Agent Brooks asked Helen to repeat it.<\/p>\n
\u201cMartin Creed was Ruth Sterling\u2019s husband?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cLegally?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBriefly.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cRecords?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSealed.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cFranklin.\u201d<\/p>\n
Brooks\u2019s expression hardened.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat is not sufficient.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIt was in 1964. Ruth married him under another surname. When Franklin discovered it, he had the marriage annulled through a judge he controlled.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cCreed wasn\u2019t wealthy then?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat was he?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cA law student.\u201d<\/p>\n
I leaned against the steel cabinet.<\/p>\n
That explained his age.<\/p>\n
He was not merely some current corporate attorney preserving an inherited system.<\/p>\n
He had been alive at the beginning.<\/p>\n
\u201cDid he know Ruth was collecting evidence?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDid he help?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAt first.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAt first?\u201d<\/p>\n
Helen\u2019s voice sharpened.<\/p>\n
\u201cNothing in this story stays simple, Margaret.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat is becoming apparent.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cMartin wanted Ruth safe. Ruth wanted Franklin exposed. They fought constantly about it.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSound familiar.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDid Martin betray her?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t know.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cMother thought somebody did.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWas he a suspect?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAlways.\u201d<\/p>\n
Brooks wrote something.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhere is Creed now?\u201d<\/p>\n
Vega looked at her.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe should assume he knows we\u2019re asking.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThen let\u2019s stop using phones.\u201d<\/p>\n
They ended the call with Helen reluctantly agreeing to travel to a secure location arranged through Brooks\u2014not a police facility.<\/p>\n
Before hanging up, I asked one final question.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy tell us now?\u201d<\/p>\n
Helen did not answer immediately.<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause Mother called me after she called Chloe.\u201d<\/p>\n
My breath caught.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cMinutes later.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat did she say?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat she had made another mistake.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat mistake?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cShe trusted Jason.\u201d<\/p>\n
Chloe\u2019s face tightened.<\/p>\n
I looked at her.<\/p>\n
\u201cIn what way?\u201d<\/p>\n
Helen replied, \u201cEleanor had been communicating with him.\u201d<\/p>\n
Nobody moved.<\/p>\n
\u201cHow long?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNearly a year.\u201d<\/p>\n
Chloe sat hard against a folding chair.<\/p>\n
\u201cMy husband was talking to Grandma?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe convinced her he wanted to expose Creed.\u201d<\/p>\n
I looked at Brooks.<\/p>\n
Jason had claimed he wanted the ledger to buy his way out.<\/p>\n
Perhaps both were true.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen did Mother realize he was lying?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYesterday.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat happened?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe sent her a photograph.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cOf what?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThe walnut box.\u201d<\/p>\n
My heart jumped.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe has it?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat did he photograph?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cA replica.\u201d<\/p>\n
I frowned.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cTo prove he knew what he was looking for.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHow did he know?\u201d<\/p>\n
Helen\u2019s answer came quietly.<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause Robert showed him.\u201d<\/p>\n
I stared at the phone.<\/p>\n
\u201cRobert met Jason.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBefore Jason met Chloe.\u201d<\/p>\n
Every assumption shifted at once.<\/p>\n
Chloe stood.<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAshley,\u201d Helen said, \u201ctake me off speaker.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo,\u201d Chloe snapped. \u201cI want to hear this.\u201d<\/p>\n
Helen stopped.<\/p>\n
Chloe stepped closer to the phone.<\/p>\n
\u201cMy father met Jason before I did?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cRobert believed Richard\u2019s son might help finish what Richard failed to do.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAbout seven years ago.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat was before the fundraiser.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSo Dad knew Jason was approaching me.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
Chloe looked at me.<\/p>\n
The pain on her face was different now.<\/p>\n
Not betrayal by husband.<\/p>\n
Betrayal by father.<\/p>\n
\u201cDid Dad tell him to marry me?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDid he tell him to meet me?\u201d<\/p>\n
Helen hesitated.<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
Chloe backed away.<\/p>\n
I felt suddenly protective of her despite everything.<\/p>\n
\u201cExplain.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cRobert was already sick again,\u201d Helen said. \u201cHe knew he might not have many years. Richard had told him Jason wanted out from under Creed\u2019s influence.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cJason worked for Creed then?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat kind of work?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cResearch. Property tracing. Family histories.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cPeople like us.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cRobert thought he could turn him.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd Chloe was what? A test?\u201d<\/p>\n
Helen\u2019s silence condemned all of them.<\/p>\n
\u201cHelen.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cRobert thought if Jason became personally connected to the Vance family, he might choose differently.\u201d<\/p>\n
I stared at nothing.<\/p>\n
My husband had treated my daughter\u2019s life like a moral experiment.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe introduced them.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIndirectly.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHow?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe arranged for both of them to attend the fundraiser.\u201d<\/p>\n
Chloe laughed.<\/p>\n
The sound was flat.<\/p>\n
\u201cSo our meet-cute was scheduled by my father.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cChloe\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
She looked at me.<\/p>\n
\u201cEverybody used me.\u201d<\/p>\n
I could not disagree.<\/p>\n
Jason used her for access.<\/p>\n
Robert used her to test Jason.<\/p>\n
Eleanor watched from afar.<\/p>\n
Richard tracked her.<\/p>\n
Creed paid for information.<\/p>\n
And I, without knowing any of it, had spent years thinking her irresponsibility was simply a flaw in character.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m sorry,\u201d I said.<\/p>\n
Chloe looked surprised.<\/p>\n
\u201cFor what?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cFor the things I actually did.\u201d<\/p>\n
I stepped closer.<\/p>\n
\u201cI compared you to Ashley more than I admitted.\u201d<\/p>\n
Ashley lowered her eyes.<\/p>\n
\u201cI thought pressure would make you steadier.\u201d<\/p>\n
Chloe swallowed.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt didn\u2019t.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
I nodded toward the hidden archive.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd I missed how many people around you were deciding what you should become.\u201d<\/p>\n
Her eyes filled.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou didn\u2019t make me sign the papers.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou didn\u2019t make me slap you.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI still did those things.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
She breathed through it.<\/p>\n
Then nodded.<\/p>\n
That was the first conversation we had managed without one of us asking the other to erase reality.<\/p>\n
Brooks ended Helen\u2019s call.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe need Creed.\u201d<\/p>\n
Vega checked her notes.<\/p>\n
\u201cHis office?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cToo obvious.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHawthorne registered address?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAlso obvious.\u201d<\/p>\n
Ashley spoke.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat about Richard?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat about him?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIf Creed was Ruth\u2019s husband and Richard watched Franklin kill her, they have history.\u201d<\/p>\n
Brooks nodded.<\/p>\n
\u201cRichard may know how Creed thinks.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWe have to find Richard first.\u201d<\/p>\n
Vega\u2019s expression changed.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe may not need to.\u201d<\/p>\n
Her secure phone displayed a message.<\/p>\n
Richard Sterling had surrendered.<\/p>\n
Not to local police.<\/p>\n
To the FBI field office in Richmond.<\/p>\n
Voluntarily.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe\u2019s asking for Brooks,\u201d Vega said.<\/p>\n
Brooks looked genuinely surprised.<\/p>\n
\u201cMe?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe named you.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHow does he know me?\u201d<\/p>\n
Vega read.<\/p>\n
\u201cThrough Samuel Dent.\u201d<\/p>\n
The dead property appraiser.<\/p>\n
Brooks went still.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou knew Dent,\u201d Ashley said.<\/p>\n
Brooks did not answer for a moment.<\/p>\n
Then:<\/p>\n
\u201cHe was a cooperating witness in one of my first financial cases.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou investigated Richard?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo. Different case.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat happened?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDent disappeared from cooperation.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe recanted in Richard\u2019s case and died.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDid you believe the accident?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
The room changed again.<\/p>\n
Brooks had her own thread in this story.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy didn\u2019t you say that?\u201d I asked.<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause until five minutes ago I had no reason to believe it was connected.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat seems to be how everyone\u2019s secrets work.\u201d<\/p>\n
She accepted the criticism.<\/p>\n
We left the hidden chamber after technicians sealed it.<\/p>\n
Brooks arranged transport to Richmond.<\/p>\n
I insisted on going.<\/p>\n
So did Chloe.<\/p>\n
Brooks objected.<\/p>\n
I told her she could either bring us or spend the drive wondering which vehicle we had followed in.<\/p>\n
She relented.<\/p>\n
Richard Sterling waited in an interview room behind reinforced glass.<\/p>\n
The first thing I noticed was how much he resembled Jason around the eyes.<\/p>\n
The second was how exhausted he looked.<\/p>\n
Not frightened.<\/p>\n
Finished.<\/p>\n
He saw Chloe beside me and closed his eyes.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m sorry.\u201d<\/p>\n
She did not respond.<\/p>\n
Brooks sat across from him.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou asked for me.\u201d<\/p>\n
Richard nodded.<\/p>\n
\u201cSamuel Dent trusted you.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe trusted many people badly.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe trusted you last.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat did he tell you?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat Martin Creed controlled the appraisal network.\u201d<\/p>\n
Brooks leaned forward.<\/p>\n
\u201cDent never gave me Creed.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe was afraid.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSo he died protecting the name.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
Richard shook his head.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe died because I asked him to recant.\u201d<\/p>\n
Brooks\u2019s jaw tightened.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cTo keep Creed believing I was still useful.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou sacrificed my witness.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI thought I was protecting him.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe died.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI know.\u201d<\/p>\n
The phrase again.<\/p>\n
I was beginning to hate it in every voice.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat do you want?\u201d Brooks asked.<\/p>\n
\u201cTo stop my son.\u201d<\/p>\n
Chloe stiffened.<\/p>\n
\u201cJason?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy now?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause Martin gave him access to the final accounts.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat final accounts?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThe money Franklin hid after Ruth began copying records.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHow much?\u201d<\/p>\n
Richard looked at me.<\/p>\n
\u201cMore than the house ever mattered.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHow much?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDepending on what remains, perhaps eighty million.\u201d<\/p>\n
Chloe whispered, \u201cEighty?\u201d<\/p>\n
Richard nodded.<\/p>\n
\u201cSpread across trusts and property companies.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd Jason wants it.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThen why sell my house?\u201d I asked.<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause the original trust instrument identifies the beneficial chains.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe needs the walnut box.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDoes Creed?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cFor the same reason?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat does Creed want?\u201d<\/p>\n
Richard looked toward Brooks.<\/p>\n
\u201cMartin wants every account burned.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDestroyed?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cReleased to restitution funds.\u201d<\/p>\n
I stared.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat sounds almost noble.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIt isn\u2019t.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy not?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause he decides who is guilty.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd who gets paid.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSo he rebuilt Franklin\u2019s network to destroy it?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe infiltrated what remained. Then discovered control was easier than justice.\u201d<\/p>\n
That made terrible sense.<\/p>\n
Ruth\u2019s husband became the administrator.<\/p>\n
Perhaps revenge had slowly turned into ownership.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhere is Eleanor?\u201d I asked.<\/p>\n
Richard looked at me.<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t know.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou called her.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou threatened her.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou frightened her.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cTo force her to stop trusting Jason.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDid it work?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cToo late.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat did Jason tell her?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat he was trying to expose Creed.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd she believed him.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cFor months.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat changed?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cShe learned he had been paid.\u201d<\/p>\n
Chloe looked away.<\/p>\n
Richard continued.<\/p>\n
\u201cEleanor contacted me yesterday. First time in seven years.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat did she say?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat Jason had found a way to access the walnut box.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHow?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThe key card.\u201d<\/p>\n
Robert\u2019s key card.<\/p>\n
I looked toward Brooks.<\/p>\n
\u201cBut we have the key card.\u201d<\/p>\n
Richard shook his head.<\/p>\n
\u201cRobert made two.\u201d<\/p>\n
Silence.<\/p>\n
\u201cWho has the second?\u201d<\/p>\n
Richard looked at Chloe.<\/p>\n
She frowned.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy are you looking at me?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause Robert gave it to you.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo, he didn\u2019t.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThe day he died.\u201d<\/p>\n
Chloe\u2019s face went blank.<\/p>\n
\u201cI wasn\u2019t there when he died.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNot physically.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat does that mean?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe mailed it.\u201d<\/p>\n
I saw memory strike her.<\/p>\n
A package.<\/p>\n
She whispered, \u201cThe birthday card.\u201d<\/p>\n
I looked at her.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat birthday card?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDad sent me a card before he died. It came afterward.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat was inside?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cA little plastic card.\u201d<\/p>\n
My heart sank.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat did you do with it?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI thought it was an old hotel key or something.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cChloe.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI put it in a box with his things.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhere is that box?\u201d<\/p>\n
She closed her eyes.<\/p>\n
\u201cJason took it.\u201d<\/p>\n
Richard lowered his head.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere.\u201d<\/p>\n
The second key card.<\/p>\n
Jason had possessed it for years.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy hasn\u2019t he used it?\u201d Brooks asked.<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause he didn\u2019t know where.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThe storage room.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
Richard leaned forward.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe card doesn\u2019t open Union Station Storage.\u201d<\/p>\n
Robert\u2019s note had lied.<\/p>\n
Or misdirected.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhere does it open?\u201d<\/p>\n
Richard looked directly at me.<\/p>\n
\u201cYour father\u2019s mausoleum.\u201d<\/p>\n
I stared.<\/p>\n
\u201cThomas doesn\u2019t have a mausoleum.\u201d<\/p>\n
Richard\u2019s expression changed.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat is what you were told.\u201d<\/p>\n
Agent Brooks asked Helen to repeat it. \u201cMartin Creed was Ruth Sterling\u2019s husband?\u201d \u201cYes.\u201d \u201cLegally?\u201d \u201cBriefly.\u201d \u201cRecords?\u201d \u201cSealed.\u201d \u201cWhy?\u201d \u201cFranklin.\u201d Brooks\u2019s expression hardened. \u201cThat is not sufficient.\u201d \u201cIt was in … <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":13097,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-13111","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-insightdrama"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13111","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=13111"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13111\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":13135,"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13111\/revisions\/13135"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/13097"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=13111"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=13111"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=13111"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}