Nobody answered.
Richard remained outside the door.
Elena stared toward the thin line of light beneath it. Her hand trembled, but she kept her voice low.
“How did you know we were here?”
Richard laughed once.
It wasn't amusement.
“I knew eventually.”
Marcus whispered, “Everyone stay back.”
Richard heard him.
“You always were late, Marcus.”
Marcus's jaw tightened.
“What happened to Lena?”
Silence.
Then Richard said, “You don't understand what happened.”
Elena stepped toward the door.
“You watched her leave.”
“I watched her discover something she didn't understand.”
“She was seventeen.”
“She was determined.”
“She was frightened.”
Richard didn't answer.
Mia looked at Elena.
“Ask him about the room.”
Elena swallowed.
“What happened in Room 17?”
Richard's voice changed.
“The room was never supposed to exist.”
Daniel looked at Marcus.
Marcus nodded.
Richard continued.
“Years ago, this aquarium had a private holding program. Certain animals were temporarily housed here before transfer. The paperwork was deliberately kept separate from the public records.”
“Why?”
“Money.”
Elena closed her eyes.
“Illegal sales?”
Richard said nothing.
That silence was enough.
Marcus moved closer to the door.
“Who was involved?”
Richard answered quietly.
“People you still work with.”
Marcus stiffened.
“Names.”
“You won't like them.”
“Names.”
Richard sighed.
“Lena had already copied everything.”
Elena's voice cracked.
“Then why did she die?”
Richard did not answer immediately.
When he finally spoke, his voice was almost inaudible.
“She wasn't supposed to.”
Mia looked at Claire.
Daniel's expression hardened.
“What does that mean?”
Richard answered, “It means someone frightened her. Someone chased her into the service corridor. She fell.”
Elena stared at the door.
“You said she left the aquarium.”
“I lied.”
The words seemed to empty the room of air.
Elena's eyes filled.
“Why?”
“Because I was told to.”
“By whom?”
Richard hesitated.
“Richard,” Marcus said, “this is your last chance to tell the truth.”
Richard gave a bitter laugh.
“You think I don't know that?”
The door opened suddenly.
Richard stood there.
He was older than the man in Lena's photograph, but the resemblance was unmistakable. His gray hair was thinner, his face lined deeply around the mouth and eyes. He carried the black case Mia had described.
His gaze moved around the room.
Then stopped on Elena.
“I am sorry.”
Elena stepped toward him.
“You don't get to say that.”
“I know.”
“You let me believe she simply walked out.”
“I was afraid.”
“So was she.”
Richard looked down.
“I know.”
Daniel noticed the black case.
“What is inside?”
Richard didn't answer.
Marcus moved toward it.
Richard raised one hand.
“Don't.”
“Why?”
“Because the case contains the reason I came back.”
Elena stared at him.
“Open it.”
Richard hesitated.
Then he placed the case on the floor.
He unlocked it.
Inside were old photographs, a cassette recorder, several documents, and a small envelope.
Elena recognized the handwriting on the envelope immediately.
Lena.
She reached for it.
Richard stopped her.
“Wait.”
Her eyes flashed.
“You've had that for seven years.”
“Yes.”
“And you still think you can tell me when I can touch it?”
“No.”
He released the envelope.
Elena opened it with shaking fingers.
Inside was a letter.
She read silently.
Her lips moved once over the first sentence.
Then she began crying.
Claire stepped closer but did not touch her.
Elena finally handed the letter to Daniel.
He read only enough to understand.
Lena had written that she had discovered unauthorized animal transfers. She had found records connecting them to payments made through a private company. She believed someone at the aquarium was using the facility after hours.
But the final lines were different.
She wrote that Richard had warned her to stop.
She wrote that she no longer trusted him.
And then she wrote one sentence that made Elena look up.
“If I disappear, Richard did not cause it, but he knows who did.”
Marcus read the letter.
“So you weren't the one.”
Richard shook his head.
“No.”
“Who was?”
Richard looked at the old photograph of Lena.
“I didn't know until yesterday.”
Elena stared at him.
“Yesterday?”
“I found another file.”
“Where?”
“In my old house.”
“Why didn't you go to the police?”
Richard's expression collapsed.
“Because the person named in that file is still alive.”
Mia suddenly spoke.
“Is it Thomas?”
Richard looked at her.
“No.”
“Then who?”
Richard looked at Marcus.
“The man who signed the original transfer records.”
Marcus frowned.
“Who?”
Richard took a photograph from the case.
It showed a younger man standing beside the aquarium director.
The younger man wore a dark suit.
Marcus stared.
“I know him.”
Elena looked at the picture.
“Who is that?”
Marcus answered slowly.
“Peter Caldwell.”
Daniel frowned.
“Who is he?”
“He was the aquarium's director.”
Elena shook her head.
“He retired before Lena died.”
Richard said, “He didn't retire.”
Everyone looked at him.
“He was removed quietly after an internal investigation.”
Marcus's face changed.
“Why wasn't that public?”
“Because the board paid to keep it private.”
Elena's hands curled into fists.
“And he is still alive?”
Richard nodded.
“He owns a marine research company now.”
Marcus looked at the documents.
“What does he have to do with Lena?”
Richard placed another photograph on the table.
It showed Lena standing beside the touch pool.
In the background was the same man Mia had noticed in the earlier photograph.
Peter Caldwell.
Elena stared at him.
“He was there.”
“Yes.”
“On the night she died?”
“Yes.”
Daniel looked at Marcus.
“Then why did the investigation blame nobody?”
Richard answered.
“Because the evidence disappeared.”
Mia looked toward the wall.
“Not all of it.”
Everyone turned.
She pointed at the old electrical panel.
“The light.”
Marcus opened it again.
Behind the storage cavity was another compartment.
This time there was no drive.
There was a small recording device.
Richard stared at it.
“I thought that was destroyed.”
Elena stepped closer.
“What is it?”
Richard's face went pale.
“Lena's final recording.”
Click Here to continue read next: PART7: Lena’s Final Recording Revealed Why the Stingrays Kept Returning to One Corner, and the Missing Evidence Finally Named the Person Who Betrayed Her
The Stingray Beneath the Water Changed Direction Twice, and Mia Was Certain It Was Trying to Show Her Something
Part 6 of 16
