Chapter 6: The Witness From Birmingham
Michael Reed answered the telephone on the fourth ring.
“Reed speaking.””
Loretta stood beside her car outside the storage facility, one hand resting on the roof to steady herself.
“Mr. Reed, my name is Loretta Mitchell. I believe you knew my husband, Daniel.””
Silence.
Then a chair scraped across a floor.
“Who gave you this number?””
“I found it in his notebook.””
“Which notebook?””
“His old business notebook. There's a note saying you know where the original records are kept.””
Michael didn't answer immediately.
Loretta could hear a television in the background and the faint clatter of dishes.
“Mrs. Mitchell,” he finally said, “where are you calling from?””
“Atlanta.””
“Are you alone?””
“Yes.””
“Has anyone told you to contact me?””
“No.””
“Has Vanessa?””
Loretta closed her eyes.
“No. I found your name myself.””
Another long pause followed.
Then Michael said, “I can't discuss this over the telephone.””
“Can you tell me whether my husband is alive?””
The silence that followed was so complete that Loretta checked the screen to make sure the call hadn't disconnected.
When Michael finally spoke, his voice was rough.
“I don't know what you've been told.””
“I was told my husband died twenty-seven years ago.””
“Then I suggest you speak to the people who handled that matter.””
“I did. Now I'm speaking to you.””
“Mrs. Mitchell—”
“Please.””
The word escaped before she could stop it.
“I buried him. I raised our daughter. I spent nearly three decades believing he was gone.
Now my daughter may have used my identity to borrow money against my home, and I've found a trust agreement bearing a signature I never made. Your name is written beside a note about original records.””
She swallowed.
“I am not asking you to protect anyone anymore. I am asking you to tell me whether I have been living inside a lie.””
Michael breathed out slowly.
“Do you still have the letter Daniel left you?””
Loretta's fingers tightened around the phone.
“How do you know about the letter?””
“Because I helped him prepare the instructions.””
A cold sensation traveled down her spine.
“You helped him prepare a letter to his wife?””
“Yes.””
“Why?””
“Because he believed there was a chance he wouldn't be able to explain everything himself.””
Loretta stared at the parking lot.
“Is he alive?””
“I can't answer that question until I know what documents you have and whether anyone else has seen them.””
“Why?””
“Because if I tell you something without knowing what you're holding, I could make matters worse.””
Loretta almost laughed.
“Mr. Reed, my life is already worse.””
“I understand.””
“No. You don't.””
She heard herself raising her voice and forced it down.
“You may not understand what it means to wake up at seventy-two and discover that your daughter doesn't want you in her house. You may not understand what it means to wonder whether the person you loved was the person you thought he was.””
Michael was quiet.
Then he said, “You're right. I don't understand what you've lived through. But I knew Daniel, and I know what he was trying to protect.””
“Who was he trying to protect?””
“You. Vanessa. The house.””
“From whom?””
“I can't tell you everything over the phone.””
Loretta shut her eyes.
“Then tell me where to meet you.””
Michael hesitated.
“Tomorrow. Ten in the morning. There's a public library in downtown Birmingham, near the courthouse.
I'll send you the address. Bring copies of the documents, not the originals.””
“And you'll answer my questions?””
“I'll tell you what I know.””
“Will you tell me whether Daniel is alive?””
Michael took a slow breath.
“If I can verify that it won't put anyone at risk, yes.””
Loretta ended the call and stood beside her car for several minutes.
She should have felt relieved.
Instead, she felt as though she'd stepped onto a bridge whose far end was hidden by fog.
She called David and explained what had happened.
“I don't recommend driving to Birmingham without a plan,” he said.
“I need answers.””
“I understand. But we need to verify Michael's identity and establish what records he holds. I'll make some calls.””
“Can you come with me?””
“Not tomorrow. I have a hearing in the morning, and we need to preserve the property evidence here. But I can arrange for a local attorney to meet you if we establish that the appointment is legitimate.””
Loretta agreed.
That evening, she stayed in the motel again.
At eight, Jayden called.
“Grandma?””
“Hello, baby.””
“Are you coming home?””
Loretta looked at the motel window, where headlights swept across the curtains.
“Not tonight.””
“Mom says you're trying to take the house away.””
“I am not trying to take anything away from you.””
“Then why is she crying?””
Loretta's heart tightened.
“Your mother is worried. Adults sometimes cry when they don't know how to fix something.””
“Did you do something wrong?””
“No, sweetheart.””
“Did Grandpa?””
Loretta stared at the wall.
“I don't know.””
Jayden was quiet for a moment.
Then he asked, “Grandma, can I tell you something without you getting mad?””
“Always.””
“Mom keeps a photograph in her desk drawer. It's Grandpa, but he looks older than in the pictures you have.””
Loretta stopped breathing for a moment.
“Are you sure it's him?””
“He has the same scar on his chin. And the same eyes.””
“Where was the photograph taken?””
“I don't know. There's a building behind him. I think it says Birmingham.””
Loretta gripped the edge of the bed.
“Can you describe the photograph?””
“It's old. The edges are bent. Grandpa's standing beside a black car, and he's wearing a gray jacket. There's a date written on the back.””
“What date?””
“I couldn't read it.””
“Jayden, listen to me. Don't take the photograph or look through your mother's things. It's important that you stay out of this.””
“Okay.””
“And if your mother asks what we've talked about, you don't have to lie. Just tell her you called your grandmother.””
“Will you tell me what's happening?””
“When I know the truth, I will.””
After they hung up, Loretta sat in the dim motel room, unable to shake the image of the older man standing beside a car.
She had memorized Daniel's face.
She had watched it change as he grew tired, as he laughed, as he bent over Vanessa's school projects.
If the photograph was real, then someone had seen him years after the funeral.
And Vanessa had hidden it.
The following morning, Loretta drove to Birmingham with copies of the trust agreement, Daniel's notebook, and the letter she had found in the storage unit.
She arrived early and waited near the entrance of the public library.
At ten minutes past ten, a silver sedan pulled into the parking lot.
A man in his early seventies stepped out, wearing a charcoal jacket and carrying a brown leather briefcase. He was tall, with thinning gray hair and a cautious way of looking around before he moved.
He approached Loretta.
“Mrs. Mitchell?””
“Yes.””
“I'm Michael Reed.””
He offered his hand.
His grip was firm, but his eyes looked tired.
“Thank you for coming,” he said.
“Thank you for agreeing to meet me.””
They went inside and found a quiet table near the reference section. Michael placed the briefcase between them but didn't open it immediately.
“You look like Daniel,” he said.
Loretta's throat tightened.
“Everyone used to say that.””
“He talked about you often.””
“Then why did he leave me?””
Michael looked down at his hands.
“That's one of the questions I hoped you wouldn't ask first.””
“It's the first question I've had for twenty-seven years.””
He nodded slowly.
“I know.””
“Did he die?””
Michael looked at her.
“I attended a meeting with Daniel years after the date of his reported death.””
Loretta's fingers went cold.
“So he's alive.””
“I didn't say that.””
“You said you met him.””
“I said I attended a meeting. I cannot tell you what identity he was using, or what arrangements were involved, without first showing you the records.””
“Then show me.””
Michael opened the briefcase.
Inside were several folders, each marked with a date.
He removed the oldest one and laid it on the table.
“This is a copy of the original trust agreement,” he said.
“It was created to protect the family home and certain assets. Your husband was the grantor. You were the primary beneficiary. Vanessa was named as the eventual beneficiary, subject to specific conditions.””
Loretta scanned the first page.
“This is the same document I found.””
“Not quite.””
Michael placed another sheet beside it.
“This is the execution record.””
The date was different.
The signature was different.
And the witness section contained the names of two people Loretta had never met.
“Why are there two versions?”” she asked.
“Because the original agreement was amended.””
“Without my knowledge?””
Michael hesitated.
“The amendment was supposed to be explained to you.””
“But it wasn't.””
“No.””
“Who changed it?””
Michael folded his hands.
“Daniel authorized the amendment.””
Loretta looked at him.
“Did he forge my signature?””
“I can't tell you who signed on your behalf. I can tell you that the records I received indicated that the amendment was valid.””
“Did you personally see me sign it?””
“No.””
“Then how can you say that?””
“I can't. I can only tell you what the file says.””
Loretta pushed the papers away.
“That is not good enough.””
“I agree.””
Michael reached into the briefcase and removed a photograph.
He placed it faceup on the table.
Loretta's entire body went still.
The man in the photograph was older than the Daniel she remembered. His hair had thinned, and lines creased the corners of his eyes. But the scar on his chin was unmistakable.
He stood beside a black sedan outside a brick building.
The date stamped on the bottom corner was twelve years after his reported death.
Loretta touched the edge of the photograph.
“Where did you get this?””
“From Daniel.””
“Where is he?””
Michael looked toward the library windows.
“I don't know where he is now.””
“Did you see him in person?””
“Yes.””
“Was he alive when you saw him?””
“Yes.””
The word seemed to empty the air from the room.
Loretta drew her hand back.
For twenty-seven years, she had carried flowers to a grave. She had told her grandson stories about a grandfather who had loved him before he was born. She had kept a wedding ring in a wooden box and spoken to a photograph on difficult nights.
Now a stranger had confirmed that her husband had been alive twelve years after she buried him.
“Why?”” she whispered.
Michael's expression tightened.
“Daniel believed he was protecting the family.””
“From what?””
“He had become involved in a financial dispute with people who were prepared to destroy him. He believed disappearing would prevent them from using you and Vanessa against him.””
Loretta stared at him.
“Did he tell you that himself?””
“Yes.””
“And you helped him disappear?””
“I helped preserve the records he asked me to protect.””
“Did you help him leave his wife and daughter?””
Michael looked down.
“Yes.””
The admission hurt more than she expected.
“You let me believe he was dead.””
“I was bound by agreements I believed were necessary at the time.””
“You were bound by an agreement while I buried my husband?””
Michael flinched.
“I know how that sounds.””
“No. You know how it sounds to you. You have no idea how it feels to me.””
He accepted the rebuke without defending himself.
Loretta wiped her cheek.
“Did Vanessa know?””
“I believe she learned the truth years later.””
“From whom?””
“I don't know.””
“Did she see him?””
Michael hesitated.
“I have reason to believe they communicated.””
Loretta stared at the photograph.
That explained the fear in Vanessa's voice. It explained the hidden photograph, the trust, and the strange words Jayden had heard.
But it didn't explain the loan.
“Why would Vanessa use my identity to borrow money?”” Loretta asked.
Michael opened a second folder.
“This is why I agreed to meet you.””
He turned several pages until he reached a document bearing the name of a financial company.
“The trust was supposed to protect the property. But if someone could establish that the trust had been amended or that its assets had been transferred, they might attempt to borrow against them.””
“Who would want to do that?””
Michael looked directly at her.
“Someone who believed the money would eventually belong to them.””
Loretta's mouth went dry.
“Vanessa?””
“Possibly. But the paperwork suggests another party may have helped.””
He placed a final document in front of her.
It was a copy of a transfer authorization.
At the bottom was a signature that resembled Loretta's but wasn't hers.
Beside it was a name she had never seen before.
*Evelyn Shaw.*
“Who is Evelyn Shaw?”” Loretta asked.
Michael closed his eyes briefly.
“She was Daniel's business partner.””
“Was?””
“She died six years ago.””
Loretta looked down at the authorization.
“Then how could she have signed this?””
Michael didn't answer.
Instead, he turned the page over.
On the back was a handwritten note, dated only three months earlier.
The handwriting was unfamiliar, but the message was clear.
*The old arrangement is no longer safe. Vanessa must finish the transfer before Loretta learns Daniel is still alive.*
Loretta read the sentence once.
Then again.
She looked at Michael.
“Who wrote this?””
“I don't know.””
“Who gave you the document?””
“It was included in a package sent to my office anonymously.””
“And you waited until now to tell me?””
“I received it yesterday.””
Loretta sat back, her pulse pounding.
The loan, the trust, the second property, and Daniel's disappearance were no longer separate mysteries.
They were pieces of the same plan.
Someone had been trying to move assets before Loretta discovered the truth.
And that person knew she was still alive, still legally connected to the house, and still capable of asking questions.
Michael gathered the documents into a neat stack.
“Mrs. Mitchell, I need to tell you something else.””
Loretta looked at him.
“The person who sent me this package also included a message.””
“What message?””
Michael slid a folded note across the table.
Loretta opened it.
Six words were written in black ink.
*Daniel is coming back to Atlanta.*
Beneath them was a date.
Tomorrow.
Loretta stared at the note until the letters blurred.
Then her phone rang.
Vanessa's name appeared on the screen.
She answered without speaking.
For several seconds, neither woman said anything.
Then Vanessa whispered, “Mom, please tell me you haven't met with Michael Reed.””
Loretta looked across the table at the man who had helped her husband disappear.
“Why?”” she asked.
Vanessa began to cry.
“Because if you have, then you need to leave Birmingham immediately.””
“Why?””
“Because the man you're looking for isn't the only person who knows what happened twenty-seven years ago.””
Loretta gripped the phone.
“Who else knows?””
Vanessa's answer came in a broken whisper.
May you like
“The man who arranged your father's funeral.””
And before Loretta could ask another question, the call abruptly disconnected.
