Chapter 4 - The Mechanic’s Secret
After Richard left in a huff, the mansion fell into a tense silence. Julian sat at the dining table, staring into space. Camila brought him a cup of black coffee, placing it gently beside his unmoving hands.
"You took a big risk back there, Camila," Julian said softly without looking up. "Richard holds thirty percent of my company's voting shares. He could destroy my life's work."
"He was lying, Mr. Hargrove," Camila replied quietly. "I know the look of a man who is hiding something. My late husband, Mateo... he used to fix cars for high-end clients in Hartford before he passed. He knew about cut hydraulic lines and tampered door latches."
Julian looked up, his grey eyes piercing hers. "Hartford? Your husband worked in Hartford five years ago?"
"Yes. He had a small shop off Route 91."
Julian’s breath caught in his throat. "What was the name of his shop?"
"Torres Auto Repair," Camila answered, confused by the sudden intensity in his glare.
Julian stood up so fast his chair scraped loudly against the floor. He rushed to his desk, pulled up a thick binder of secondary police reports, and flipped wildly through the pages until he stopped at a signed witness statement from five years ago.
The signature at the bottom read: Mateo Torres.
Camila gasped, pulling her hand to her mouth. "Mateo? But... he never told me about this!"
Julian read the statement aloud, his voice dropping to a dangerous whisper. "'I received a call at 11:00 PM on the night of November 14 to tow a black SUV off Route 91. Before the fire spread, I noticed a man in a dark suit removing items from the glove box and the driver's side.' Your husband was the tow truck driver who arrived before the police, Camila!"
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The room seemed to spin around Camila. Mateo had never mentioned towing a luxury vehicle on the night of a famous billionaire's crash. But then she remembered—five years ago, right around November, Mateo had suddenly received a large sum of cash. He had told her it was a bonus from an anonymous wealthy client, money they had used to pay off their apartment debt.
Was it a bonus? Or was it hush money?
