Chapter 8: What Sarah Discovered Before She Died
The next morning, Daniel arrived with a thick folder of records.
Michael had barely slept.
He had spent the night sitting outside Lily's bedroom, listening for the slightest movement.
Every time he closed his eyes, he remembered Sarah's final days.
The hospital room.
The smell of antiseptic.
Her cold fingers wrapped around his.
And now, the possibility that someone had been manipulating her medical and financial records while she was dying.
Daniel placed the folder on the kitchen table.
“I spoke with the attorney who handled Rebecca Brooks's previous case,” he said.
Michael poured two cups of coffee.
“What did you find?””
“Rebecca was dismissed from her former firm after several irregular withdrawals were discovered. She wasn't convicted because the evidence disappeared before the investigation was completed.””
“Did she steal money?””
“The firm recovered some of it. The rest was never accounted for.””
Michael sat down.
“And she had access to Sarah's documents.””
“Yes.””
Daniel opened the folder.
“There is something else. Rebecca worked for the company that administered Sarah's estate before she was dismissed. She knew the trust structure, the beneficiary restrictions, and the amount of money Sarah had saved for Lily.””
Michael stared at the papers.
“So she married me to get access to the money?””
“That appears to be one possibility.””
“Why would she need Lily to copy our signatures?””
Daniel pointed to a document.
“Because Sarah had arranged two separate safeguards. One required your signature as guardian. The other required an independent verification of any document changing Lily's beneficiary rights.””
Michael leaned forward.
“And the forged withdrawal request?””
“Someone attempted to bypass those protections by submitting a document that appeared to show Sarah had already authorized Vanessa to manage the funds.””
“But Sarah never signed it.””
“Correct.””
Michael rubbed his face.
“Then why did they need Lily?””
Daniel turned another page.
“The bank had an additional verification process. If there was a dispute about the signatures, the person submitting the request could be asked to explain how the original authorization was obtained.””
Michael frowned.
“That doesn't explain why Lily had to practice.””
Daniel pointed to the witness statement.
“It does if the plan involved presenting Lily as someone who had personally witnessed her parents signing the documents.””
Michael's stomach tightened.
“She was going to make my daughter lie?””
“Possibly. Or she intended to use Lily's handwriting to create additional supporting evidence.””
Michael looked toward the stairs.
“She's eight years old.””
Daniel nodded.
“I know.””
At that moment, Emily Bennett arrived.
She had brought Lily's school belongings and a small bag containing the lunchbox Lily had left behind.
“Michael, I wanted to check on her.””
“She's upstairs.””
Emily placed the bag on the counter.
“I also wanted to tell you something Lily shared with me yesterday.””
Michael looked up.
“What?””
“She said Vanessa told her that her mother had stolen money before she died.””
Michael shook his head.
“That's impossible. Sarah was careful with every dollar.””
“Lily also mentioned that Vanessa had made her repeat a sentence whenever she practiced signatures.””
“What sentence?””
Emily opened her notebook.
She read it aloud.
“Mommy gave me permission to help Daddy sign the papers.””
Michael went still.
Daniel looked up sharply.
“Did Lily say when this started?””
Emily nodded.
“She said it began shortly after Vanessa moved into the house. At first, she thought it was a game. Then Vanessa started making her practice the same sentence while looking at a photograph of Sarah.””
Michael closed his eyes.
“God.””
Emily continued.
“She also said Vanessa sometimes asked her questions about what her mother had told her before she died.””
“What kind of questions?””
“Whether Sarah had talked about the trust. Whether she had shown Lily any documents. Whether she had ever mentioned a woman named Rebecca.””
Daniel exchanged a glance with Michael.
“Rebecca was searching for the letter.””
Michael nodded.
“And she knew Sarah had hidden something.””
Emily looked confused.
“What letter?””
Michael explained about the teddy bear.
Emily's face softened.
“Lily told me her mother used to hide little notes around the house. She called them treasure messages.””
Daniel suddenly looked up.
“Treasure messages?””
“Yes,” Emily replied.
“Lily said her mother used to write clues and hide them in books, toys, and drawers.””
Daniel stood.
“Michael, did Sarah have a safety deposit box?””
“Yes. At First National Bank.””
“Have you checked it?””
Michael shook his head.
“I didn't even know whether it was still active.””
Daniel took out his phone.
“Call the bank. We need to establish who has access.””
Michael dialed.
After several minutes, a representative confirmed that the box was still registered under Sarah's name.
But there was a problem.
Someone had recently attempted to access it using a power-of-attorney document.
The access request had been rejected because the document contained an invalid signature.
“Who submitted it?”” Michael asked.
The representative checked the record.
“Rebecca Brooks.””
Michael slowly lowered the phone.
Daniel looked at him.
“She was still trying to get whatever Sarah left behind.””
Michael immediately arranged to visit the bank with Daniel and the necessary estate documents.
Before leaving, he checked on Lily.
She was sitting on her bedroom rug, arranging colored pencils.
“Daddy?””
“Yes?””
“Are you going somewhere?””
“Just to the bank. I'll be back soon.””
“Will Vanessa come back?””
Michael knelt.
“No. Not while the police are investigating.””
Lily hesitated.
“Can I tell you something?””
“Anything.””
“Mommy said if I ever found the blue envelope, I should give it to you.””
Michael's heart skipped.
“What blue envelope?””
Lily pointed toward the old bookshelf.
“Inside the book about the little rabbit.””
Michael crossed the room.
He pulled the book from the shelf.
Its pages were worn, and a small piece of blue paper protruded from the back cover.
He carefully removed it.
Inside was another envelope.
On the front, Sarah had written:
*For Michael and Lily. Open together.*
Michael sat beside his daughter.
They opened it.
Inside was a small photograph of Sarah holding newborn Lily.
Behind the photograph was a handwritten note.
My loves,
If this message has reached you, then I hope you are together and safe.
I discovered that someone was trying to take Lily's future away from her. I have evidence, but I was advised not to reveal everything until the proper investigation could be completed.
Michael, there is one person who knows exactly what happened. You met him at the hospital, although you may not remember his name.
Ask the night nurse who was assigned to my room on November 14.
She saw what happened.
Michael read the note aloud.
Daniel leaned closer.
“November 14?””
Michael nodded.
“Two days before Sarah died.””
He looked at the photograph.
Then he remembered.
On November 14, he had been called away from the hospital because Mason had developed a high fever at home.
He had left for three hours.
When he returned, Sarah was asleep.
Vanessa had told him a nurse had changed shifts.
But now he remembered something else.
A man had been standing outside Sarah's room when he arrived.
He had introduced himself as a hospital administrator.
Michael had barely acknowledged him.
“What was his name?”” Daniel asked.
Michael closed his eyes.
“Thomas.””
“Thomas what?””
“I don't remember.””
Daniel immediately contacted the hospital.
The administrator agreed to search the old shift records.
Twenty minutes later, he called back.
The night nurse assigned to Sarah's room had been identified.
Her name was Linda Hayes.
But there was something unusual.
Linda had resigned just twelve days after Sarah's death.
And according to her employment file, she had left the hospital without giving a forwarding address.
Daniel searched her name through the records connected to the earlier fraud investigation.
Then he found a current telephone number.
Michael called immediately.
A woman answered.
“Hello?””
“Is this Linda Hayes?””
“Yes. Who is this?””
“My name is Michael Carter. My wife was Sarah Carter. You were her nurse at the hospital.””
Silence.
Then Linda whispered:
“I wondered when someone would finally call.””
Michael gripped the phone.
“Do you know what happened to my wife?””
Linda began crying.
“I saw the woman who came into her room that night.””
“Rebecca?””
“Yes.””
“What did she do?””
Linda's voice dropped.
“She brought Sarah a document and told her she had to sign it.””
Michael's throat tightened.
“Did Sarah sign?””
“No. Sarah refused.””
“Then what happened?””
Linda took a shaky breath.
“Mr. Carter, I need to tell you something. Sarah wasn't alone in that room when Rebecca came in.””
“Who else was there?””
Linda hesitated.
Then she said:
“Your wife had already discovered that the woman using the name Rebecca Brooks was working with someone inside your family.””
Michael stopped breathing.
“Who?””
May you like
Linda answered with five words.
“Your own brother, David Carter.””
