Chapter 9 - The Last Thing My Father Left Behind
I couldn't look at Margaret.
I couldn't look at the photographs.
For several minutes, I simply stood in the workshop, trying to make sense of a life that suddenly seemed built on lies.
Then Detective Mitchell placed a hand on my shoulder.
“Ethan, we need to establish the facts before drawing conclusions.”
She was right.
The hospital wristband was evidence.
Not proof.
The old recording was evidence.
Not proof.
And Richard had every reason to manipulate the truth.
I called Sophia's doctor.
He confirmed that her medical records showed no indication of a biological relationship between us.
That didn't settle the question, but it made the alleged family connection less certain.
Then Margaret remembered something.
My father had once mentioned that Evelyn had given birth to twins, but one child had been declared stillborn.
She had never believed the story.
We contacted the hospital archive.
The original delivery record had been altered.
A physician's signature appeared beside the notation.
Twin B transferred to private care.
The transfer authorization had been signed by Richard Carter.
I felt my jaw tighten.
“Where was the child sent?”
The archivist couldn't tell us.
But the record contained the name of a private medical foundation.
Hawthorne Children's Trust.
The same organization that had funded the rehabilitation center.
Mitchell immediately requested financial records.
The transfers showed that the foundation had continued paying for a private residence for years.
The address belonged to an estate outside town.
We had a location.
Before the officers could prepare, my phone rang.
Sophia.
I answered so quickly I nearly dropped it.
“Where are you?”
Her voice was weak.
“Ethan, don't come alone.”
“Tell me where you are.”
“I don't know. They moved me twice.”
“Are you hurt?”
“I'm okay.”
I heard a door opening.
Then a man's voice.
Richard.
“Give me the phone.”
Sophia whispered:
“Ethan, the baby is safe.”
My heart stopped.
“What baby?”
There was a pause.
Then she said:
“Our baby.”
A crash followed.
The call ended.
I turned toward Mitchell.
“Move.”
We drove to the estate with a full police team.
The property was surrounded by tall trees and an iron fence.
Two vehicles were parked outside.
One belonged to Daniel Reeves.
The other belonged to Richard.
Officers entered through the front and rear entrances.
I followed them inside.
The house was almost empty.
A chair lay overturned in the hallway.
A glass of water stood on a table.
And in the kitchen, I found a small white hospital blanket.
I recognized it.
Sophia had been wrapped in one just before she disappeared.
A noise came from upstairs.
We rushed toward it.
In the final bedroom, I found a locked door.
An officer forced it open.
Inside was Sophia.
Her wrists were tied.
Her face was bruised, but she was conscious.
I dropped to my knees.
“I'm here.”
She began crying.
I untied her carefully.
“Where's Richard?”
“Downstairs.”
The officers moved immediately.
But Daniel was already gone.
Richard was found in a study, attempting to destroy documents.
He didn't resist arrest.
He simply looked at me.
“You should have stayed overseas.”
I wanted to hit him.
I wanted to make him feel a fraction of what Sophia had endured.
But I stepped aside and let the officers take him.
Sophia was rushed back to the hospital.
During the ambulance ride, she told me what had happened.
Richard had discovered that she was investigating the trust.
He confronted her at our house and demanded the original ledger.
When she refused, Daniel attacked her.
Richard watched.
Afterward, they tried to stage the alley assault.
Samuel had witnessed enough to ruin their plan.
That's why they threatened him.
“Why did they want the ledger so badly?” I asked.
“Because it proves what happened to your father.”
“And the recording?”
“It's not the only one.”
She reached for my hand.
“There was a second recording.”
“Where?”
“In the music box.”
“We found it.”
She shook her head.
“No. The one we found was a copy.”
My stomach tightened.
“Where's the original?”
Sophia closed her eyes.
“Richard has it.”
Before I could ask anything else, the doctor entered.
He checked her condition, then looked at me.
“Mr. Walker, your wife has been asking about the pregnancy.”
I held my breath.
“Is our baby okay?”
The doctor nodded cautiously.
“There's a heartbeat. But she needs rest and close monitoring.”
Tears filled my eyes.
Sophia reached for me.
“We're still here,” she whispered.
I kissed her forehead.
For the first time since coming home, I allowed myself to believe we might survive this.
Then Detective Mitchell entered.
“Richard has agreed to cooperate.”
I looked up.
“Why?”
“He says he can prove Daniel acted alone.”
Sophia's expression changed.
“No.”
Mitchell frowned.
“He says he has information about your father's murder.”
Sophia gripped my hand.
“Don't listen to him.”
“Why?”
She looked at me with terror in her eyes.
“Because Richard didn't kill your father.”
I stared.
“Then who did?”
Sophia swallowed.
“Your father was alive when Richard left him.”
The room went silent.
She continued.
“Someone else came back to the hospital that night.”
I felt my blood turn cold.
“Who?”
Sophia looked toward the door.
“The person who has been protecting Daniel all along.”
Then she whispered a name.
May you like
A name that appeared nowhere in the police investigation.
My mother.
