Chapter 63: The Old Hard Drive

The hard drive was old enough that Freya's laptop couldn't connect to it directly. Louis contacted Derek, who arrived that evening carrying adapters and a separate computer that could be kept offline while they examined the files.

"Romantic Sunday?" Derek asked when he saw boxes of documents covering the dining table.

Freya pointed toward the chair. "Make yourself useful."

The drive powered on with an unpleasant clicking sound. For several tense seconds, nothing appeared. Then folders slowly loaded onto the screen.

Most contained archived design projects and family photographs. Freya copied those first, unwilling to risk losing them if the drive failed.

A folder labeled SBD contained spreadsheets, scanned agreements, and email exports related to Stonebridge Development Services.

Derek opened one spreadsheet. "These transactions are old."

"How old?" Freya asked.

"More than ten years."

The records showed payments between property companies, contractors, and consulting firms. Louis recognized several names that had once done business with Stone Holdings.

Then Freya spotted Victor Shaw.

His name appeared in meeting notes attached to a disputed development project. According to the notes, Freya's father had questioned inflated contractor invoices. Victor, representing an investment partner, had argued that the differences were legitimate cost adjustments.

The dispute seemed to end without legal action, but Freya's father had continued collecting records afterward.

"He didn't believe Victor," Freya said.

Louis read another note. "Neither did my grandfather."

A later document referenced Martin Vale, the estate attorney. He had requested access to Stonebridge records after Freya's parents died.

Derek leaned back. "So Vale had access to an inactive company connected to Freya's family. Years later, money linked to the leaks passed through that company."

"Which means we need to find Vale," Louis said.

Derek immediately began searching.

Freya remained focused on the hard drive. One encrypted archive sat inside the SBD folder. The filename was simply BACKUP_FINAL.

"Can we open this?"

Derek tried. A password prompt appeared.

Freya tested birthdays, family names, and several combinations suggested by old memories. None worked.

Louis looked through the documents. "Did your father have a phrase he used often?"

A memory surfaced: her father sitting at a drafting table while young Freya complained about a school project. He had tapped the page and said, "Measure twice, build once."

Freya typed MEASURETWICE.

Incorrect.

She tried BUIL_ONCE, family dates, then the full phrase without spaces.

The archive opened.

Derek whistled softly.

Inside were only six files.

Five were financial records. The sixth was an audio file.

Freya's hand froze over the mouse.

The file date was three weeks before her parents died.

Louis looked at her. "We don't have to listen tonight."

Freya stared at the filename: VICTOR_MEETING_02.

"Yes," she said quietly. "We do."

Derek disconnected the computer from every network connection before opening it.

A burst of static filled the apartment. Then a man's voice began speaking.

Freya recognized Victor Shaw immediately.

Freya took a slow breath before Derek pressed play. Whatever the recording contained, it belonged to events buried long before she entered this world. Yet those events had somehow reached forward into Louis's collapse and her current life. The coincidence was too large to ignore. For once, even the novelist in her couldn't imagine where the next revelation would lead.

Neither of them wanted to rush the next step. They had learned enough to know that every answer could expose another hidden connection. For now, preserving the evidence and keeping Victor unaware of what they had discovered mattered more than forcing an immediate confrontation.