Chapter 20: The Last Journey Nora Took
Victor Sloane had disappeared from the public records three years after Nora's death.
His last known address was an apartment in New Jersey. His former employer had described him as a private security contractor who worked on a series of temporary assignments before resigning. There were no criminal convictions attached to his name, and the company that had employed him no longer existed under its original registration.
Martin arranged for the investigator to locate him.
Gabriel wanted to go immediately.
Instead, he stayed home.
It was the hardest decision he had made since the investigation began.
For years, he had treated work as the place where he could solve problems by staying late, reading reports, and making difficult calls. But Amelia had spent too much of her childhood waiting for him to come home.
He would not repeat that mistake simply because the truth had become urgent.
That afternoon, he took her to the park.
Biscuit came with them, pulling at the leash whenever he caught the scent of another dog. Amelia wore a yellow jacket and carried the notebook in which she had been drawing their house.
They sat on a bench near the playground.
“Daddy?”
“Yes?”
“Are we still a family?”
Gabriel turned toward her.
“Of course we are.”
“Even if Grandma doesn't live here?”
“Yes.”
“Even if Grandpa is sad?”
“Yes.”
“Even if Mommy is gone?”
He felt his throat tighten.
“Especially then.”
Amelia looked at the children running across the playground.
“I thought families were supposed to stay together.”
“Sometimes people stay in the same house but hurt each other. Sometimes people live apart and still love each other. Being a family means taking care of one another, telling the truth, and trying to make things right when we do something wrong.”
She considered this.
“Will Grandma ever say sorry?”
“I don't know.”
“Will you forgive her?”
Gabriel watched Biscuit chase a fallen leaf.
“Maybe one day. But forgiving someone doesn't mean pretending they didn't hurt you. And it doesn't mean letting them hurt you again.”
Amelia nodded slowly.
“Can I decide if I want to see her?”
“Yes.”
“Even when I'm older?”
“Always.”
For the first time, she seemed satisfied with an answer.
They stayed at the park until the light began to fade.
When they returned home, Martin called with an update.
The investigator had located Victor Sloane.
He was living in a small coastal town in Maine, working as a maintenance supervisor at a marina. He had agreed to meet with investigators but had refused to speak to anyone connected to the Hart family.
“He specifically asked whether you would be present,” Martin said.
“Why?”
“He says he has information about Nora's final journey.”
Gabriel stood in the kitchen, looking at Amelia as she helped set the table.
“Did he admit to following her?”
“Not yet.”
“Then we need to hear what he has to say.”
The meeting was arranged for the following afternoon.
Gabriel traveled with the investigator and Martin, leaving Amelia with Everett and a trusted family friend. Before he left, he sat with his daughter and explained that he needed to ask someone questions about her mother.
“Are you going to find out what happened to her?” Amelia asked.
“I hope so.”
“Will the answer make you sad?”
“Maybe.”
“Then you can tell me if you feel sad. You don't have to pretend you're okay.”
Gabriel smiled sadly.
“Where did you learn that?”
“Mrs. Alvarez said feelings are like visitors. If you pretend they aren't there, they knock louder.”
He laughed softly.
“That's good advice.”
Amelia hugged him.
“Come home when you're finished.”
“I will.”
The marina was quiet when they arrived. Fishing boats rocked gently against their moorings, and the smell of salt water mixed with diesel and wet rope.
Victor Sloane waited in a small office above the maintenance building.
He was in his early sixties, with a weathered face, thinning gray hair, and a slight limp. When Gabriel entered, Sloane stood.
“Mr. Hart.”
“You knew my wife.”
“I met her twice.”
“Why did you arrange transport on the night she died?”
Sloane's face tightened.
“I didn't arrange her transport.”
“The ledger lists your name beside vehicle arrangements.”
“I arranged a car for someone else that evening.”
“Who?”
Sloane looked at the investigator.
“I'll tell you what I know, but I want it recorded properly. I don't want my words changed later.”
The investigator agreed and began recording.
Sloane sat down.
“I worked for a company that provided security and transportation for several people connected to your grandfather's estate. Most of the work was ordinary. Meeting clients, driving executives, checking properties. But occasionally, I was asked to follow someone without their knowledge.”
“Who asked you to do that?” Gabriel demanded.
Sloane looked at him.
“Eleanor Voss.”
Gabriel felt a chill.
“Did she ask you to follow Nora?”
“Yes.”
“When?”
“About three weeks before the accident.”
“Why?”
“She said Nora was taking confidential documents from the estate and needed to be monitored.”
“Did you agree?”
“I did.”
“Did you follow her the night she died?”
Sloane closed his eyes.
“Yes.”
The room went silent.
Gabriel gripped the edge of the desk.
“What happened?”
“I followed her from the family house. She drove toward the highway. I kept my distance.”
“Did you touch her car?”
“No.”
“Did you interfere with her vehicle in any way?”
“No.”
“Did you cause the accident?”
“No.”
Sloane's voice shook.
“I swear to you, I did not cause that accident.”
Gabriel stared at him.
“Then why did you follow her?”
“Because Eleanor told me to find out where she was taking the documents. She said the information was important to the estate.”
“Did you contact anyone while you were following her?”
“Yes.”
“Who?”
Sloane hesitated.
“Eleanor.”
“What did you tell her?”
“That Nora was heading toward the interstate. She said to keep watching.”
“And then?”
“Rain began. Traffic was heavy. I lost sight of Nora's car near the junction.”
“Did you see the accident?”
“No.”
“Did you return to the scene?”
“No. I drove to a service station and waited. When I checked the news the following morning, I learned that Nora had died.”
Gabriel's hands curled into fists.
“You followed my wife, lost sight of her, and went home.”
“I was frightened.”
“You were being paid to follow her.”
“Yes.”
“You could have told the police.”
“I know.”
“Why didn't you?”
“Because Eleanor called me the next morning. She told me Nora was dead and warned me not to discuss the previous evening. She said I had no proof of anything and that if I spoke, I would be accused of stalking a woman who had died in an accident.”
Sloane looked down.
“I believed her.”
Gabriel forced himself to breathe.
“Did you see anyone else following Nora?”
Sloane hesitated.
“Yes.”
The investigator leaned forward.
“Who?”
“A second vehicle. A dark sedan.”
“Did you recognize it?”
“No. But it appeared behind Nora shortly after she left the family house. It was still behind her when I lost sight of her car.”
Gabriel felt the room tilt.
“Why didn't you mention that before?”
“Because I didn't know who was in it. I couldn't tell whether it was connected to me, to Eleanor, or to someone else.”
“Did you tell Eleanor?”
“Yes.”
“What did she say?”
Sloane swallowed.
“She told me not to worry about it.”
“Those exact words?”
“Yes.”
“Did she know who was driving?”
“I don't know.”
Gabriel turned toward the investigator.
“Can we identify the vehicle from the old traffic records?”
“We'll try,” she replied. “But after this much time, the available evidence may be limited.”
Sloane reached into a drawer and removed a small notebook.
“I kept my work logs,” he said. “I thought I might need them someday.”
He handed it over.
The investigator photographed the pages.
One entry, dated the night of the accident, read:
21:52 — Voss call. Subject departed Hart residence.
Another entry appeared twelve minutes later.
22:04 — Second vehicle observed. Dark sedan, no clear plate.
And a final note:
22:19 — Lost visual contact near highway junction.
Gabriel stared at the times.
The accident report placed Nora's crash at approximately 10:30 p.m.
The timeline was consistent with Sloane's account.
It did not prove the second vehicle had caused the crash. It did not establish who was inside it. But it confirmed that another car had been following Nora.
“Did you ever tell Marlene?” Gabriel asked.
Sloane looked uncomfortable.
“Yes.”
“When?”
“Several days after the accident. She called me and asked whether I had seen Nora that evening.”
“What did you tell her?”
“That I had followed Nora and lost sight of her. I also told her about the second vehicle.”
“And what did she say?”
Sloane's face hardened.
“She asked whether I could identify the driver.”
“What did you say?”
“That I couldn't.”
“Then?”
“She told me to forget what I had seen.”
Gabriel's voice dropped.
“Did she threaten you?”
“Not directly. She said I had already made one mistake by following Nora, and that another mistake could cost me my career.”
“Did she pay you?”
“No. But I had been working for a company connected to the estate. I knew how quickly someone could make trouble for me.”
Gabriel leaned back.
He had finally found a witness who could connect Eleanor Voss to the surveillance of Nora on the night of the accident.
But the second vehicle remained unidentified.
And Marlene had known about it.
“Why are you telling us now?” the investigator asked.
Sloane looked at Gabriel.
“Because I have spent eleven years telling myself I didn't cause her death. That may be true. But I helped create the conditions that left her alone, frightened, and unable to know who was following her.”
He swallowed.
“I cannot undo that. But I can stop pretending my silence was harmless.”
Gabriel studied him.
“Did you know Nora was carrying the documents?”
“Yes.”
“Did you see the envelope?”
“No. But I knew she had something with her.”
“What?”
“An old estate ledger. She told someone during a phone call that she had found the original entries.”
Gabriel felt his pulse quicken.
“Who was she speaking to?”
“I couldn't hear the other person.”
“Did she say where she was taking the ledger?”
“No.”
Sloane looked toward the window.
“But there is something I never understood. When Eleanor called me the morning after the accident, she didn't ask whether Nora had survived.”
Gabriel stared at him.
“What did she ask?”
Sloane's voice became almost inaudible.
“She asked whether I had recovered the documents.”
The investigator stopped writing.
Gabriel felt cold spread through his chest.
Eleanor had known that Nora was carrying evidence. She had arranged surveillance. She had been told that another vehicle was following Nora. And the morning after the accident, her first concern had been whether the documents had been recovered.
None of it proved that Eleanor had caused the crash.
But it made one thing impossible to ignore.
Someone had wanted those documents badly enough to follow Nora.
And someone had tried to find them immediately after she died.
The investigator thanked Sloane and arranged for his notebook to be taken into evidence.
As Gabriel left the marina, he received a call from Martin.
“We've made progress with the memory card,” Martin said. “The forensic team recovered several files.”
“What do they contain?”
“Financial spreadsheets, scanned correspondence, and a short audio recording.”
“From Nora?”
“Yes.”
Gabriel stopped beside the car.
“What does she say?”
Martin's voice softened.
“You should listen to it somewhere private.”
Gabriel closed his eyes.
“Send it to me.”
A few minutes later, a file arrived.
He sat in the passenger seat while the investigator drove. He put on his headphones and pressed play.
Nora's voice filled his ears.
“Gabriel, if you ever hear this, it means I didn't get the chance to tell you everything.”
He stopped breathing.
“I know you will be angry that I kept some of this from you. I know you will wonder why I didn't come to you sooner. The truth is that I was afraid you would confront the wrong person before I understood what was happening.”
A faint rustling sound followed.
“I have found evidence that the trust was used to conceal transfers from the estate. Marlene is involved, but I don't believe she is the only person directing the arrangement. Eleanor Voss has access to documents she should never have seen. Richard Bell has been preparing legal filings that appear to change Amelia's future rights. And someone inside the business has been helping them.”
Nora paused.
“I don't know whether the person who has been following me intends to hurt me. I don't know whether the accident reports will ever tell the whole story. But I know that if something happens, you must protect Amelia first.”
Gabriel's eyes filled with tears.
“Please don't let my mistakes become her burden. She deserves to grow up without having to choose between loving her family and telling the truth.”
The recording ended.
Gabriel removed his headphones.
For several minutes, he stared out at the road.
Nora had been afraid.
She had known she was being watched.
And she had tried to protect their daughter even when she could not be certain whom to trust.
When Gabriel arrived home, Amelia ran to the door.
“Daddy!”
He knelt and caught her in his arms.
She held him tightly.
“Did you find out something about Mommy?”
“Yes,” he whispered.
“Was it bad?”
“It was sad.”
“Do you want to talk about it?”
He pulled back and looked at her.
“Maybe later. Right now, I want to hear about your day.”
Amelia smiled.
“I drew another picture.”
She took his hand and led him toward the kitchen.
On the table was a drawing of a woman with long brown hair standing beneath a tree. Beside her stood a little girl holding a dog.
At the top, Amelia had written:
MOMMY IS PART OF OUR FAMILY, EVEN WHEN SHE ISN'T HERE.
Gabriel looked at the picture for a long time.
May you like
Then he kissed his daughter on the forehead.
“Yes,” he whispered. “She is.”
