Chapter 10 - Jonathan Mercer’s Voice
Jonathan Mercer had worked for Northstar.
Ethan had never told Emma because Jonathan’s role predated company’s consumer brand.
He was hardware consultant during prototype years.
He died from cancer when Ethan was twenty-six.
Northstar later hired Ethan partly because executives knew father.
Jonathan designed early local-security architecture with one principle:
No remote microphone activation without physical homeowner consent.
His prototype required mechanical service key.
NRS-4.
The key Claire kept.
Victor’s later architecture weakened restriction.
Jonathan opposed.
After his death, company repurposed parts of design.
Ryan admired Jonathan.
That explained archived voice samples: training demonstrations, engineering meetings, product videos.
Someone could construct filtered voice approximating him.
But current speaker’s phrase:
“Claire. Don’t say another word.”
Why impersonate Jonathan?
Psychological leverage against Ethan.
Make him react.
Make Claire obey.
Make family suspect impossible.
Then Maya found more precise truth.
Voice was not fully synthetic.
Current speaker had naturally similar cadence to Jonathan and filter pushed it closer.
Could be relative?
Ethan had no brother.
No secret twin.
Jonathan had younger business partner named Matthew Reed.
Voice recordings showed Matthew often imitated Jonathan during system testing because microphones calibrated against different male frequencies.
Matthew died? Avoid. Alive, 66, Florida.
Test excluded.
Then Ryan communicated key clue.
DON’T CHASE VOICE.
CHASE COMMAND.
Legacy admin connected using cryptographic token.
Token originally issued to Northstar executive governance laptop.
Custodian:
Martin Hale.
But Martin said laptop destroyed.
Records showed destruction certificate signed by Victor Lane.
Victor again.
Police finally located Victor.
He had been hiding because Ryan contacted him weeks earlier accusing him.
Victor feared old lawsuits and fled.
He denied current camera control.
Digital examination of devices found no mansion connection.
But Victor admitted something important.
He created EMERCER_ADMIN at instruction of Martin Hale.
Martin wanted diagnostic access hidden under ordinary employee identity.
Victor chose Ethan because his surname familiar and sales credentials plausible.
Martin knew.
Martin had lied.
Why?
Martin said he was protecting emergency maintenance program.
Victor claimed no malicious surveillance intended initially.
Then somebody began abusing account.
Victor suspected Martin.
Martin suspected Victor.
Northstar culture became mutually incriminating.
Ryan tried prove.
Whoever abused system remained hidden.
Then old blue recorder provided another fragment.
After Unit Fourteen session, camera captured person at control terminal.
Not face.
Hands.
On right hand:
distinctive university championship ring.
Ethan recognized it.
His father Jonathan had one identical.
But Jonathan was dead before Unit Fourteen scandal.
Could another graduate own same ring? Thousands potentially.
Ethan searched old Northstar photos.
Martin no ring.
Victor no.
Samuel no.
Ryan no.
Then Claire found photograph from company gala.
One man wore it.
Ethan’s uncle:
David Mercer.
Jonathan’s younger brother.
Emma had met David twice.
Retired accountant.
Quiet.
Friendly.
Seventy now.
Why was David at Northstar gala?
Ethan had always assumed as Jonathan’s family guest.
But employee roster showed:
D. MERCER — INTERNAL AUDIT CONTRACTOR.
David had worked there.
May you like
Ethan never knew.
And David still had keys to Ethan’s mansion for emergencies.
