Chapter 2 - THE STORY GRANT COULDN'T REMEMBER
Grant did not remember the crash clearly.
He remembered:
turbulence.
metal.
cold.
Then trees.
Then nothing for three days.
A volunteer hunting guide found him nearly forty miles from the wreck area after floodwater carried debris downstream.
Grant had:
a fractured wrist,
concussion,
severe hypothermia,
and no identification.
His phone was gone.
Wallet gone.
He gave the wrong last name at first.
Not because he was hiding.
Because he could not remember it.
He spent nearly two weeks in a small regional hospital, then a rehabilitation facility.
His memory returned in pieces.
Ben’s laugh.
Ethan’s face.
Julia.
Home.
By the time authorities connected him to the crash, lawyers were already processing estate emergency procedures.
Grant insisted on coming home before making a public announcement.
Bad idea medically.
Necessary emotionally.
Then he saw Ben’s cheek.
Grant crouched.
“Who hit you?”
Ben looked at Julia.
Grant’s jaw tightened.
“Julia?”
She answered immediately.
“He was screaming and insulting me.”
Grant stood.
“You hit a five-year-old.”
“He has been impossible for two months.”
Ethan snapped:
“Because you fired Molly!”
Grant looked at Julia again.
“Why?”
“She undermined me.”
That sentence mattered.
Then Marcus said quietly:
“Mr. Whitmore, there are things you need to see.”
Julia turned sharply.
“Marcus.”
May you like
Grant looked at the guard.
“Show me.”
