{"id":20203,"date":"2026-09-25T16:41:30","date_gmt":"2026-09-25T16:41:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/?p=20203"},"modified":"2026-09-25T16:41:30","modified_gmt":"2026-09-25T16:41:30","slug":"part-8-the-second-storage-unit-finally-gave-us-the-cello-but-dad-had-left-behind-proof-that-forced-grandma-to-make-an-impossible-choice","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/?p=20203","title":{"rendered":"PART 8 \u2013 The Second Storage Unit Finally Gave Us the Cello, but Dad Had Left Behind Proof That Forced Grandma to Make an Impossible Choice"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Police reached the storage facility before we did.<\/p>\n<p>Andrew insisted.<\/p>\n<p>I argued.<\/p>\n<p>He won.<\/p>\n<p>By the time Grandma, Rachel, and I arrived, two patrol cars sat beneath the harsh white security lights.<\/p>\n<p>The facility consisted of long concrete buildings divided by red metal doors.<\/p>\n<p>Rain had begun.<\/p>\n<p>Light at first.<\/p>\n<p>Then steadier.<\/p>\n<p>The sound against the car roof brought back the old crash memory so quickly that my hands locked around the steering wheel.<\/p>\n<p>Grandma noticed.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cEmily.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI\u2019m fine.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>She waited.<\/p>\n<p>I corrected myself.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI\u2019m not fine.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cBetter.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>I breathed.<\/p>\n<p>Rain.<\/p>\n<p>Dark road.<\/p>\n<p>Daniel\u2019s face.<\/p>\n<p>Dad\u2019s lie.<\/p>\n<p>I opened the door.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI\u2019m still going.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Andrew met us beneath an awning.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cRichard isn\u2019t here.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAre you sure?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cSecurity footage shows the van arriving at 9:18 and leaving at 9:31.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe van found by the river?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cSo he moved again.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cPossibly.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>I handed him the receipt from Dad\u2019s lockbox.<\/p>\n<p>He looked at it.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThis unit?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAccording to the paperwork.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>A facility manager approached with a master key.<\/p>\n<p>The unit was registered under another company.<\/p>\n<p>Hawthorne Asset Services.<\/p>\n<p>Andrew almost smiled.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYour father likes shell companies.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Grandma\u2019s expression didn\u2019t change.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe likes hiding.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The metal door rattled upward.<\/p>\n<p>My pulse pounded in my throat.<\/p>\n<p>The unit contained almost nothing.<\/p>\n<p>Three moving boxes.<\/p>\n<p>A folding table.<\/p>\n<p>An old desk chair.<\/p>\n<p>And against the back wall, beneath a gray blanket, the unmistakable shape of a cello case.<\/p>\n<p>I stopped breathing.<\/p>\n<p>Rachel whispered, \u201cOh my God.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Grandma grabbed my arm.<\/p>\n<p>Nobody moved until police photographed everything.<\/p>\n<p>Then an officer pulled back the blanket.<\/p>\n<p>The old case appeared.<\/p>\n<p>Dark brown leather.<\/p>\n<p>Scratches near the lower latch.<\/p>\n<p>A faded travel sticker Grandma had never removed.<\/p>\n<p>Lucy\u2019s case.<\/p>\n<p>My knees weakened.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThat\u2019s it.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Andrew looked at me.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou\u2019re certain?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Grandma whispered, \u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The officer opened the outer clasps.<\/p>\n<p>I stepped closer.<\/p>\n<p>There it was.<\/p>\n<p>Warm amber varnish.<\/p>\n<p>The tiny mark near the lower bout.<\/p>\n<p>The repaired seam Grandma once told Lucy had happened during a train trip in 1968.<\/p>\n<p>The cello.<\/p>\n<p>Safe.<\/p>\n<p>Whole.<\/p>\n<p>For several seconds I could not speak.<\/p>\n<p>Grandma put one hand over her mouth.<\/p>\n<p>Rachel began crying.<\/p>\n<p>Not loudly.<\/p>\n<p>The same quiet crying Lucy had done when she discovered it missing.<\/p>\n<p>I took out my phone.<\/p>\n<p>It was after midnight.<\/p>\n<p>I called Denise anyway.<\/p>\n<p>She answered instantly.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cDid you find it?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>In the background I heard movement.<\/p>\n<p>Then Lucy\u2019s sleepy voice.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMom?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Denise handed her the phone.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cSweetheart.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cDid you find it?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe did.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Silence.<\/p>\n<p>Then:<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIs it okay?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>I looked at the cello.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cReally?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cReally.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>A sound left her.<\/p>\n<p>Half laugh.<\/p>\n<p>Half sob.<\/p>\n<p>I closed my eyes.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe\u2019re bringing it home.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cTonight?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cCan I wait up?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou\u2019re already up.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>She laughed softly.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cTrue.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Then she asked the question that reminded me she was still eleven.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cCan I hug it?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>I smiled through tears.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>After the call ended, I noticed Andrew had moved toward the moving boxes.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat\u2019s in those?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cDocuments.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Of course.<\/p>\n<p>Dad had turned the unit into another hiding place.<\/p>\n<p>We could have left them for morning.<\/p>\n<p>We should have.<\/p>\n<p>But nobody suggested it.<\/p>\n<p>The police documented everything before allowing Andrew to inspect the contents.<\/p>\n<p>The first box held business records from Dad\u2019s old company.<\/p>\n<p>The second contained family financial documents.<\/p>\n<p>The third held letters.<\/p>\n<p>Grandma sat on the folding chair.<\/p>\n<p>Rachel stood beside her.<\/p>\n<p>I opened the first folder.<\/p>\n<p>Insurance correspondence.<\/p>\n<p>Maintenance logs.<\/p>\n<p>Copies of checks.<\/p>\n<p>Then Andrew found a sealed envelope.<\/p>\n<p>Margaret.<\/p>\n<p>Grandma stared at the handwriting.<\/p>\n<p>Dad\u2019s.<\/p>\n<p>Recent.<\/p>\n<p>She did not reach for it.<\/p>\n<p>Andrew asked, \u201cDo you want me to open it?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>She took it.<\/p>\n<p>Inside were six handwritten pages.<\/p>\n<p>Dad had left a letter.<\/p>\n<p>Not an apology.<\/p>\n<p>Not exactly.<\/p>\n<p>A confession mixed with justification.<\/p>\n<p>Grandma read silently for several minutes.<\/p>\n<p>The rain intensified outside.<\/p>\n<p>Finally she lowered the pages.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat does it say?\u201d I asked.<\/p>\n<p>She looked older than she had an hour earlier.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe says he knew everything was collapsing.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Rachel crossed her arms.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat a revelation.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Grandma ignored the sarcasm.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe says after your grandfather died, he became responsible for everyone.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>I shook my head.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe appointed himself responsible.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe says the inheritance was invested into the company because keeping the business alive mattered more than giving two young women money they might waste.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Rachel laughed bitterly.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cOf course.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Grandma continued.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe intended to repay it.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cBut didn\u2019t.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat about Daniel?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Grandma looked down.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe says that is the thing he cannot defend.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Silence.<\/p>\n<p>Rain hammered the metal roof.<\/p>\n<p>Dad wrote that after the crash, he understood immediately that the brake failure could be traced back to him.<\/p>\n<p>He knew about the repair warning.<\/p>\n<p>He knew Daniel had taken the car because Dad refused to drive after drinking.<\/p>\n<p>He knew Grandpa possessed paperwork.<\/p>\n<p>And he knew I remembered asking Daniel for a ride.<\/p>\n<p>So when grief and fear overwhelmed him, Dad let the easiest explanation survive.<\/p>\n<p>My request.<\/p>\n<p>My fault.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe says he never meant to tell you directly that you caused it.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>I laughed once.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe did.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Grandma nodded.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe admits that.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>My chest hurt.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe says once he saw you believed it, he didn\u2019t correct you.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Rachel whispered, \u201cThat\u2019s worse.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Yes.<\/p>\n<p>It was.<\/p>\n<p>A lie could be spoken in panic.<\/p>\n<p>Twenty-seven years of silence required thousands of choices.<\/p>\n<p>Birthdays.<\/p>\n<p>Funerals.<\/p>\n<p>Christmas dinners.<\/p>\n<p>My wedding.<\/p>\n<p>Lucy\u2019s birth.<\/p>\n<p>Every time Dad saw me with Aunt Denise.<\/p>\n<p>Every time rain made me uneasy.<\/p>\n<p>Every single time he had the opportunity to release me.<\/p>\n<p>He chose himself.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat else?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Grandma\u2019s hands tightened around the pages.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe says he took the cello because he believed there was no other way to recover financially.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Rachel snorted.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cExcept not building a pool.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe says the pool project was already committed.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cSo?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe says canceling would have exposed the debt.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>I looked at Andrew.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe pool was camouflage.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>He nodded slowly.<\/p>\n<p>Dad needed everyone to believe the family was prosperous.<\/p>\n<p>The renovation preserved appearances while money moved underneath.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhy the second sale?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Grandma read another paragraph.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAfter learning the appraisal, he decided the first sale had been a mistake.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>I felt sick.<\/p>\n<p>Not because he regretted taking it.<\/p>\n<p>Because he regretted taking too little.<\/p>\n<p>Dad wrote that recovering the cello would solve his financial problems.<\/p>\n<p>He could use it as collateral.<\/p>\n<p>Then sell it properly.<\/p>\n<p>Then settle with Grandma.<\/p>\n<p>Then repay enough money to make everyone stop.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe thought he could repair theft with another theft,\u201d Andrew said.<\/p>\n<p>Grandma folded the pages.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThat is how Richard has always thought.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Make one mess.<\/p>\n<p>Use something belonging to someone else to cover it.<\/p>\n<p>Call the result responsibility.<\/p>\n<p>Rachel looked toward the open cello case.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhere is he now?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Nobody knew.<\/p>\n<p>Then Andrew noticed another envelope.<\/p>\n<p>Emily.<\/p>\n<p>My name.<\/p>\n<p>I didn\u2019t want to touch it.<\/p>\n<p>Grandma held it out.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou don\u2019t have to read it tonight.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>I looked at the cello.<\/p>\n<p>Lucy waiting at home.<\/p>\n<p>Twenty-seven years of hidden truth.<\/p>\n<p>Dad somewhere beyond the facility gates.<\/p>\n<p>I took it.<\/p>\n<p>The letter was shorter.<\/p>\n<p>Two pages.<\/p>\n<p>Emily\u2014<\/p>\n<p>I stopped.<\/p>\n<p>My throat tightened.<\/p>\n<p>Grandma said nothing.<\/p>\n<p>I read.<\/p>\n<p>Dad wrote that he knew I would not believe he loved me.<\/p>\n<p>He was wrong.<\/p>\n<p>I did believe it.<\/p>\n<p>That was part of what made everything hurt.<\/p>\n<p>People imagine betrayal is easier if the person never loved you.<\/p>\n<p>Sometimes it is worse when they did.<\/p>\n<p>Dad wrote that he had always recognized something in me that frightened him.<\/p>\n<p>I could leave.<\/p>\n<p>Rachel stayed close.<\/p>\n<p>Mom adapted.<\/p>\n<p>Grandma fought but remained tied to family history.<\/p>\n<p>I, according to Dad, had always possessed the ability to walk away.<\/p>\n<p>He resented it.<\/p>\n<p>He feared it.<\/p>\n<p>So he trained me not to trust myself.<\/p>\n<p>I read that sentence twice.<\/p>\n<p>Then again.<\/p>\n<p>Grandma saw my face.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>I handed her the page.<\/p>\n<p>She read silently.<\/p>\n<p>Dad admitted something I had never expected him to understand about himself.<\/p>\n<p>He had made me feel irresponsible because independent people were harder to control.<\/p>\n<p>He had praised Rachel for staying close.<\/p>\n<p>Punished me emotionally for leaving.<\/p>\n<p>Withheld help when I needed it because difficulty might force me home.<\/p>\n<p>And when it didn\u2019t, he resented me more.<\/p>\n<p>Rachel read over Grandma\u2019s shoulder.<\/p>\n<p>Her face changed.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe says that?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Rachel sat down on the concrete floor.<\/p>\n<p>For once, neither of us knew what to say.<\/p>\n<p>Dad had used different tools on us.<\/p>\n<p>He gave Rachel money while hiding that it was hers.<\/p>\n<p>He denied me money while hiding that mine existed.<\/p>\n<p>He made Rachel dependent through generosity.<\/p>\n<p>He made me doubtful through deprivation.<\/p>\n<p>Same goal.<\/p>\n<p>Different method.<\/p>\n<p>Control.<\/p>\n<p>The last paragraph was the worst.<\/p>\n<p>Dad wrote:<\/p>\n<p>When I saw Lucy becoming like you, I panicked.<\/p>\n<p>My hands began shaking.<\/p>\n<p>Grandma whispered, \u201cKeep reading.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>He said Lucy questioned things quietly.<\/p>\n<p>She remembered promises.<\/p>\n<p>She disliked being pressured.<\/p>\n<p>She did not perform gratitude when adults expected it.<\/p>\n<p>And the cello made her independent from him in a way he could not explain.<\/p>\n<p>It came from Grandma.<\/p>\n<p>It belonged to Lucy.<\/p>\n<p>It skipped him entirely.<\/p>\n<p>He had no authority over it.<\/p>\n<p>No role.<\/p>\n<p>No leverage.<\/p>\n<p>So when Rachel mentioned selling something valuable, he immediately thought of the cello.<\/p>\n<p>Not only because of the money.<\/p>\n<p>Because he hated that it represented something passing through the family without him controlling it.<\/p>\n<p>I lowered the page.<\/p>\n<p>For several seconds, nobody spoke.<\/p>\n<p>Then Rachel whispered, \u201cHe knew.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe knew why he did it.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>That mattered.<\/p>\n<p>Intent does not make harm worse in every case.<\/p>\n<p>But awareness removes certain excuses.<\/p>\n<p>Dad knew the pattern.<\/p>\n<p>Recognized it.<\/p>\n<p>Named it.<\/p>\n<p>And continued anyway.<\/p>\n<p>Andrew looked at the last page.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThere\u2019s something else.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>At the bottom Dad had written an address.<\/p>\n<p>A cabin near Lake Mercer.<\/p>\n<p>Grandma recognized it.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYour grandfather\u2019s old fishing place.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>I looked at her.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI thought it was sold.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cSo did I.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Andrew checked his phone.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe property is owned by Hawthorne Asset Services.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Of course.<\/p>\n<p>Dad\u2019s shell company.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe\u2019s there,\u201d Rachel said.<\/p>\n<p>Probably.<\/p>\n<p>Grandma folded the letter.<\/p>\n<p>Andrew asked what she wanted to do.<\/p>\n<p>She stared toward the open storage door.<\/p>\n<p>Rain silvered the pavement beyond it.<\/p>\n<p>For the first time since the pool party, Grandma looked uncertain.<\/p>\n<p>Not legally.<\/p>\n<p>Emotionally.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe is my son.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Nobody answered.<\/p>\n<p>She gripped the letter.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI can turn everything over.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Andrew said nothing.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe financial records.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe forged documents.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe transfer instructions.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe old maintenance records.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Grandma looked at me.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAnd if I do?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Andrew chose his words carefully.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cSeveral agencies may have an interest. Civil exposure is already significant. Criminal exposure could follow depending on what investigators establish.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Grandma closed her eyes.<\/p>\n<p>Ninety-one years.<\/p>\n<p>A husband gone.<\/p>\n<p>A grandson dead.<\/p>\n<p>A son who had lied for decades.<\/p>\n<p>Granddaughters manipulated in different ways.<\/p>\n<p>A great-granddaughter robbed.<\/p>\n<p>And now the choice landed on her.<\/p>\n<p>Protect her son one final time.<\/p>\n<p>Or stop protecting him.<\/p>\n<p>Grandma looked toward the cello.<\/p>\n<p>Then at me.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat do you want?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>I understood the weight of that question.<\/p>\n<p>Years ago, I might have answered for her.<\/p>\n<p>To make things easier.<\/p>\n<p>To make myself smaller.<\/p>\n<p>Not anymore.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat I want shouldn\u2019t decide what you do.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>She smiled faintly.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThat sounds like your grandfather.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI\u2019ll take it.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Rachel stood.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cGrandma, if you protect him again, he\u2019ll do it again.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Grandma looked at her.<\/p>\n<p>Rachel\u2019s eyes filled.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe always does it again.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>That sentence settled over us.<\/p>\n<p>Grandma looked at the letter in her hand.<\/p>\n<p>Then at Andrew.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cGive everything to the police.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>He nodded once.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cEverything?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cEverything.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Her voice trembled.<\/p>\n<p>But she did not take it back.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cDaniel\u2019s records too.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>I closed my eyes.<\/p>\n<p>That was the hardest part.<\/p>\n<p>Not the money.<\/p>\n<p>Not the cello.<\/p>\n<p>Daniel.<\/p>\n<p>Because turning over those documents meant reopening something the family had buried for twenty-seven years.<\/p>\n<p>Aunt Denise would have questions.<\/p>\n<p>Investigators would have questions.<\/p>\n<p>Old wounds would become official records.<\/p>\n<p>Grandma understood all of it.<\/p>\n<p>Still, she said, \u201cNo more protecting Richard from consequences other people have had to carry for him.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Andrew gathered the folders.<\/p>\n<p>Grandma reached toward the cello case.<\/p>\n<p>Her fingertips brushed the worn leather.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cTake this home to Lucy.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>I nodded.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat about you?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>She looked at the address Dad had left.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI\u2019m going to the cabin.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>She raised one eyebrow.<\/p>\n<p>I almost laughed despite everything.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cGrandma, he may be desperate.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe is.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThat\u2019s exactly why you shouldn\u2019t go.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>She considered me.<\/p>\n<p>Then folded the address and put it in her purse.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou are right.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>That surprised me.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI am?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cGood.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI won\u2019t go alone.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThat is not what I meant.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Andrew nearly smiled.<\/p>\n<p>Two police officers agreed to accompany her.<\/p>\n<p>I insisted on going too.<\/p>\n<p>Then my phone rang.<\/p>\n<p>Denise.<\/p>\n<p>I answered.<\/p>\n<p>Her breathing sounded wrong.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cEmily.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat happened?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cLucy\u2019s fine.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>My body relaxed slightly.<\/p>\n<p>Then Denise continued.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cBut someone just called the house.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWho?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI don\u2019t know.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat did they say?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Silence.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cDenise.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThey asked for you.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat did they say?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Her voice lowered.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThey said Richard Bell won\u2019t be at the cabin when you arrive.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>I looked at Grandma.<\/p>\n<p>My stomach tightened.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat else?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThey said if you want to know where he really went, ask Margaret what happened to the other cello.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>I froze.<\/p>\n<p>Grandma heard.<\/p>\n<p>Her face changed completely.<\/p>\n<p>Not confusion.<\/p>\n<p>Recognition.<\/p>\n<p>Fear.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cGrandma?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>She stared at me.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat other cello?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>For the first time since all of this began, Grandma did not answer.<\/p>\n<hr>\n<h2><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/?p=20205\">Click here to continue reading: PART 9: Grandma\u2019s Secret About the Second Cello Reached Back Fifty Years\u2014and Gave Us the First Real Clue to Dad\u2019s Destination<\/a><\/strong><\/h2>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Police reached the storage facility before we did. Andrew insisted. I argued. He won. By the time Grandma, Rachel, and I arrived, two patrol cars sat beneath the harsh white &hellip; <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":20193,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-20203","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\/20203","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=20203"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20203\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":20290,"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20203\/revisions\/20290"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/20193"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=20203"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=20203"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=20203"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}