Mrs Carter had learned to recognize bad news long before its was ever spoken.
It arrived in pauses. In voice that softened instead of sharpening. In the way people avoided her eyes.
She was sitting in the hospital cafeteria when Patrick approached her table, coffee untouched, shoulders stiff, moving like someone carrying more than just a bag.
" Aunty Sonia," he said quietly.
She looked up. " sit down."
He hesitated, them obeyed.
Patrick had been Daniel's closest friend since they were children. Through scraped knees, schoolyard fights,family dramas, and very milestone in between, he had stayed. Loyal. Protective. Someone who knew Daniel better than anyone else alive_ and now, someone who had stumbled across something he wasn't supposed to see.
" you look like you've see a ghost," Mrs Carter said calmly.
Patrick swallowed. " I wasn't planning to tell you this yet."
" That means you planned to tell me at all." She replied. " So start talking."
He glanced around, lowering his voice. " I went through Daniel's old things_ emails, backups, files. I wanted to understand...why this accident happened. Why Daniel... ended up like this.
Mrs Carter didn't interrupt. She didn't move. She simply waited.
Patrick exhaled slowly. " Daniel ketp things meticulous, even as a kid. Codes, hidden files.... he always feared someone would try to erase him. I thought it was paranoid. Turns out.... it wasn't.
He slid his phone across the table. On the screen was a list of encrypted files, cross- referenced, time- stamped. Financial anomalies. Shell companies. Transfers appearing briefly, then vanishing. And one name surfaced repeatedly.
Helix Group.
Mrs Carter felt a chill settle behind her ribs.
"I've seen that name before," she said slowly.
Patrick nodded. " so did Daniel. Multiple times. He tracked it, suspected it. And now... I think it's connected to the accident."
Mrs Carter's hands tightened around her cup. " how do you know it's dangerous? "
Patrick tapped another file. A series of encrypted communication, signatures that matched protocols Mary would have recognized from her past work. " Not just business," he said quietly. " This is something bigger. Someone is using it for.... purposes we may not understand yet. But it's serious."
Mrs Carter's mind raced. Daniel was in the hospital, vulnerable. Mary was abroad. And now Patrick, someone Daniel trust with his life, was delivering evidence that would pull them both into something far larger than any of them had imagined.
" Patrick.... why tell me?" She asked.
" Because, " he said, eyes darkening, " if Mary starts digging. If she finds Helix before we can act, it will put Daniel in danger."
Mrs Carter nodded slowly. She understood. She had to call Mary, warn her, guide her_ but carefully.
Patrick stood. " I wanted you to see this first. Make your own call. And be careful. They've already noticed when people start asking questions. "
Mrs Carter watched him leave, the cafeteria suddenly quiet. Machines, patients, the hum of life outside _ the world continued, oblivious to the threads moving in shadow.
Her fingers tightened around her phone. It was time. Mary had to know.
Some truths, she realized, were impossible to ignore.