"And now there's nothing to sentence."

Avalon's words were firm, "The conviction still holds, it hasn't been overturned. He was found guilty and that's how it remains, no exoneration was given."

"It's just not the same," Selene said, her voice filled with emotion. "We wanted to be able to tell him, to look him in the eye and say it, you know, to his face."

Avalon appeared beside her, his presence quiet, and gently placed his hands on her shoulders, his touch warm and comforting.

"I know," he said again, quieter.

Margaret called at noon.

"I've got something," she said, her voice low and urgent. "To be honest, I wasn't planning on calling just yet, I wanted to be absolutely sure, but with everything that's happened this morning, I think you should know about it now, rather than waiting."

"Tell me," Avalon said.

"I've been digging into Robert Laine's case, just like you asked me to, months ago. I was supposed to keep it quiet, but I think I've found something. There's a connection between his death back in 1987 and the recent one, possibly Whitmore's. A name keeps popping up, linked to both of them."

Avalon's grip on the phone tightened.

"Who," he said.

"I don't have enough to say it out loud yet," Margaret said. " I need another week. But Avalon—it's someone you've met. Someone close."

The line went quiet.

"Margaret."

"I just need a week," she said, her voice firm but laced with a hint of uncertainty. "I'm promising you, I'll have answers for you by then. But I have to be completely sure before I give you a name that could potentially ruin someone's life - I couldn't live with myself if I wrongly accused them."

She hung up.

Avalon set the phone down slowly.

Selene was watching him.

"What," she said.

"Someone we've met," he said. " Someone close."

The words just hung there, like a heavy mist that filled the space, making the air feel thick and hard to breathe.

Maya showed up that evening, just like she always did when something wasn't quite right, even before she knew what was going on. She had a way of sensing when things were off, and it seemed like she could tell when someone needed her, without being asked to come.

She took one look at both their faces.

"Tell me," she said.

They told her.

She just sat there, not saying a word, for what felt like a really long time after they were done.

"Whitmore is gone," she said, her words barely above a whisper. "It happened the night after you got engaged, and also the night after Henderson accidentally set us free - all within a span of just twenty-four hours."

"I know how it sounds," Avalon said.

"Someone's tidying up," Maya said.

Nobody disagreed with her.

Selene lay awake that night long after Avalon had finally fallen asleep beside her, exhausted from a day that had held a proposal, a death, and a warning all within twelve hours.

She thought about Margaret's words.

*Someone you've met. Someone close.*

She went through each and every face, trying to recall every single name, every single person who had stepped foot in that room over the past twelve months.

None of it added up.

All of it did.

Her phone, set to silent mode, suddenly came to life on her nightstand.

An email.

From Margaret.

Subject line: I couldn't wait a week.

She sat up slowly.

Opened it.