He had spent nearly two years circling nineteen million dollars.
And he had never known about the additional three million protected specifically for me.
But something still bothered me.
“How did Nathan know the trust existed?”
That question took weeks to answer.
The criminal investigation widened quickly.
Martin Hall was arrested three days after the wedding.
Linda was charged alongside Nathan.
Their devices were seized.
Old accounts reopened.
Victims located.
More aliases emerged.
Nathan Brooks.
Nicholas Bennett.
Nicholas Carter.
Nate Cole.
Daniel Bryant.
Five names.
Three states.
At least eight women.
And Linda had played different roles every time.
Mother.
Aunt.
Older sister.
Business partner.
Widowed family friend.
The most horrifying discovery was not the number of victims.
It was the patience.
Nathan sometimes spent years building trust before asking for money.
One woman had dated him for three years.
Another believed they were legally married for eighteen months.
Two had children.
One lost her home.
One woman, a widow named Patricia, contacted me after seeing news coverage.
“He made my son hate me,” she said over the phone.
I closed my eyes.
“I’m sorry.”
“No.”
Her voice trembled.
“You don’t apologize to me.”
She paused.
“You stopped him.”
I looked across my kitchen.
Ben was helping Grace open a bottle of wine.
Lily was arguing with Rebecca about whether our family needed a vacation.
For once, the house felt safe.
The investigation into Melissa’s death was reopened.
That was the hardest part.
For months, I lived between hope and dread.
I wanted answers.
I feared them.
Mechanical records from Melissa’s car no longer existed.
The vehicle had been destroyed years earlier.
Witnesses had scattered.
Memories faded.
But Melissa’s files changed everything.
She had saved threatening voicemails.
One belonged to Linda.
Another came from an unidentified man.
A third was mostly breathing.
Then investigators recovered Nathan’s old email account.
Inside was a message sent forty-eight hours before Melissa died.
To Linda.
Four words.
She won’t back down.
Linda replied:
Then solve the problem.
That was enough to deepen the investigation.
Not enough, by itself, to prove murder.
