Chapter 8 - The Dead WomanI didn't believe him.
I couldn't.
My mother had been declared dead twelve years ago.
Funeral.
Casket.
Gravesite.
Everything.
“You're saying my mother is alive?”
Dad rubbed his face.
“I don't know.”
“Then why would you say that?”
“Because the financial records show an account opened under an alias.”
“What alias?”
He showed me.
Claire Morgan.
My mother's maiden name.
The account had been active six months ago.
I stared at the date.
Six months.
“Why didn't you tell me?”
“I only found it recently.”
“That's a lie.”
Dad looked hurt.
“Why would I lie about this?”
“Because everyone in my life lies.”
He said nothing.
Then his phone rang.
He answered.
His expression changed.
“Where are you?”
Pause.
“Do not move.”
He hung up.
“What?”
He looked at me.
“The hospital.”
My stomach tightened.
“What happened?”
“Someone tried to access Ellie's medical file.”
We drove there immediately.
Security footage showed a woman entering the hospital corridor at 4:02 a.m.
She wore a gray coat.
Hat.
Mask.
But when she turned her head, I saw her eyes.
My knees weakened.
I knew those eyes.
My mother had the same eyes.
Dad looked at me.
“It's her.”
Security locked down the hallway.
The woman was gone.
But she had left something behind.
An envelope.
Inside was a handwritten note.
I am sorry.
Then another.
You were never supposed to find the account.
And finally:
Ben is not the enemy.
I read it twice.
Then a fourth page fell out.
A photograph.
It showed my mother standing beside Daniel Cross.
Alive.
Recent.
On the back:
He found me first.
I looked at Dad.
“What does this mean?”
He whispered:
“Daniel knows where she is.”
My phone buzzed.
Unknown number.
Bring the ledger to the old courthouse. Midnight. Come alone.
Another message.
If you bring your father, Ellie pays.
I stared at the screen.
Dad saw my face.
“What did they say?”
I couldn't answer.
The threat was obvious.
And now Ellie was involved again.
I had one choice.
I had to go.
May you like
But I wasn't going alone.
I just wasn't going to tell them who was coming with me.
