The Man Who Knew Too Much

The team split up without wasting another minute.

Marcus and Alex took the most urgent lead. Victor Hale.

Lena stayed in the forensic lab, re examining Daniel Carter’s autopsy with fresh eyes. Jamal and Elena remained in the war room, compiling everything they had uncovered so far into a report for Captain Graves.

The drive to Hale’s estate took nearly an hour. Tall pine trees swallowed the morning sunlight as the road narrowed. When they reached the long stone wall and iron gate, Alex slowed the car.

“This place looks abandoned,” he muttered.

Marcus studied the gate. “Not quite.”

Before they could step out, the gates creaked open by themselves. Neither of them had touched the intercom.

They exchanged a wary glance and drove through.

The driveway wound deep into the forest before revealing an enormous Victorian mansion. Its windows reflected the gray sky, giving the house the unsettling feeling of watching them.

Alex killed the engine. “I already don’t like this.”

Marcus nodded. “Stay sharp.”

A maid in a perfectly pressed black uniform answered the door. She smiled politely.

“May I help you?”

Marcus showed his badge. “Detectives Marcus Kane and Alex Rivera. We need to speak with Mr. Victor Hale.”

The maid barely hesitated. “He has been expecting you.”

Alex frowned. “Expecting us?”

She simply stepped aside. “Please come in.”

The mansion was strangely silent. Antique paintings and towering bookshelves lined every hallway. A grandfather clock near the staircase ticked loudly.

The maid led them into a large sitting room. An elderly man sat in a rocking chair facing the fireplace.

Creak. Creak. Creak.

Without turning around, Victor Hale spoke.“I wondered how long it would take.”

The rocking stopped. He slowly turned toward them. His eyes were calm. Almost amused.

“I knew you would come eventually.”Marcus remained standing. “You know why we’re here.”

Victor smiled faintly. “I imagine it’s about Daniel Carter.”Alex exchanged a glance with Marcus. “Among other things.”

Victor gestured to two chairs. “Please. Sit.”

The questioning began.

Marcus leaned forward. “You were a major donor to the Willow Creek Orphanage. Why did you pull all your funding six months before the fire?”

Victor folded his hands. “Financial difficulties.”

Alex frowned. “You’re one of the wealthiest men in the state.”

“Wealth has a funny way of disappearing when it needs to,” Victor replied smoothly.

Neither detective believed him.

Marcus changed direction. “You also own the warehouse where Daniel Carter was murdered.”

“I do.”

“Why buy an abandoned property like that?”

Victor smiled again. “I enjoy collecting old buildings.”

His answers were too calm. Too rehearsed.

Marcus pressed harder. “What aren’t you telling us?”

Victor looked directly into his eyes. “Many things.”

Silence filled the room.

Then Victor asked a question of his own. “You five survived the orphanage fire, didn’t you?”

Both detectives froze. They had never mentioned the orphanage or the rest of the team.

“How do you know that?” Alex demanded.

Victor’s smile faded. “I know all five of you.”

His voice grew serious. “And if I were you, I’d be very careful.”

Alex felt the hairs on the back of his neck rise. “What do you mean?”

Victor didn’t answer right away. Instead he asked, “Have the packages begun?”

Marcus hesitated. “One has.”

Victor slowly closed his eyes. “So it has started again.”

Before they could press further, Alex noticed something. A faint color pattern on a decorative box on the side table. Similar to the puzzles. He reached out instinctively. His ability stirred. Threads of red and gray flickered in his mind.

He pulled back quickly. “He’s hiding something big.”

Victor watched him with interest. “You have a gift, young man. Be careful with it. Gifts like that tend to burn those who hold them too tightly.”

The conversation continued, but Victor remained evasive about the fire and the warehouse. He claimed he had a disagreement with another board member and left the donor circle. He refused to name who.

As they prepared to leave, Victor stood by the large window overlooking his estate.

“Whatever you do,” he said quietly, “find the truth about that night. Before more people pay for it.”

Back at headquarters, Jamal and Elena finished compiling everything they had discovered from Daniel Carter’s case and the Willow Creek Orphanage investigation.

Jamal closed the final folder.

“I think it’s time.”

Lena nodded.

Captain Graves needed to know everything.

Neither of them realized that, at that very moment, somewhere in the city…

…another package had just been delivered.