“Mrs. Ellis.”
“Who are you?”
“My name is David Kane.”
“Should that mean something to me?”
“No.”
“Then you've already wasted ten seconds.”
Richard almost smiled despite the danger.
Kane removed the photograph of Margaret from his coat.
“We need the contents of Box 417.”
Margaret stared at him.
“You're thirty-seven years late.”
“Where are the documents?”
“Somewhere you’ll never find them.”
That was partly a lie.
The papers were inside Richard’s bag.
Kane looked at Charles.
“Mr. Harrison.”
Charles stiffened.
“You know me?”
“Everyone involved knows you.”
“Involved in what?”
Kane smiled faintly.
“You still don't know.”
Charles looked disturbed.
Daniel stepped forward.
“Who sent you?”
Kane examined him.
“Daniel Ross. I wondered whether you were still alive.”
“Disappointed?”
“Surprised.”
Margaret watched Kane carefully.
He didn't behave like a criminal desperate to steal documents.
He was too calm.
Too confident.
“What do you want?”
“Thomas Ellis collected material that belongs to people I represent.”
“Who?”
“I can't tell you.”
“Then leave.”
Kane looked toward the cassette player.
“You found the recording.”
“Yes.”
“Did you hear all of it?”
Margaret hesitated.
Kane noticed.
“No.”
“Why do you care?”
“Because the missing portion matters.”
Richard stepped forward.
“The tape broke.”
Kane looked genuinely relieved.
That frightened Margaret more than anger would have.
“What was on the rest?”
Kane smiled.
“Give me the documents and I’ll tell you.”
“No.”
“You should understand something, Mrs. Ellis. Project Orchid did not end in 1989.”
The room became silent.
Margaret stared at him.
“It still exists?”
“Not under that name.”
Richard looked at Charles.
“Is he telling the truth?”
“I don't know.”
Kane continued.
“The people Thomas investigated built systems that survived them.”
“What systems?”
“Companies. Trusts. Political networks. Foundations.”
Margaret folded her arms.
“And you're protecting them.”
Kane's expression changed slightly.
“I'm protecting something.”
“That isn't an answer.”
“It’s the only one you're getting.”
Daniel suddenly spoke.
“Caldwell.”
Kane looked at him.
“You work for Caldwell.”
For the first time, Kane's calm expression cracked.
Margaret noticed.
“Henry Caldwell?”
Daniel shook his head.
“Remember what I told you. Caldwell isn't a person.”
Richard understood.
“It’s an identity.”
“More than that,” Daniel said. “It's a position.”
Kane remained silent.
Daniel continued.
“Whoever controls Orchid becomes Caldwell.”
Margaret felt cold.
“So there could be a Caldwell today.”
“Yes.”
Kane looked toward the door.
“We're finished.”
“No,” Margaret said. “We're not.”
He ignored her.
Then something unexpected happened.
Sirens sounded in the distance.
Kane looked sharply toward his partner.
Richard smiled.
“I called the county sheriff while we were driving here.”
Charles stared at him.
“You did?”
“I’m a banker. Risk management.”
The sirens grew louder.
Kane stepped backward.
“This isn't over.”
Margaret looked directly at him.
“It was over the moment I walked into that bank.”
Kane gave her a strange look.
Not anger.
Almost pity.
“You still think Thomas was killed because of the money.”
Margaret's confidence faltered.
“What does that mean?”
Kane said nothing.
“Tell me.”
He stepped outside.
Margaret followed him to the door.
“Why was my husband killed?”
Kane stopped.
He turned.
“Thomas wasn't killed because he discovered Project Orchid.”
Margaret felt the world narrow around her.
“Then why?”
“Because he discovered who created it.”
Kane walked toward the sedan.
Police vehicles appeared at the far end of the road.
Kane and his companion entered the car and drove away in the opposite direction.
Richard came beside Margaret.
“Did you hear what he said?”
“Yes.”
Charles looked terrified.
Daniel looked worse.
Margaret turned toward him.
“You know.”
Daniel didn't answer.
“You know who created Orchid.”
“I have a suspicion.”
“Who?”
Daniel stared at Thomas’s photograph.
Then he pointed at the man standing beside Margaret’s husband.
Not William Mercer.
Not Charles.
Thomas himself.
Margaret’s face went blank.
“No.”
Daniel lowered his hand.
“Thomas wasn't investigating Project Orchid from the outside.”
Margaret stared at him.
“What are you saying?”
Daniel’s voice was barely above a whisper.
“Your husband helped create it.”
Margaret did not speak for nearly a minute.
The abandoned station seemed to disappear around her.
She could hear only Daniel’s words.
Your husband helped create it.
“No.”
Daniel remained silent.
Margaret stepped toward him.
“Thomas spent his final months trying to expose Orchid.”
“Yes.”
“Then how could he have created it?”
“Because Orchid wasn't created to steal money.”
Richard frowned.
“What was it created for?”
Daniel sat down.
“In 1981, First National Crown was facing collapse. Several local businesses depended on it. If the bank failed, thousands of people could lose jobs.”