Chapter 9: The Brother Who Knew My Name
The abandoned office building stood behind a row of shuttered businesses in downtown Dallas.
Smoke still drifted from a broken basement window when Marcus and Detective Harper arrived.
Firefighters were packing away their equipment. Police officers had cordoned off the entrance, and a paramedic stood beside an ambulance with its rear doors open.
Marcus barely noticed any of it.
He was looking at the stretcher.
A man lay beneath a gray blanket, his face partly obscured by an oxygen mask. His dark hair was matted with blood, and a bandage covered his forehead.
One hand hung over the side of the stretcher.
Around his wrist was a silver bracelet.
Marcus recognized the engraving.
*J.R.*
He had seen the same initials on the pendant Catherine had given him.
“Is that Julian?”” he asked.
Detective Harper raised her hand to stop him from approaching.
“Let the paramedics finish their assessment.””
“Please. I need to know.””
A paramedic looked up.
“He's alive. He's suffered smoke inhalation and a head injury, but he's breathing on his own. We're taking him to Parkland.””
Marcus looked at the man's face again.
He couldn't be certain.
The scar over the eyebrow matched the photographs, but the swelling made identification difficult.
Then the man's eyes opened.
He stared at Marcus.
His lips moved beneath the oxygen mask.
Marcus stepped closer.
“What is it?””
The paramedic adjusted the mask.
The man tried again.
This time, Marcus heard him.
“Don't... trust... Daniel.””
Then his eyes closed.
The ambulance doors slammed shut.
Marcus stood motionless as the vehicle pulled away.
Detective Harper touched his arm.
“We'll get answers at the hospital.””
But Marcus already knew one thing.
Julian had been attacked.
And someone had been desperate enough to burn down an abandoned building to keep him silent.
At Parkland, the doctors confirmed the man was conscious but disoriented. They couldn't yet determine whether he had sustained lasting neurological damage.
Marcus waited in the corridor while Detective Harper coordinated with the officers investigating the fire.
Ethan arrived twenty minutes later, having arranged for Lily to stay with a trusted family friend.
“Is it him?”” Ethan asked.
“We don't know yet.””
Ethan sat beside him.
For several minutes, neither spoke.
Then Ethan said, “Do you think Mom knew where he was all this time?””
Marcus rubbed his face.
“I think Mom knew more than she told us. I don't know if she knew where he was yesterday.””
“That's not much comfort.””
“No.””
Ethan looked down at his hands.
“Marcus, what if Julian hates us?””
Marcus turned toward him.
“Why would he?””
“Because we had everything. The money. The house.
Dad's company. He grew up believing he was unwanted while we lived the life that should have been his.””
Marcus thought of the trust documents.
The inheritance.
The years his brother had lost.
“I won't pretend I understand what he went through,” Marcus said.
“But if he's angry, he has every right to be.””
Ethan nodded slowly.
A nurse appeared at the end of the corridor.
“Mr. Carter? The patient is asking for you.””
Marcus stood immediately.
Inside the hospital room, the man sat propped against several pillows. His face was pale, and a monitor beeped steadily beside the bed.
He looked older than the photographs suggested.
Thirty, perhaps.
His eyes were a startling shade of gray.
When Marcus entered, the man studied him for a long time.
Then he gave a weak, humorless laugh.
“So you're the famous Marcus Carter.””
Marcus pulled a chair beside the bed.
“And you're Julian?””
The man looked toward the window.
“That's what they called me.””
“Is that your name?””
He hesitated.
“My name is Julian Reeves. At least, it was until I found out my birth certificate said Carter.””
Marcus swallowed.
“I'm Marcus.””
“I know.””
“Have you always known about me?””
Julian turned back toward him.
“No. Daniel told me I was an orphan. I didn't learn about you until three years ago.””
Marcus leaned forward.
“Catherine said you disappeared after confronting Daniel.””
Julian's expression darkened.
“Catherine told you that?””
“Yes.””
“Then she probably told you she had nothing to do with it.””
Marcus frowned.
“What do you mean?””
Julian shifted against the pillows, wincing.
“My adoptive father discovered the truth first. He was going to report Daniel. But Daniel threatened to have him arrested for fraud. Catherine panicked and convinced him to stay quiet.””
Marcus thought of the note.
“Did Daniel threaten you, too?””
“He did more than threaten me.””
Julian lifted his wrist.
A faint scar ran beneath the bracelet.
“When I was twenty-seven, I found financial records proving Daniel had used my identity to move money through several companies. He'd been siphoning funds from the trust that belonged to me.””
“How much?””
“More than twelve million dollars.””
Marcus stared at him.
Twelve million.
Daniel hadn't merely hidden a child.
He had stolen the child's inheritance for decades.
Julian continued.
“I confronted him. He said the money was payment for raising me, protecting me, and keeping the Carters away. He claimed your family had agreed to it.””
Marcus shook his head.
“Dad says he paid Daniel to make the situation disappear, but he claims he didn't know you were alive.””
Julian gave a bitter smile.
“Maybe. Or maybe your father has learned to tell the truth in ways that make his lies sound better.””
Marcus couldn't argue.
Julian had every reason to distrust the entire family.
“Why were you in that building?””
“I'd been meeting someone who promised to give me the original trust records.””
“Who?””
Julian looked directly at him.
“Daniel.””
Marcus felt his stomach drop.
“Why would you meet him?””
“Because he said he was ready to confess. He claimed he wanted to clear his conscience before the trust case went to court.””
“And you believed him?””
“I wanted the original records. They were the only way to prove what he'd stolen.””
Julian closed his eyes briefly.
“He arrived with a folder. We argued. Then someone came in from the back entrance. I heard a noise, turned around, and got hit.””
“Did you see who attacked you?””
“No.””
“Did you see Daniel leave?””
Julian nodded.
“He was holding the folder.””
Marcus clenched his fists.
“So he took the evidence.””
“Not all of it.””
Julian reached beneath his pillow and pulled out a small memory card.
Marcus stared at it.
“What is that?””
“A copy of the financial records. And something else.””
“What?””
Julian's gaze hardened.
“A recording.””
He explained that he'd secretly recorded Daniel during their previous meeting. Daniel had admitted that the pregnancy deception involving Chloe was part of a larger plan.
Marcus felt his skin go cold.
“Chloe was involved in this because of the trust?””
“Daniel told her that if she could convince you she was carrying a child, she'd have leverage over the inheritance. He wanted the family to believe a new heir was coming.””
“But the pregnancy was fake.””
“Exactly. It was a distraction. While everyone focused on your marriage, Daniel intended to transfer the remaining trust assets into a company controlled by Nicholas.””
Marcus thought of the photograph.
Daniel's other son.
The one who had been used to make them believe Julian was someone else.
“Why would Nicholas agree to that?””
Julian looked away.
“Because Daniel told him the money was his birthright.””
Marcus stared at the memory card.
“How do you know all this?””
“Because Nicholas contacted me three weeks ago. He said he'd found documents proving Daniel had lied to both of us.””
Julian reached for a glass of water.
“Nicholas thought he was Daniel's only son. He didn't know about me until he found the trust records.””
Marcus leaned closer.
“Where is Nicholas now?””
Julian hesitated.
“That's the problem.””
“What problem?””
“Nicholas was supposed to meet me at the building last night. He never showed up.””
Marcus remembered the photograph of Nicholas and the threatening message.
“Do you think Daniel has him?””
“I don't know.””
Julian's face tightened.
“But there's something you need to understand about the recording.””
He handed Marcus the memory card.
“Daniel didn't just admit to stealing the trust money. He admitted he falsified the DNA report that convinced your father I wasn't his son.””
Marcus stared at him.
“You're saying Dad could be your biological father after all?””
“That's exactly what I'm saying.””
For a moment, neither spoke.
Then Julian added, “There's one more thing.””
Marcus waited.
“Daniel said your mother wasn't the only person who helped him.””
“Who else?””
Julian looked toward the closed hospital door.
“Someone in your household has been feeding him information about your family for years.””
Marcus felt the blood drain from his face.
“Who?””
Julian's voice dropped to a whisper.
“Your daughter's nanny.””
Marcus stood so quickly that the chair scraped across the floor.
“That's impossible. She's been with us for four years.””
“That's what Daniel wanted you to believe.””
Julian gripped his arm.
“Marcus, listen to me. The nanny isn't the person who took that photograph of Lily. She was the person who arranged for it to be taken.””
Marcus felt the room spin.
The woman who had cared for Lily.
The woman who had tucked her into bed, prepared her meals, and accompanied her to preschool.
The woman who had been trusted with his daughter's safety.
He pulled out his phone and called Ethan.
“Get Lily out of the house,” he said immediately.
“Don't tell anyone where you're taking her. And do not let the nanny leave until the police arrive.””
Ethan's voice sharpened.
“Marcus, what's happening?””
“Just do it!””
He ended the call.
Then he turned back to Julian.
“How do you know about the nanny?””
Julian stared at the ceiling.
“Because she's not just your nanny.””
He swallowed painfully.
“She's the woman who brought me to Daniel's office three years ago. She told me my biological family had never wanted me.””
Marcus froze.
Julian turned his head.
“And Marcus?””
“Yes?””
“She was the last person I saw before someone hit me in that building.””
At that exact moment, Marcus's phone rang.
It was Ethan.
Marcus answered immediately.
“Did you get Lily out?””
Ethan's voice was trembling.
“No.””
Marcus felt his heart stop.
“What do you mean, no?””
“The nanny is gone.””
“Where's Lily?””
May you like
A terrible silence followed.
Then Ethan whispered, “Marcus, Lily's bedroom is empty.””
