Chapter 7: The Brass Key
Marcus stared at the brass key in Aaliyah’s palm.
For several seconds, nobody spoke.
The key looked ordinary.
Old brass. Scratched edges. A tiny black mark near the bow.
But Marcus knew it.
His father had kept it on a silver chain in his desk drawer.
Marcus had seen it hundreds of times as a child.
He stepped closer.
“Where did you get that?””
Aaliyah's fingers closed around it.
“I found it in your father's office.””
“When?””
“Two weeks ago.””
Marcus's face hardened.
“Two weeks?””
“I was trying to find something.””
“What?””
“The reason your father wanted the wedding stopped.””
Richard suddenly moved toward her.
“Aaliyah, give me the key.””
Marcus stepped between them.
“Don't.””
Richard stopped.
Marcus looked at him.
“You knew about this key?””
“No.””
“You're lying.””
Richard's jaw tightened.
“I knew there was a key.””
“To what?””
Richard didn't answer.
Marcus turned to Darius.
“You?””
Darius shook his head.
“No.””
Marcus looked back at Aaliyah.
“Take me to the office.””
Aaliyah hesitated.
“Marcus, there's something you need to understand.””
“What?””
“When I found the key, I didn't know what it opened.””
“Then why didn't you tell me?””
“Because I found your father's name on something else.””
“What?””
She pulled a folded photograph from her purse.
Marcus took it.
The picture showed his father standing outside Willow Creek Drive.
Beside him was Evelyn.
And beside Evelyn was a much younger Darius.
Marcus stared at the photograph.
“You were all connected.””
Evelyn whispered, “We were trying to protect you.””
“By lying to me?””
“We thought we were.””
Marcus turned toward the hallway.
“Where's the office?””
Evelyn's voice trembled.
“Second floor.””
Marcus started walking.
Darius followed.
Richard remained behind.
Marcus stopped halfway up the stairs.
“Richard.””
“Yes?””
“If you leave this house, I'll assume you're part of whatever my father was afraid of.””
Richard looked at him.
“You should assume that anyway.””
Marcus froze.
Richard's expression remained unreadable.
Then the lights suddenly came back on.
Aaliyah flinched.
Darius immediately looked outside.
“Someone's here.””
Marcus reached the top of the stairs.
“What?””
Darius pointed toward the driveway.
A black SUV was parked across the street.
The engine was running.
Marcus stared at it.
“Whose car?””
Darius shook his head.
“I don't know.””
Richard quietly said, “They're not here for me.””
Marcus looked at him.
“How do you know?””
Richard didn't answer.
Marcus turned to Aaliyah.
“Office. Now.””
She led him down the hallway.
At the end was a dark wooden door.
Marcus remembered it from childhood.
His father had always kept it locked.
Aaliyah inserted the brass key.
The lock clicked.
The door opened.
Dust hung in the air.
The room smelled of old leather, cedar, and something faintly metallic.
Marcus stepped inside.
His father's desk was still there.
The bookshelves were untouched.
A faded photograph of Marcus as a teenager sat beside an empty lamp.
He picked it up.
His father's handwriting was on the back.
*My son. The one thing I could never risk losing.*
Marcus swallowed.
Aaliyah stood behind him.
“I’m sorry.””
He put the photograph down.
“Don't apologize yet.””
He walked toward the desk.
The drawers had been emptied.
But one compartment remained locked.
Marcus tried the brass key.
Click.
The drawer opened.
Inside was a black envelope.
His name was written across it.
*MARCUS.*
His hands shook as he opened it.
There was one sheet of paper.
Only three lines.
*The money is not for the wedding.*
*The wedding is a trap.*
*The person who knows why is the woman you trust most.*
Marcus slowly looked at Aaliyah.
She went pale.
“You knew.””
“No.””
“Then why are you crying?””
“Because I know what that means.””
“What does it mean?””
Aaliyah backed toward the door.
“My mother.””
Marcus stared at her.
Before he could respond, they heard a crash downstairs.
Darius shouted.
“Marcus! Get down!””
A gunshot exploded through the house.
Aaliyah screamed.
Marcus grabbed her and pulled her behind the desk.
Another shot shattered the office window.
Glass sprayed across the floor.
Darius rushed into the hallway.
“Get out the back!””
Marcus grabbed the envelope.
“Who is shooting at us?””
Darius looked downstairs.
“I don't know.””
Then he stopped.
His face changed.
“What?””
Darius pointed toward the staircase.
“Richard is gone.””
Marcus stared.
The front door stood open.
Richard had disappeared.
And on the floor where he had been standing was a single sheet of paper.
Marcus picked it up.
May you like
It contained only one sentence.
*Ask your mother why she was paid $100,000 the night your father disappeared.*
