The call ended before I could ask another question.<\/p>\n
I stood with the phone against my ear, listening to the empty line.<\/p>\n
Nobody moved.<\/p>\n
Sarah was the first to speak.<\/p>\n
\u201cDid he say where he was going?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDid he identify the child?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe said Arthur left everything to the child no one knew existed.\u201d<\/p>\n
Mark's face had become hard.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat man is lying.\u201d<\/p>\n
Sarah looked at him.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhich man?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cKevin.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou sounded very certain.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe's trying to save himself.\u201d<\/p>\n
The detectives entered the room.<\/p>\n
One was a tall woman named Detective Ruiz. The other was a broad-shouldered man who introduced himself as Detective Harris. They listened while Sarah explained that Kevin had taken Arthur's ledger and had apparently fled through the bathroom window.<\/p>\n
When she mentioned the unknown child, both detectives exchanged a glance.<\/p>\n
\u201cDid Arthur ever mention another child?\u201d Ruiz asked.<\/p>\n
I looked at Claire.<\/p>\n
She shook her head.<\/p>\n
\u201cNot to me.\u201d<\/p>\n
Sarah closed her briefcase.<\/p>\n
\u201cNot in any document I've reviewed.\u201d<\/p>\n
Mark laughed bitterly.<\/p>\n
\u201cMy father had four children. That's all.\u201d<\/p>\n
Brenda wiped her cheeks.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou're sure?\u201d<\/p>\n
Mark turned toward her.<\/p>\n
\u201cOf course I'm sure.\u201d<\/p>\n
Sarah looked at him for a long second.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou're not.\u201d<\/p>\n
He didn't answer.<\/p>\n
Detective Harris asked whether Arthur had ever been married before his late wife.<\/p>\n
I remembered the photographs in Arthur's bedroom.<\/p>\n
There were pictures of his wife, Helen, and their four children.<\/p>\n
No one else.<\/p>\n
But there had always been one photograph I couldn't explain.<\/p>\n
It showed Arthur as a much younger man, standing beside a woman I had never seen.<\/p>\n
The photograph had been tucked behind the others.<\/p>\n
I had found it years ago while helping Arthur move his dresser.<\/p>\n
He had taken it from my hand immediately.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat's nobody.\u201d<\/p>\n
I had laughed.<\/p>\n
\u201cEverybody is somebody.\u201d<\/p>\n
He had put it away.<\/p>\n
At the time, I thought it was an old girlfriend.<\/p>\n
Now I wondered.<\/p>\n
\u201cSarah,\u201d I said, \u201cdid Arthur ever have another relationship before Helen?\u201d<\/p>\n
She hesitated.<\/p>\n
\u201cI know there was someone.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWho?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI don't know her name.\u201d<\/p>\n
Mark immediately interrupted.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere was no child.\u201d<\/p>\n
Sarah looked at him.<\/p>\n
\u201cI didn't say there was.\u201d<\/p>\n
He stopped.<\/p>\n
That was enough.<\/p>\n
Detective Ruiz noticed it too.<\/p>\n
\u201cMr. Vance, when did you last see your father alive?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThe night before he died.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd you came to his house?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cTo discuss the will.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDid he tell you about another child?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDid he tell you who would inherit his estate?\u201d<\/p>\n
Mark shook his head.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe said David was getting everything.\u201d<\/p>\n
Ruiz glanced toward me.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause he was angry with us.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat doesn't answer the question.\u201d<\/p>\n
Mark's jaw tightened.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe favored Claire.\u201d<\/p>\n
Claire looked at him.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe didn't.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe lived in your house for twenty years.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause you tried to steal from him.\u201d<\/p>\n
Ruiz raised a hand.<\/p>\n
\u201cEnough.\u201d<\/p>\n
The detective turned toward Sarah.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou said there was a sealed section in the ledger.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd Kevin said he opened it.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe claimed there was another document.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDo you know what it contains?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThen we're going to need that ledger.\u201d<\/p>\n
Ruiz's radio crackled.<\/p>\n
An officer had found Kevin's vehicle abandoned two streets away.<\/p>\n
There was no sign of him.<\/p>\n
Mark immediately asked whether they had searched the car.<\/p>\n
Ruiz looked at him.<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWas the ledger inside?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
Mark sat down.<\/p>\n
I noticed his hands.<\/p>\n
They were trembling.<\/p>\n
It was the first time I had seen him frightened.<\/p>\n
Claire came beside me.<\/p>\n
\u201cDavid.\u201d<\/p>\n
I looked at her.<\/p>\n
\u201cI should have told you everything.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou said that before.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI know.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThen tell me now.\u201d<\/p>\n
She swallowed.<\/p>\n
\u201cDad once told me he had a child before he married Mom.\u201d<\/p>\n
I stared at her.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou knew?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNot for certain.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAbout ten years ago.\u201d<\/p>\n
I felt something inside me sink.<\/p>\n
\u201cTen years?\u201d<\/p>\n
She nodded.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe showed me that photograph.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThe woman?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWho was she?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI don't know.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThen why didn't you tell me?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause Dad asked me not to.\u201d<\/p>\n
I closed my eyes.<\/p>\n
Arthur had spent twenty years asking everyone to keep secrets.<\/p>\n
And everyone had obeyed him.<\/p>\n
Except the people who wanted his money.<\/p>\n
Claire told me that Arthur had received a letter years earlier.<\/p>\n
The letter came from a man named Samuel.<\/p>\n
Arthur had never shown her the entire letter.<\/p>\n
Only the first page.<\/p>\n
The writer said he believed Arthur was his biological father.<\/p>\n
He had been raised by his mother and her husband.<\/p>\n
His mother had recently died.<\/p>\n
Before she died, she told Samuel the truth.<\/p>\n
Arthur was his father.<\/p>\n
Arthur had apparently sent money.<\/p>\n
Not directly.<\/p>\n
Through an attorney.<\/p>\n
Claire said she remembered seeing a bank transfer.<\/p>\n
The amount was small.<\/p>\n
Five thousand dollars.<\/p>\n
Then another.<\/p>\n
Then ten thousand.<\/p>\n
Every few years.<\/p>\n
I looked at Sarah.<\/p>\n
\u201cDid you know about these payments?\u201d<\/p>\n
She nodded slowly.<\/p>\n
\u201cSome of them.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHow many?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSeveral.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy didn't you tell me?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause Arthur specifically instructed me not to disclose anything until his death.\u201d<\/p>\n
Mark stood.<\/p>\n
\u201cSo the lawyer knew.\u201d<\/p>\n
Sarah looked at him.<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd she still gave the estate to David.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cUnder the valid will I witnessed.\u201d<\/p>\n
Mark laughed.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou expect us to believe that?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo,\u201d Sarah said. \u201cI expect the court to believe the documents.\u201d<\/p>\n
Detective Ruiz asked whether Sarah had any record of Samuel's full name.<\/p>\n
Sarah searched her folder.<\/p>\n
Then she stopped.<\/p>\n
\u201cI have something.\u201d<\/p>\n
She removed a photocopy.<\/p>\n
At the top was a handwritten note.<\/p>\n
SAMUEL REED.<\/p>\n
Underneath was an address.<\/p>\n
Claire read it.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat address is in Colorado.\u201d<\/p>\n
I looked at Sarah.<\/p>\n
\u201cDoes he live there?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI don't know.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThen why did Arthur leave everything to him?\u201d<\/p>\n
Sarah looked toward the missing ledger.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think that's what Kevin discovered.\u201d<\/p>\n
The detectives left to search for Kevin.<\/p>\n
Mark paced near the fireplace.<\/p>\n
Brenda remained seated.<\/p>\n
Claire went into Arthur's room.<\/p>\n
I followed.<\/p>\n
His bed was made.<\/p>\n
His reading glasses were on the nightstand.<\/p>\n
His green cap hung from the bedpost.<\/p>\n
For twenty years, I had wanted this room empty.<\/p>\n
Now I couldn't stand the thought of anyone touching it.<\/p>\n
Claire opened the dresser.<\/p>\n
\u201cDad kept papers here.\u201d<\/p>\n
She pulled out a wooden box.<\/p>\n
Inside were old receipts, photographs, and letters.<\/p>\n
At the bottom was the photograph I remembered.<\/p>\n
Arthur stood beside the unknown woman.<\/p>\n
She was young.<\/p>\n
Maybe twenty-five.<\/p>\n
Arthur looked barely thirty.<\/p>\n
Between them was a baby.<\/p>\n
I stared at the photograph.<\/p>\n
On the back, Arthur had written three words.<\/p>\n
MARCH 17, 1967.<\/p>\n
Claire looked at me.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat's the year Dad married Mom.\u201d<\/p>\n
My skin prickled.<\/p>\n
The baby was born the same year.<\/p>\n
A second note was written beneath the date.<\/p>\n
Samuel.<\/p>\n
I sat down on the edge of the bed.<\/p>\n
\u201cArthur had a son.\u201d<\/p>\n
Claire nodded.<\/p>\n
\u201cApparently.\u201d<\/p>\n
I turned the photograph over again.<\/p>\n
There was an address.<\/p>\n
Not Colorado.<\/p>\n
A town in Kansas.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy would Kevin say he was the child no one knew existed?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause he probably found the sealed document.\u201d<\/p>\n
I looked at Arthur's nightstand.<\/p>\n
Something caught my eye.<\/p>\n
A tiny brass key sat beneath his reading glasses.<\/p>\n
I picked it up.<\/p>\n
A number was engraved on it.<\/p>\n
17.<\/p>\n
Claire frowned.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat's that?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI don't know.\u201d<\/p>\n
I remembered Arthur's habit.<\/p>\n
Whenever he wanted me to repair something, he left the necessary part beside his coffee.<\/p>\n
A screw.<\/p>\n
A hinge.<\/p>\n
A battery.<\/p>\n
Never instructions.<\/p>\n
He expected me to figure it out.<\/p>\n
I smiled despite myself.<\/p>\n
Then I saw the drawer.<\/p>\n
The bottom drawer of his nightstand had always been locked.<\/p>\n
Arthur had told me the key was lost.<\/p>\n
I inserted the brass key.<\/p>\n
The lock turned.<\/p>\n
Inside was a single envelope.<\/p>\n
No name.<\/p>\n
No address.<\/p>\n
Only one sentence.<\/p>\n
FOR THE PERSON WHO FINDS THE TRUTH TOO LATE.<\/p>\n
My hands shook as I opened it.<\/p>\n
Inside was a handwritten letter.<\/p>\n
Arthur explained that Samuel had contacted him again six months earlier.<\/p>\n
He had finally agreed to meet.<\/p>\n
The meeting took place at a diner outside Denver.<\/p>\n
Arthur wrote that Samuel was not asking for money.<\/p>\n
He wanted something else.<\/p>\n
A father's name.<\/p>\n
Arthur had given it to him.<\/p>\n
He had also given Samuel a copy of his birth certificate and a photograph.<\/p>\n
Then Arthur wrote something that made me stop.<\/p>\n
Samuel had refused the inheritance.<\/p>\n
He said he didn't want his father's money.<\/p>\n
He wanted his father to acknowledge him publicly.<\/p>\n
Arthur had promised he would.<\/p>\n
But then Arthur discovered that someone was watching Samuel.<\/p>\n
Someone who had learned about the inheritance.<\/p>\n
Someone who wanted Samuel gone before the estate could change hands.<\/p>\n
I read the sentence twice.<\/p>\n
\u201cSomeone wanted Samuel gone?\u201d<\/p>\n
Claire came closer.<\/p>\n
\u201cWho?\u201d<\/p>\n
The letter didn't say.<\/p>\n
Arthur had written that he could not safely explain the identity.<\/p>\n
He had hidden the evidence.<\/p>\n
He had arranged the will so that the estate would first pass to me.<\/p>\n
That stopped me.<\/p>\n
I read the paragraph again.<\/p>\n
Arthur had left the estate to me not because I was the final beneficiary.<\/p>\n
Because he trusted me to protect the person who was.<\/p>\n
The legal transfer would occur only after a condition was met.<\/p>\n
Samuel had to appear.<\/p>\n
He had to prove his identity.<\/p>\n
And he had to survive long enough to claim what Arthur had left him.<\/p>\n
I looked at Claire.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe used me.\u201d<\/p>\n
She shook her head.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe trusted you.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo. He put me in the middle of something I didn't understand.\u201d<\/p>\n
A sound came from the hallway.<\/p>\n
We both turned.<\/p>\n
Mark stood there.<\/p>\n
He had heard us.<\/p>\n
\u201cGive me the letter.\u201d<\/p>\n
I folded it.<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
He stepped forward.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou don't understand what's happening.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThen explain it.\u201d<\/p>\n
He didn't.<\/p>\n
His eyes moved to the photograph.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhere did you get that?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cArthur's drawer.\u201d<\/p>\n
Mark's face changed.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat's Samuel.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou knew?\u201d<\/p>\n
He looked away.<\/p>\n
\u201cI heard the name.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cFrom who?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDad.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy didn't you tell us?\u201d<\/p>\n
Mark said nothing.<\/p>\n
Then Claire noticed something.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhere's Brenda?\u201d<\/p>\n
Mark turned.<\/p>\n
The hallway was empty.<\/p>\n
A moment later, the front door slammed.<\/p>\n
Mark ran outside.<\/p>\n
I followed him to the porch.<\/p>\n
Brenda's car was already pulling away.<\/p>\n
In her hand, visible through the window, was a folded piece of paper.<\/p>\n
The photograph.<\/p>\n
She had taken it.<\/p>\n
Mark stood beside me.<\/p>\n
\u201cShe knows where he is.\u201d<\/p>\n
I looked at him.<\/p>\n
\u201cWho?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSamuel.\u201d<\/p>\n
The words barely left his mouth.<\/p>\n
Then his phone rang.<\/p>\n
He answered.<\/p>\n
Nobody spoke.<\/p>\n
His face changed.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhere?\u201d<\/p>\n
He listened.<\/p>\n
Then he looked at me.<\/p>\n
\u201cBrenda found him.\u201d<\/p>\n
The call ended before I could ask another question. I stood with the phone against my ear, listening to the empty line. Nobody moved. Sarah was the first to speak. … <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":7608,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-7613","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\/7613","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=7613"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7613\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":7633,"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7613\/revisions\/7633"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/7608"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=7613"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=7613"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=7613"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}