Chapter 2 - The Man Who Knew Her NameThe Stranger Behind the Trees
Claire didn't answer.
She pressed herself against the carriage wall, barely breathing.
The footsteps resumed.
A figure emerged between the spruce trees.
Tall.
Broad-shouldered.
Wearing an old canvas jacket, dark jeans, and a wool cap pulled low over his forehead.
His beard was rough from days without shaving.
He stopped ten feet away.
Claire raised the pocketknife.
“Stay back.”
The stranger looked at the blade.
Then at her.
“That's not going to help much.”
“It doesn't need to.”
He studied her face.
For one strange moment, something almost like recognition crossed his expression.
Then it vanished.
“My name is Elias Carter.”
“I don't care.”
“You should.”
Claire tightened her grip.
“How do you know my name?”
“Because I've been looking for you.”
Her stomach turned.
“Who sent you?”
“No one.”
“Daniel?”
“No.”
She took another step backward.
The man noticed the photograph in her hand.
His expression changed instantly.
“Where did you get that?”
Claire held it tighter.
“The carriage.”
He looked at the wreck.
For several seconds he said nothing.
Then he quietly asked, “Did you open the box?”
“Yes.”
“Did you read the note?”
“Yes.”
He closed his eyes.
“Then we're already in trouble.”
Claire almost laughed.
“We?”
“You think you're the only person Daniel Mason wants dead?”
Her blood went cold.
“You know my husband.”
“I know what he's done.”
Elias stepped closer.
Claire raised the knife again.
He stopped.
“I don't work for Daniel,” he said. “I'm the reason he became desperate.”
“What does that mean?”
Elias looked toward the ravine.
“We need to leave.”
“No.”
A faint smile crossed his face.
“You really are a Bennett.”
“What is that supposed to mean?”
“Stubborn.”
Before Claire could answer, the sound of an engine echoed through the forest.
Elias's face hardened.
“Down.”
He grabbed her arm.
Claire flinched.
“Don't touch me.”
“Then get down yourself.”
She crouched.
Seconds later, two headlights appeared between the trees.
A dark SUV rolled slowly along an old service road above the ravine.
Claire recognized it.
Daniel's vehicle.
Her husband hadn't driven away.
He had come back.
Elias whispered, “Stay here.”
“You're insane.”
“Probably.”
He disappeared behind the carriage.
The SUV stopped.
Daniel stepped out.
Claire stared at him through the branches.
He wasn't alone.
The woman from the mountain stood beside him.
Claire recognized her immediately.
Rebecca Sloan.
Daniel's executive assistant.
The same woman who had been “helping him prepare a surprise anniversary trip” for Claire.
Rebecca held a flashlight.
Daniel scanned the ravine.
“She has to be here.”
Rebecca frowned.
“What if she survived the fall?”
“She couldn't.”
“You said that before.”
Daniel's jaw tightened.
“I watched her fall.”
“And yet we're here.”
Claire's stomach twisted.
Elias crouched beside her.
“Don't move.”
Daniel moved down the slope.
Each step brought him closer.
Claire could hear his breathing.
She could see his polished shoes through the branches.
He stopped.
Looked toward the carriage.
Claire's heart stopped.
Then Elias threw a stone in the opposite direction.
It struck a tree.
Daniel turned.
“What was that?”
Rebecca raised her flashlight.
Elias whispered, “Run when I say.”
Daniel moved away.
Elias counted silently.
Three.
Two.
One.
“Now.”
They sprinted.
Claire followed Elias deeper into the trees.
Branches slapped her face.
Her shoulder screamed.
Behind them came shouting.
Then a gunshot cracked through the forest.
Claire stumbled.
Elias caught her.
“Keep moving.”
“They have a gun!”
“I noticed.”
They reached a narrow creek and crossed it.
After nearly twenty minutes, Elias finally stopped beside a stone outcrop.
He listened.
No footsteps.
No engines.
Only wind.
Claire leaned against the rock, struggling to breathe.
“You knew this would happen.”
“I suspected.”
“You knew Daniel was coming.”
“Yes.”
“You knew about the carriage.”
“Yes.”
“How?”
Elias pulled a small envelope from inside his jacket.
He handed it to her.
Claire opened it.
Inside was another photograph.
This one showed the carriage before it disappeared.
Evelyn Bennett stood beside it.
Beside her was the same little boy.
And standing behind them was a man Claire had not seen in twenty-seven years.
Her father, Julian Bennett.
But Julian was supposed to have died eight years ago.
Claire stared at the photograph.
“Why is my father here?”
Elias looked directly into her eyes.
“Because your family lied about what happened in these mountains.”
He paused.
“And your husband has spent the last six months trying to find the one thing your father left behind.”
“What?”
Elias answered softly.
“The truth about Noah.”
Claire's hands shook.
“Noah is dead.”
Elias stared at her.
“No.”
He pointed toward the photograph.
“The boy beside your mother is Noah.”
Claire swallowed.
“Then where is he?”
Elias didn't answer immediately.
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Finally, he said:
“Twenty-seven years ago, somebody changed his name.”
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