Chapter 99: Altered

Emerald’s POV

The detective closed the folder halfway and looked around the room.

"Given the circumstances, Lawrence Park is now considered the primary suspect in Vera Hugo’s death. We have also issued a wanted notice for him."

The room became restless again.

I heard several people whispering behind me, but I kept my attention on Detective Miller.

"Does that mean you believe he killed her?" one of my extended uncles asked.

Detective Miller shook his head. "It means the evidence currently available to us makes him the primary person of interest. We still have an active investigation, and we are not declaring anyone guilty before the investigation is complete."

The distinction was important.

The evidence against Lawrence sounded terrible, but there was still a difference between being the primary suspect and being proven responsible for Vera’s death.

Uncle Dante finally spoke. "Those fingerprints were found directly around my daughter’s neck?"

"Yes."

"And your forensic team is certain they belong to Lawrence?"

"We are certain."

Uncle Dante’s jaw tightened. He was silent for several seconds, then he asked quietly, "Where is he?"

"We are still searching for him."

Uncle Dante’s expression hardened. "Then find him."

Detective Miller gave a short nod. "That is exactly what we are doing."

Uncle Dante leaned back without uttering another word.

On the other hand, Grandfather was silent until the detective turned another page in his folder. Then he said, "You said the CCTV records were altered."

"Yes, sir."

"How extensive is the alteration?"

"We are still determining that. Some recordings are completely missing, while other sections have clearly been modified."

"Can you determine who accessed the system?"

"Not yet, Sir."

Grandfather’s eyes narrowed slightly. "Does the missing footage cover the period surrounding Vera’s death?"

"It does."

A silence settled over the room. Grandfather’s fingers tightened slightly around the handle of his walking stick.

"And you have no indication yet of who removed or altered those recordings?"

"Not at this time."

"Then find out." His tone was calm, but there was no mistaking the authority behind it.

"Yes, sir."

Right then, one of the relatives shifted in his seat. "If Lawrence was there, and his fingerprints were found around Vera’s neck, why would he disappear without contacting anyone? Not even his own family?"

The detective looked toward him. "We don’t know why Mr. Park has not contacted anyone. His family has told us they have had no communication with him since his disappearance."

"And they are really certain?"

"Yes. We have spoken with them directly."

Another relative spoke. "So they are not hiding him?"

"We have no evidence suggesting that."

I glanced around the room. The family’s anger and disbelief were understandable. Vera had been married only a few weeks, and now her husband was the primary suspect in her death.

Yet there was something about the situation that continued to bother me. The CCTV.

If Lawrence had been at the vacation home, why was there no recording of him leaving?

And if someone had altered the cameras, why?

I knew there could be explanations I had not considered. Perhaps the missing footage had nothing to do with the murder itself.

Perhaps Lawrence had found another way out. Perhaps someone had tampered with the system for an entirely different reason.

I did not know. That was the problem.

Everyone around me seemed to be forming conclusions, but the investigation was still full of unanswered questions.

My grandfather looked at the detective. "What happens now?"

"We will continue searching for Mr. Park while our forensic and technical teams work through the remaining evidence. We are also examining the CCTV system to determine how the recordings were altered and whether anything else was removed."

"Anything else?" I repeated before I could stop myself.

Detective Miller looked at me. "Yes."

He opened the folder again. "We initially focused on the period immediately surrounding Miss Hugo’s death. However, our examination of the system has revealed irregularities in recordings from earlier that evening as well."

The room went silent as I felt my attention sharpen.

"Earlier that evening?" someone asked.

"Yes." Detective Miller nodded. "We are still determining precisely what was removed or altered, so I cannot tell you what those missing recordings contained."

My gaze moved toward Vera’s photograph. Earlier that evening. The words stayed in my mind.

Whatever had happened to Vera had not necessarily begun at the moment she was found dead.

There were pieces of that evening that the cameras could no longer show us.

And until the police discovered what had happened to those recordings, there was no way of knowing what they might have revealed.

After a long moment of silence, my mother broke it.

"What about the press?" she asked.

Her question instantly shifted the room’s attention away from the CCTV footage.

I turned to her. She had been quiet throughout most of the briefing, but I knew exactly why the question mattered.

Vera’s death would not remain private for long. She had been a member of one of the most prominent families in the country, had married only weeks ago, and had now died under suspicious circumstances.

The moment the news reached the public, the questions would begin.

My grandfather turned his attention toward Detective Miller. "Has anything been released to the media?"

"No, sir," Detective Miller replied. "At this point, the department has not released the cause of death or any details regarding the evidence we’ve discussed here."

Grandfather nodded once. "I want it kept that way."

Detective Miller remained professional. "We will continue to treat the details of the investigation as confidential."

"I appreciate that." Grandfather’s voice remained calm. "We would prefer that the circumstances surrounding my granddaughter’s death remain within the family until we have a clearer understanding of what happened."

"That is understood."

The detective did not make it sound like a personal concession. It was simply the appropriate way to handle an ongoing investigation.

"We will contact you if there are significant developments," he said, closing the folder.

Grandfather gave him a final nod. "Very well."

The two detectives stood, offered a brief acknowledgement to the family, and left the room.

Mrs. Walters followed them toward the doors. When they closed behind them, silence returned.

Then Grandfather’s eyes moved across the room before settling on my mother.

"Ivana."

My mother straightened slightly at Grandfather’s call. "Yes, Father?"

"I want you to handle the press," he instructed.

There was a subtle shift among the relatives. My mother, however, did not hesitate. "Of course."

"Prepare an official statement from the Hugo family concerning Vera’s death. Keep it brief and respectful. We should speak before the newspapers begin filling the silence with their own speculation."

My mother nodded. "I will have it prepared tonight."

"Make sure the family statement contains nothing concerning the investigation. Nor Lawrence."

"Understood."

I watched the exchange quietly.

It was not surprising that Grandfather had chosen my mother. She had spent years dealing with people who wanted something from the Hugo family, and she understood how carefully information had to be released when the family’s reputation was involved.

Still, not everyone appeared pleased with the decision.

I noticed several of my cousins exchanging glances. One looked away when she realized I had noticed her.

Another leaned toward someone beside her and whispered something too quietly for me to hear.

They did not like it. But nobody challenged Grandfather.

That was one thing about this family. People could disagree with him privately, but very few were foolish enough to oppose him openly.

Grandfather tapped the end of his walking stick lightly against the floor. "The funeral will be held three days from now."

A few quiet sobs escaped from the other side of the room.

One of my female cousins lowered her head and covered her mouth as tears rolled down her cheeks. Another reached for a tissue.

However, I briefly shut my eyes. Three days. The thought made Vera’s death feel more real than it had a few minutes ago.

She had been alive only yesterday morning. Now the family was already discussing where and when she would be buried.

Grandfather looked toward the relatives who were crying and said, "Compose yourselves."

The room gradually quieted.

"We will mourn her," he said. "She was family, and she deserves our respect. But we will not lose control of ourselves."

Nobody interrupted him.

"What has happened cannot be changed. Tears will not bring Vera back, and neither will endless questions at this moment."

His gaze moved from one person to another.

"We have a funeral to arrange, a family to represent, and matters surrounding her death that must be handled properly. We will do all of those things with dignity."

The crying gradually subsided.

When I glanced at Grandfather, there was no softness in his expression, but there was something else there.

Control.

He had lost his favorite granddaughter, yet he was still thinking about what needed to be done next.

That was how he had always led the family. Feelings could exist, but They simply could not be allowed to dictate decisions.

Then he tuned to Uncle Dante. "Dante, work with the family office regarding the funeral arrangements."

Dante nodded. "I will."

"Ivana, I want the statement ready tonight."

"Yes, Father."

"The rest of you will cooperate with them. If you are approached by the press, you say nothing beyond what the official statement contains."

Everyone acknowledged him.

Grandfather leaned back slightly. "That is all."

One by one, everyone began to stand. The conversation broke into quiet murmurs as relatives moved toward the doors.

My eyes drifted toward Vera’s photograph again. Vera was dead while her husband was nowhere to be found.

I did not know what had happened, but something told me that the answers would not be as simple as the fingerprints around her neck suggested.

I finally stood and followed the others out of the room.