Chapter 5 - The Laptop
The old laptop changed everything.
Marcus instructed me not to answer immediately.
“If Sophie is contacting you secretly, assume someone could discover it.”
“But she's asking for help.”
“And we help intelligently.”
We created a short response with no accusations.
I’m safe. I love you. Tell me where you are when you can do so safely.
Twenty-three minutes later, Sophie replied.
Singapore.
A hotel name followed.
Marcus was already making calls.
Because Sophie was a minor traveling with her father, the situation was legally complicated. Daniel had parental authority. But the stolen passport, financial coercion, and Sophie’s messages created concerns that could not simply be ignored.
Then Sophie sent something else.
A photograph.
An old silver laptop on a hotel desk.
Beside it lay my passport.
Proof.
Daniel still possessed it.
But Marcus was staring at the laptop.
“Rachel's?”
“I think so.”
“Why would Daniel bring a dead woman's laptop on vacation?”
Exactly.
Sophie answered before we asked.
Dad keeps it locked up. Grandma said there are files that should have disappeared years ago.
I felt a chill.
Whatever Daniel had planned in Thailand was connected to something older.
Much older.
Marcus coordinated with authorities and legal counsel in Singapore.
I hated waiting.
Every minute felt like abandoning Sophie.
But reckless action could make things worse.
So we built a record.
Screenshots.
Call logs.
Hotel footage.
Flight cancellation records.
Daniel’s admission.
Trust documents.
Sophie's messages.
The pattern became clearer with every piece.
Then Daniel called.
“You're making this harder than necessary.”
“I want Sophie to come home safely.”
“She is safe.”
“And my passport?”
“You'll receive it when this is resolved.”
“You mean when I sign.”
“I mean when you start behaving rationally.”
That phrase nearly made me laugh.
Daniel had stranded his wife in a foreign country and stolen her passport, yet he wanted to define rational behavior.
“I've reviewed the trust.”
Silence.
“Who showed it to you?”
“That doesn't matter.”
“Marcus.”
Not a question.
I said nothing.
Daniel sighed.
“That man has poisoned you against me since the beginning.”
“No, Daniel. You did that yourself.”
His voice hardened.
“You have no idea what's at stake.”
“Then explain it.”
Another silence.
Finally:
“The company is about to be acquired.”
My pulse jumped.
“How much?”
“Enough.”
“And you need my shares.”
“We need them.”
“Who is we?”
He didn't answer.
“Daniel?”
“You have until noon tomorrow.”
“Or what?”
He lowered his voice.
“Don't force me to answer that.”
The line went dead.
Marcus had recorded the conversation with legal guidance.
We stared at each other.
“That sounded like a threat,” I said.
“It sounded intentionally ambiguous.”
“Same difference.”
“Legally, not always.”
I hated that he was right.
At 11:48 p.m., Sophie sent another message.
Dad is asleep.
Then:
I know the laptop password.
A file arrived.
One document.
A scanned letter written by Rachel.
May you like
The first sentence made my stomach drop.
If anything happens to me, Evelyn knows why.
