Chapter 5: The Son Who Never Existed
Arthur reached for the laptop.
I slammed it shut.
“Don't touch it.””
“Daniel, you need to understand—”
“Who is my brother?””
Arthur's mouth opened, but the words didn't come.
I stepped closer.
“My mother said my brother was involved in a criminal operation. My father said he helped her uncover it. And now his recording says you were involved.””
“Your father was trying to protect you.””
“From whom?””
Arthur looked toward the windows.
“From the people who killed your mother.””
The kitchen seemed to tilt around me.
“My mother died of cancer.””
Arthur lowered his eyes.
“That was the official explanation.””
I grabbed the edge of the counter to steady myself.
“What are you saying?””
“Your mother had been investigating suspicious payments connected to Carter Logistics. She discovered that several employees were transferring company money into accounts controlled by Northbridge Holdings before the company was even formally registered.””
“That was four months ago.””
“The company was registered four months ago. The operation began years earlier under different names.””
I shook my head.
“No. My mother never worked in the business. Dad handled everything.””
“She handled the books. Quietly. Your father trusted her more than anyone.””
I remembered my mother's habit of sitting at the kitchen table after dinner, checking receipts while Dad washed the dishes. She had always said numbers told the truth, even when people didn't.
I had never imagined those numbers could have gotten her killed.
“Tell me about my brother.””
Arthur pulled out a chair and sat down.
“His name was Michael.””
I stared at him.
“Was?””
“Michael was your father's son from a relationship before he married your mother. He was born seven years before you.””
I felt as though the floor had disappeared beneath me.
“Where is he?””
Arthur hesitated.
“That is the question your father has been trying to answer for twenty years.””
I thought about every birthday, every Christmas, every family photograph. There had never been another child. No mention of a half-brother. No explanation for a missing son.
“Why did Dad hide him from me?””
“Because Michael was convicted of fraud when he was twenty-four. He disappeared before the case went to trial. Your father believed he had left the country.””
“And my mother?””
“She found evidence that Michael had returned under another identity. She was preparing to expose him when she became ill.””
I shook my head.
“Are you saying Michael killed her?””
“I'm saying your mother believed he was dangerous. I don't know who caused her death.””
The distinction was small, but it mattered.
I looked down at the memory card.
“Then why does Dad's video accuse you?””
Arthur rubbed his face.
“Because I made a mistake years ago. I helped Michael establish a company before I understood what he intended to do with it. When I discovered the fraud, I tried to stop him. Your father never forgave me for helping him get started.””
“Did you know Michael was alive?””
“I suspected it. I didn't have proof.””
“And Vanessa?””
Arthur's silence answered before his words did.
“Your father believed she had been contacted by someone claiming to be Michael.””
My phone vibrated.
A message appeared from Vanessa.
*MIDNIGHT. RIVERSIDE WAREHOUSE. BRING THE WILL.*
Then another.
*IF YOU TELL THE POLICE, YOUR FATHER DIES.*
I showed Arthur.
“We're going to the police.””
“Agreed.””
We drove to the station, where Detective Miller was waiting after receiving the footage I had sent earlier. He watched the hallway recording without interrupting.
When Vanessa poured water onto the floor, he paused the video.
“That's deliberate,” he said.
When she looked directly at the camera and smiled, his expression hardened.
“And this?””
“She knew she was being recorded,” I said.
Detective Miller rewound the footage.
“Or she believed she had a reason to make sure the recording showed something specific.””
He studied the moment my father entered the hallway.
“Your father appears to arrive after she enters the study. That contradicts her initial account.””
“Can you arrest her?””
“We need to establish what happened in the room itself. The recording is important, but it doesn't show every moment.””
He stood and walked toward the whiteboard.
“Tell me about the missing will.””
Arthur explained the property transfers, the forged signature, and Northbridge Holdings. I gave Detective Miller the memory card and showed him the messages threatening my father.
When he saw the photograph of Dad tied to a chair, he immediately called his supervisor.
Within minutes, two detectives were gathering information about the Riverside warehouse.
“Here's what we're going to do,” Miller said.
“We'll locate the building, establish surveillance, and attempt to identify anyone holding your father. You are not going inside alone.””
“But they demanded the will.””
“We'll prepare a controlled handoff.””
Arthur shook his head.
“They'll recognize a police operation. Michael has done this before.””
Detective Miller looked at him sharply.
“You said you didn't know whether Michael was alive.””
“I said I had no proof. I didn't say I didn't know his methods.””
The room fell silent.
Miller approached Arthur.
“Have you been withholding information from this investigation?””
Arthur swallowed.
“I've been trying to protect Daniel.””
“That wasn't my question.””
Arthur looked at me.
“I received a letter three weeks ago. It contained a photograph of Robert and a message warning me to stay out of the estate dispute.””
“Why didn't you tell me?””
“Because I thought it was a bluff.””
Detective Miller took out a notebook.
“Where is the letter?””
“In my office.””
“Then we're going there.””
Before we could leave, the station's front doors opened.
A uniformed officer hurried toward us.
“Detective, we have a situation.””
Miller turned.
“What kind?””
“There's been a break-in at the Carter residence. The security system sent an alert.””
I felt my blood run cold.
“Vanessa?””
“We don't know. But the caller reported smoke coming from the basement windows.””
I was already moving.
Detective Miller shouted after me, but I didn't stop until I reached the parking lot.
When we arrived, fire trucks were parked outside the house. Flames flickered behind the basement windows, and firefighters were dragging a hose through the front door.
I tried to enter.
A firefighter blocked me.
“You can't go in there!””
“My father's documents are inside!””
“Then let us do our jobs.””
I stood in the rain as smoke poured from the basement vents.
The room behind the cellar wall contained the evidence my father had spent months collecting. If the fire destroyed it, we could lose the only proof connecting Vanessa to the financial fraud.
Then I remembered something.
The safe.
I had seen it in the concealed room, but I hadn't tried to open it.
“Arthur!”” I shouted.
He stood beside Detective Miller, staring at the flames.
“Was the safe fireproof?””
Arthur nodded slowly.
“Your father had it installed after your mother died.””
“Then the documents might survive.””
“Unless the fire was started to destroy something else.””
I looked at him.
“What else?””
He turned toward the upper windows.
“Your mother kept a separate ledger. She never trusted the main company accounts again after she discovered the fraud.””
“Where is it?””
Arthur's face crumpled.
“I don't know. Robert told me he had hidden it somewhere no one would think to look.””
A firefighter emerged from the house carrying a scorched metal box.
The safe.
My heart lurched.
“Is it intact?””
“We're not sure. The combination mechanism is damaged, but the box appears to be holding.””
Detective Miller took control of the evidence and arranged for it to be transported to a secure location.
Then his phone rang.
He listened for several seconds before turning toward us.
“We've located the Riverside warehouse.””
I stepped forward.
“Is my father there?””
“An unmarked vehicle was seen entering the property twenty minutes ago. We have officers establishing a perimeter.””
Arthur looked toward the burning house.
“This is too convenient.””
“What do you mean?”” I asked.
“The fire starts just as we're preparing to retrieve Robert. Someone wants us distracted.””
My phone vibrated again.
This time, the message came from an unfamiliar number.
*YOU FOUND THE ROOM. YOU FOUND THE WILL. NOW FIND YOUR BROTHER.*
A second message appeared.
*ASK ARTHUR WHAT HAPPENED TO MICHAEL'S FIRST WIFE.*
I turned toward the lawyer.
He had gone completely pale.
“Arthur?””
He looked at me, his lips trembling.
“Daniel, I need to tell you something before we go to that warehouse.””
“What?””
Arthur glanced at Detective Miller, then lowered his voice.
“Michael wasn't the only person your mother was afraid of.””
May you like
He swallowed.
“She was afraid of you.””
