Chapter 8: The Woman Who Raised My Missing Brother
By seven the following morning, Marcus had barely slept.
Lily was eating pancakes at the kitchen island while Ethan sat beside her, pretending to concentrate on a children's cartoon. Richard had gone upstairs to contact the family attorney.
Eleanor hadn't left her bedroom.
Chloe was gone.
At four in the morning, Marcus had arranged for her to stay at a hotel under her own name. He'd told her that their marriage was finished, but he hadn't wanted her wandering the streets alone while someone was threatening his daughter.
He didn't know whether that decision was compassion or habit.
Perhaps, after years of believing Chloe's promises, he still couldn't stop himself from trying to manage the consequences of her choices.
His phone vibrated.
Detective Harper had sent him a message.
The photograph of the young man had been traced to a public social media account belonging to a twenty-eight-year-old named Nicholas Reeves.
Nicholas was Daniel's biological son from a previous relationship.
He wasn't Julian.
But the address in the photograph had led investigators to Catherine Bell, the woman who had raised Julian.
Marcus read the message twice.
Then he looked at his daughter.
“Sweetheart, Daddy has to go out for a little while.””
Lily pushed a strawberry across her plate.
“Are you finding the baby?””
Marcus crouched beside her chair.
“No, sweetheart. I'm looking for someone who might be part of our family.””
“Like Uncle Ethan?””
“Maybe.””
She considered that.
“Will he like my rabbit?””
Marcus smiled despite everything.
“I think he'll like you.””
He kissed her forehead, then arranged for Ethan and a trusted family employee to stay with her while he met Detective Harper.
He did not intend to visit Catherine alone.
The detective had made that very clear.
At nine thirty, they arrived at a modest brick house in a quiet Fort Worth neighborhood.
The front garden was neatly maintained. A wind chime hung beside the porch, and a child's old bicycle rested against the garage wall.
It was an ordinary home.
That somehow made the situation more painful.
For twenty-nine years, Julian might have lived in a house like this while his biological parents wondered whether he was dead.
Detective Harper knocked.
A woman in her sixties opened the door.
She had silver hair, tired eyes, and a cardigan buttoned to the throat.
“Catherine Bell?”” the detective asked.
“Yes.””
“I'm Detective Harper. This is Marcus Carter. We'd like to ask you some questions about Julian Reeves.””
Catherine's expression changed.
Her hand tightened around the doorframe.
“I was afraid this day would come.””
Marcus felt his pulse quicken.
“You know who I am?””
She stepped aside.
“I've seen your picture in the newspapers.””
They entered a small living room filled with family photographs.
Catherine offered them coffee, but Marcus declined.
He couldn't stop looking at the photographs on the mantel.
There was a teenage boy holding a fishing rod.
A young man standing beside a graduation banner.
A family photograph showing Catherine, her husband, and a dark-haired child with a narrow scar over his left eyebrow.
Julian.
Marcus moved closer.
“Is this him?””
Catherine followed his gaze.
“Yes.””
Her voice broke on the word.
“That's my boy.””
Marcus swallowed.
“Where is he now?””
Catherine sat down slowly.
“I haven't seen him in three years.””
“Why?””
“Because he found out he was adopted.””
She explained that she'd married her husband, Thomas, shortly before Daniel Reeves approached them with an unusual offer.
They'd been told a newborn needed a stable home.
The baby's biological parents were wealthy but embroiled in a dangerous family dispute, Daniel claimed. They had agreed to relinquish their rights in exchange for money and anonymity.
Catherine and Thomas had struggled with infertility for years.
They accepted.
They were told the baby had been abandoned and that the legal paperwork would be handled privately.
“Did you know his mother was Eleanor Carter?”” Marcus asked.
“No.””
“Did you know his father was Richard Carter?””
Catherine shook her head.
“We were told his parents had died.””
Marcus closed his eyes.
Daniel had fabricated an entire story.
He hadn't merely removed a baby from his parents.
He had convinced two people to raise that baby under false pretenses.
“Did you receive money?”” Detective Harper asked.
Catherine hesitated.
“Yes.””
“How much?””
“Fifty thousand dollars. Daniel said it was to cover the adoption expenses and give Julian a secure future.””
“Did you know he'd transferred hundreds of thousands of dollars through other accounts?””
“No.””
Catherine began twisting her wedding ring.
“My husband thought something was wrong. He wanted to report it, but Daniel threatened to accuse us of kidnapping.””
Marcus stared at her.
“So you stayed silent.””
“We were terrified.””
“You let my brother grow up believing his parents were dead.””
Catherine's eyes filled with tears.
“We thought we were saving him.””
Marcus looked at the photographs.
He wanted to hate her.
Part of him did.
But he could also see the years in those pictures: school uniforms, birthday cakes, fishing trips, graduation day.
She'd raised Julian.
She'd fed him, comforted him, and watched him become an adult.
She'd also helped keep him separated from a family that had spent decades searching for the truth without knowing where to look.
“Why did he leave?”” Marcus asked.
Catherine wiped her cheeks.
“Three years ago, a woman contacted him. She said she knew who his biological parents were. She sent him copies of the trust documents and the original birth certificate.””
“Who was she?””
“I don't know. She refused to meet him.””
“Did she give him a name?””
Catherine hesitated.
“Eleanor Carter.””
Marcus felt his breath catch.
His mother had contacted Julian three years ago.
He turned toward Detective Harper.
“Did you know this?””
“No.””
Catherine continued.
“Julian confronted Daniel. They had a terrible argument. Daniel told him he'd been raised as part of a business arrangement and that his biological family had never wanted him.””
Marcus clenched his fists.
“That's a lie.””
“I know that now. Julian left the house that night. He told me he needed to find the truth.””
“Did you hear from him afterward?””
“Once. He called from a pay phone and said he'd discovered something about the trust. He said Daniel had been using his identity to control money that belonged to him.””
Detective Harper leaned forward.
“Did he say where he was going?””
Catherine shook her head.
“He said he'd contact me when it was safe.””
Marcus studied her.
“Why didn't you tell the police?””
“Because two days later, Daniel came to my house.””
Her voice trembled.
“He showed me photographs of Julian. He told me that if I ever spoke about the adoption, my son would disappear permanently.””
Detective Harper's expression hardened.
“Did you keep those photographs?””
Catherine rose and walked to a cabinet.
She returned with a small envelope.
Inside were several printed photographs and a handwritten note.
The note read:
Your son knows too much. If you love him, let him stay gone.
Marcus stared at the handwriting.
He recognized it from the threatening messages.
The same slanted letters.
The same distinctive way of crossing the letter T.
Daniel.
Detective Harper photographed the note and sealed it in an evidence bag.
Then Catherine handed Marcus one final item.
A small silver pendant on a broken chain.
“Julian left this behind,” she said.
“He told me it belonged to his birth mother.””
Marcus opened the pendant.
Inside was a tiny photograph of Eleanor holding a newborn.
The same photograph Richard had shown them.
On the back, someone had written a date and a short sentence.
*To my son, whom I will find again.*
Marcus stared at the words.
His mother had given Julian the pendant before he disappeared.
She had known where he was three years ago.
She had contacted him.
And then he had vanished.
“Why didn't she tell us?”” he whispered.
Catherine looked at him sadly.
“Because Julian asked her not to.””
Marcus turned.
“What?””
“He said he wanted to learn the truth without his biological family interfering. He told her he'd contact her when he was ready.””
Detective Harper rose.
“We need to establish Julian's last known location.””
Catherine gave them an address in Dallas.
It was an abandoned office building once owned by Daniel's company.
Before they left, Marcus looked at the family photographs one last time.
“Did Julian ever say he wanted to meet us?””
Catherine nodded.
“He said he wanted to meet his brother.””
Marcus felt his throat tighten.
“Then why didn't he?””
“Because he was afraid you would hate him.””
“Why would I hate him?””
Catherine looked toward the window.
“Because Daniel told him that when your family discovered the truth, you would blame him for everything.””
Marcus walked out of the house with the silver pendant in his hand.
For the first time since Lily had exposed Chloe's fake pregnancy, he felt something stronger than anger.
Hope.
His brother was alive.
He had grown up with another family, discovered the truth, and disappeared while trying to understand the lies surrounding his birth.
And now Marcus knew where to begin looking.
But as they approached the car, Detective Harper's phone rang.
She listened for several seconds.
Then she turned toward Marcus.
“We have a problem.””
“What?””
“The abandoned building you were about to visit has just been searched.””
“By whom?””
“The property owner reported a break-in. One room was set on fire.””
Marcus stared at her.
“Was anyone inside?””
The detective paused.
“A security guard found a man unconscious in the basement.””
“Is it Julian?””
“We don't know yet.””
May you like
Then she delivered the detail that made Marcus's blood run cold.
“The man was carrying a wallet with your name inside.””
