{"id":8996,"date":"2026-09-26T20:41:44","date_gmt":"2026-09-26T20:41:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/feelonestory.online\/?p=8996"},"modified":"2026-09-26T20:41:44","modified_gmt":"2026-09-26T20:41:44","slug":"part-11-beatrice-finally-explained-why-she-met-ramon-pike-but-her-story-fell-apart-when-daniel-found-the-missing-motel-call","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/feelonestory.online\/?p=8996","title":{"rendered":"PART 11 \u2013 Beatrice Finally Explained Why She Met Ramon Pike, but Her Story Fell Apart When Daniel Found the Missing Motel Call"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Beatrice remained seated at my dining table.<\/p>\n<p>No pearls now.<\/p>\n<p>No perfect composure.<\/p>\n<p>Her hands were pressed together so tightly her knuckles had whitened.<\/p>\n<p>Julian stood behind her.<\/p>\n<p>He had stopped trying to control the room.<\/p>\n<p>For the first time all day, he looked like a son waiting to discover what his mother had hidden from him.<\/p>\n<p>I sat across from her.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat did Richard ask you to do?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>She stared at the table.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cDeliver an envelope.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cTo Pike?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat was inside?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI didn\u2019t know.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cDid you ask?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhy not?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>She looked up.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cBecause Richard said it concerned a difficult contractor.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Grace leaned against the wall.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou went to a motel at night to give an envelope to a man you barely knew because your husband called him difficult?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Beatrice\u2019s face tightened.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou weren\u2019t married to Richard.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou don\u2019t understand how he operated.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>I laughed quietly.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cApparently none of us did.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Beatrice looked toward me.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe handled problems privately.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThat is a very elegant phrase.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI\u2019m telling you what I knew then.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhen did you learn Michael was involved?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>She swallowed.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cLater that night.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHow?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cJulian called.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>I looked at him.<\/p>\n<p>He shook his head.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI called Dad.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou called the house,\u201d Beatrice said.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou answered.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Julian stared at her.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI didn\u2019t know you were at the motel.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou didn\u2019t ask.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat did he say?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>I asked.<\/p>\n<p>Beatrice closed her eyes.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThat Michael had driven away angry.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cFrom the cabin?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThat Julian was following him.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAnd?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe wanted Richard to call Michael.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>I looked at Julian.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhy?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe wasn\u2019t answering me.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMichael?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cDid Richard call?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Beatrice answered.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe tried.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHow many times?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI don\u2019t know.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Grace pulled out her phone.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe can verify.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Beatrice stared at her.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhy are you treating me like a criminal?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Grace said nothing.<\/p>\n<p>The silence was answer enough.<\/p>\n<p>Beatrice turned back to me.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI left the motel after delivering the envelope.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cTo Pike.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhen?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cA little before ten.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Daniel checked the receipt.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cCheckout was 10:03.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI remember leaving around then.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cDid Pike leave too?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI don\u2019t know.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cDid you see his vehicle?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cA dark pickup.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>I looked at the map Michael had left in Red Maple.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat direction did he go?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI didn\u2019t watch him.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cDid Richard tell him where Michael was?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Beatrice\u2019s eyes widened.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cDid you?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cDid the envelope contain directions?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI told you, I don\u2019t know what was inside.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Julian rubbed his face.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThis is insane.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>I turned.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou\u2019re acting as if my mother participated in some plan to hurt Michael.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cShe met the man Michael marked on the road map as waiting for him.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cBased on a note Michael wrote.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAnd Richard paid that man twenty-five thousand dollars after Michael died.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Julian stopped.<\/p>\n<p>He still wanted doubt.<\/p>\n<p>He simply had less room left to stand inside it.<\/p>\n<p>Beatrice looked at him.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cTwenty-five thousand?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou didn\u2019t know?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>That reaction felt genuine.<\/p>\n<p>I watched her carefully.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cDid Richard tell you why he wanted Pike contacted?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe said Michael was trying to damage the company.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHow?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThreatening lawsuits. Police. Investors.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThat was true.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cSo Richard wanted Michael silenced.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cStopped.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Beatrice flinched.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cPersuaded.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>I stared at her.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHow many different words does your family have for intimidation?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>She looked away.<\/p>\n<p>Daniel had opened historical phone records.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI found something.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Everyone turned.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cJulian\u2019s call records?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>He looked at Beatrice.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYours.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>She stared.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHow do you have my phone records?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI don\u2019t. I have company-reimbursed cellular logs.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Her expression changed.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe old family plan.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Daniel nodded.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt was paid by Harrington.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Beatrice stood.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou had no right to keep those.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThey were accounting records.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat did you find?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>He rotated the laptop.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cTwo calls from your number to Ramon Pike that night.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>She stared.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cOne at 9:26.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>She shook her head.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cOne at 11:41.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Her mouth opened.<\/p>\n<p>No words.<\/p>\n<p>Grace stepped closer.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou said you left around ten and didn\u2019t know where Pike went.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI didn\u2019t.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThen why did you call him nearly two hours later?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI don\u2019t remember.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>I almost laughed.<\/p>\n<p>There it was again.<\/p>\n<p>The family phrase.<\/p>\n<p>I don\u2019t remember.<\/p>\n<p>I don\u2019t know.<\/p>\n<p>It was complicated.<\/p>\n<p>You wouldn\u2019t understand.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe can sit here all night,\u201d I said.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cVivian\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhy did you call him?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Her eyes filled.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI was scared.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cOf what?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cJulian called again.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Julian frowned.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhen?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAround eleven-thirty.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI called Dad.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou called the house.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cSo?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI answered.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat did I say?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Beatrice looked at her son.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou said Michael was driving too fast.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Julian\u2019s face changed.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou said he wouldn\u2019t stop.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou said you were afraid he was going to crash.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>He stared at her.<\/p>\n<p>I felt cold.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAnd then you called Pike.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Beatrice nodded.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhy?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI thought he might be nearby.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhy would you think that?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>She hesitated.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cRichard had told him to keep an eye on Michael.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The room went silent.<\/p>\n<p>Julian whispered, \u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Beatrice started crying.<\/p>\n<p>Not elegantly.<\/p>\n<p>Not carefully.<\/p>\n<p>She covered her face.<\/p>\n<p>Julian stepped toward her.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMom.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>She shook her head.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou didn\u2019t know.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cRichard told me Pike would make sure Michael didn\u2019t go straight to police.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>I stared.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHow?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI don\u2019t know.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat was he supposed to do?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cDelay him.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cBy what?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI don\u2019t know.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Grace\u2019s voice hardened.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cDid Richard tell Pike to stop Michael\u2019s car?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cDid Richard tell Pike to threaten him?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI don\u2019t know.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cDid Richard tell Pike to frighten him?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Beatrice said nothing.<\/p>\n<p>I stepped closer.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThat is a yes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>She lowered her hands.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe said Michael needed to understand what would happen if he destroyed the company.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat would happen?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe\u2019d lose his money.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHis money was already gone.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI didn\u2019t know that.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cDid Michael know Pike was following him?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI don\u2019t know.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cDid you?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNot until later.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAfter the 11:41 call?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat did Pike tell you?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>She looked at Julian.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cTell me.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe said he had eyes on Michael.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>My stomach tightened.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat exactly?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe said, \u2018I see him.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n<p>I felt the hairs rise along my arms.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAt 11:41.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Michael\u2019s crash was reported shortly after midnight.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cDid he say where?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cDid you hear traffic?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI don\u2019t remember.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAnything?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>She closed her eyes.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWind.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>I waited.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAnd an engine.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhose?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI don\u2019t know.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Daniel searched further.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThere\u2019s another call.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Beatrice looked at him.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNot from you.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cTo Pike?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Daniel frowned.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cFrom Pike.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cTo whom?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>He looked at Julian.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cJulian.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Julian stared.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201c11:52 p.m.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI never spoke to him.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe log shows forty-one seconds.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThen he called and I didn\u2019t answer.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt shows connected duration.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Julian\u2019s face tightened.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI don\u2019t remember.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Grace looked at me.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cSame phrase.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>I ignored her.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat did Pike say?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>I asked Julian.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNothing.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou just said you didn\u2019t remember.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cBecause I don\u2019t remember taking the call.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Daniel clicked deeper.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThere\u2019s a voicemail archive.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Julian\u2019s head snapped toward him.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cSome company phones backed up voice messages.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cFrom four years ago?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cApparently.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Daniel searched by date.<\/p>\n<p>One file.<\/p>\n<p>11:53 p.m.<\/p>\n<p>He clicked play.<\/p>\n<p>Static.<\/p>\n<p>Wind.<\/p>\n<p>Then Ramon Pike\u2019s voice.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cJulian, he\u2019s almost at the lower switchback. You need to decide what you want me to do.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The message ended.<\/p>\n<p>I stared at my husband.<\/p>\n<p>Julian looked genuinely stunned.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI never heard that.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>I did not know whether to believe him.<\/p>\n<p>Daniel replayed it.<\/p>\n<p>Almost at the lower switchback.<\/p>\n<p>You need to decide what you want me to do.<\/p>\n<p>I looked at Julian.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cDid you call him back?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Daniel checked.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNo outgoing call immediately after.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Julian exhaled.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cSee?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Then Daniel held up a finger.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWait.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Another number.<\/p>\n<p>Not Pike.<\/p>\n<p>Julian called Richard at 11:54.<\/p>\n<p>Duration: one minute, twelve seconds.<\/p>\n<p>I looked at him.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat did you tell your father?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI don\u2019t remember.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Beatrice stood.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cJulian.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>He looked at her.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou told Richard Michael was nearing the lower switchback.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Julian froze.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou told him someone was following Michael.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI may have.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou asked what to do.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>He stared at his mother.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI was panicking.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat did Richard say?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Julian looked at the table.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cCall it off.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>No one moved.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>I whispered.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe said call it off.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>I stared.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cPike?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cDid you?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI tried.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Daniel searched records.<\/p>\n<p>A call from Julian to Pike at 11:56.<\/p>\n<p>No answer.<\/p>\n<p>Another at 11:57.<\/p>\n<p>No answer.<\/p>\n<p>A third at 11:58.<\/p>\n<p>Nine seconds.<\/p>\n<p>Grace looked at him.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThat connected.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Julian\u2019s breathing changed.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI remember that one.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat did he say?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Julian closed his eyes.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe said it was too late.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>My stomach turned.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cToo late for what?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI didn\u2019t know.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat did you think?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThat Michael had seen him.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cSeen Pike?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Julian looked at me.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI thought Pike had confronted him.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cBut you kept following Michael.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhy?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cBecause after Pike said it was too late, I became afraid something had happened.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Daniel checked the timeline.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat time did you reach the lower road?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cA few minutes later.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAnd Michael\u2019s car?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cGone through the barrier.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>I felt dizzy.<\/p>\n<p>Grace pulled out a chair for me.<\/p>\n<p>I sat.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cSo Pike was ahead of Michael.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Julian nodded.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou were behind.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMichael was between you.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>My brother had been driving down a mountain road with one man ahead and another behind.<\/p>\n<p>Both connected to the company that had taken his money.<\/p>\n<p>Both trying to stop him from reaching someone.<\/p>\n<p>Police.<\/p>\n<p>Me.<\/p>\n<p>Anyone outside the Harrington family.<\/p>\n<p>I looked at Beatrice.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat did you do after Pike told you he saw Michael?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI called Richard.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Daniel searched.<\/p>\n<p>\u201c11:43.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat did Richard say?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe told me to go home.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cDid you?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cDid you contact Pike again?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Daniel checked.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNo outgoing calls.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Beatrice\u2019s shoulders dropped.<\/p>\n<p>She looked suddenly very old.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI spent four years telling myself Richard only meant to frighten him.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>I stared at her.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAnd now?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Tears ran down her face.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNow I don\u2019t know what my husband was capable of.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Julian turned away.<\/p>\n<p>Grace\u2019s phone rang.<\/p>\n<p>Detective Chen.<\/p>\n<p>She answered, listened, and motioned for silence.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>A pause.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cUnderstood.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Another.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIs he willing to put that in writing?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Her expression changed.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAll right.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>She ended the call.<\/p>\n<p>I stood.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Grace looked at Julian.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cRamon Pike talked.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>No one breathed.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat did he say?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAccording to Detective Chen, Pike says Richard Harrington hired him to stop Michael from reaching the city that night.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Beatrice covered her mouth.<\/p>\n<p>Julian whispered, \u201cHow?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Grace looked at me.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe says the instruction was to force Michael off the road if necessary.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The room went completely silent.<\/p>\n<p>Then she added the part that made Julian sit down.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cPike says Richard told him Julian had already agreed.\u201d<\/p>\n<hr>\n<h2><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/feelonestory.online\/?p=8997\">Click here to continue reading: PART 12: Ramon Pike Claimed Julian Approved the Plan, but One Time-Stamped Recording Forced Me to Question Who Was Lying About Michael\u2019s Death<\/a><\/strong><\/h2>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Beatrice remained seated at my dining table. No pearls now. No perfect composure. Her hands were pressed together so tightly her knuckles had whitened. Julian stood behind her. He had &hellip; <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":8974,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-8996","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-feel-one-story"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/feelonestory.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8996","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/feelonestory.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/feelonestory.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/feelonestory.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/feelonestory.online\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=8996"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/feelonestory.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8996\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":9052,"href":"https:\/\/feelonestory.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8996\/revisions\/9052"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/feelonestory.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/8974"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/feelonestory.online\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=8996"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/feelonestory.online\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=8996"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/feelonestory.online\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=8996"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}