Chapter 7: The Woman Who Called Three Days Ago
“Where is she?””
My father grabbed Adrian Ross by the front of his suit.
“Where is my wife?””
Adrian didn't fight back. He simply looked down at Dad's clenched hands and said, “If I knew her exact location, Daniel, I wouldn't be standing in your foyer.””
Dad released him with a shove.
“You expect me to believe that Claire contacted you three days ago, told you someone had discovered her hiding place, and you decided to do absolutely nothing?””
“I didn't do nothing.””
“You came to my house to stop me from investigating!””
“I came because I received a message telling me the protected asset had been discovered. I needed to know who had found it before I could determine whether Claire was in immediate danger.””
Dad laughed, but there was no humor in it.
“You're a financial adviser. You're not a detective.””
“No,” Adrian replied.
“I'm the man who helped your wife hide the evidence that someone was stealing from your family.””
Robert stepped between them.
“That's enough. Mr. Ross, you're going to give us the complete message you received, including the original transmission details. Any further discussion about the missing-person case can happen with the authorities present.””
Adrian nodded slowly.
“That's reasonable.””
I stood beside the staircase, unable to move.
Six months ago, my mother might have been alive.
Three days ago, she'd apparently contacted Adrian.
And now someone had discovered her hiding place.
The words kept repeating in my head until they no longer sounded like words at all.
Dad turned toward me.
“Jasmine, sweetheart, come here.””
I shook my head.
“Don't tell me everything is going to be okay.””
He stopped.
“I wasn't going to.””
“Because you don't know that.””
“No,” he admitted.
“I don't.””
That honesty hurt, but it was better than another promise he couldn't keep.
I walked toward the foyer table and picked up the paper bearing my mother's handwriting.
“Adrian, what promise did she keep?””
He looked at the message.
“I don't know exactly what she meant.””
“Then why did she tell you to give it to me?””
“She wanted you to know she hadn't forgotten you.””
My eyes burned.
“That's not enough.””
“I know.””
“Did she ask about me?””
Adrian's expression softened.
“Yes.””
The answer came so quickly that I looked up.
“What did she say?””
He hesitated.
Then he reached into his folder and removed a folded sheet of paper.
“This was included with the message. I was instructed to give it to you if I ever confirmed that you had found the certificate.””
Dad moved closer.
“Why didn't you show us this earlier?””
“Because the instructions were specific.””
Robert took the paper from Adrian and inspected the outside.
It had no address, no stamp, and no signature.
Just my name.
*For Jasmine, when she is old enough to ask the right question.*
My fingers trembled as Robert handed it to me.
I opened the paper.
Inside, my mother's handwriting filled half a page.
My sunshine,
If this letter has reached you, then someone has finally found the things I left behind.
I wish I could have been there to explain everything myself. I wish I could have watched you grow, helped you with your homework, and heard you complain about vegetables at dinner.
I laughed through my tears.
My mother used to call broccoli little green trees. I hated it when she put them on my plate, and she always pretended to negotiate with me as though we were signing an international treaty.
The letter continued.
I need you to understand something. I did not leave because I stopped loving you. I left because I discovered that someone was using our family to hide something dangerous. I believed that if I stayed, you would become part of it.
I trusted your father to protect you, even when I could not explain everything to him.
I glanced at Dad.
He was crying silently.
For three years, I had watched him put his sadness into locked drawers. He'd never let me see it like this.
I returned to the letter.
There is one person who knows what happened on the night I disappeared. That person may tell you they were trying to help me. They may even believe it.
But good intentions do not erase the consequences of a choice.
When the time comes, ask your father what he found in my desk the morning after I vanished.
I stopped reading.
Dad's face changed.
He looked as though the floor had disappeared beneath him.
“What did you find?”” I asked.
He didn't answer.
“Dad.””
He sat down heavily on the bottom stair.
For several seconds, he stared at his hands.
“Your mother left me a key,” he said.
My breath caught.
“The silver key?””
“No. Another one.””
“Where is it?””
He shook his head.
“I don't know.””
Robert crouched beside him.
“Daniel, take your time. What happened that morning?””
Dad rubbed his forehead.
“I returned to the house after speaking with the police. I went into Claire's study because I thought she might have left a note explaining where she'd gone.””
“And?”” Robert asked.
“I found her desk drawer open. Several files were missing. But there was a small wooden box beneath the desk, and inside it was a key and a note.””
“What did the note say?””
Dad swallowed.
If I cannot return, do not trust the records.
“That was all,” he said.
“No explanation. No name.””
“Did you tell the police?”” Robert asked.
“No.””
“Why not?””
Dad looked at me.
“Because I recognized the key.””
I leaned forward.
“What did it open?””
“The safe in my father's old office.””
Robert's expression sharpened.
“Where is that office now?””
“It's part of the family estate outside the city. We sold the property two years ago.””
Adrian suddenly stepped forward.
“Did you remove the safe before the sale?””
Dad looked at him sharply.
“Yes. I kept it in storage.””
Adrian exhaled.
“Then we need to find it.””
“Why?”” I demanded.
“Because if Claire left a key to that safe, she may have placed the original evidence there.””
Robert stood.
“We'll verify the location and contact the appropriate authorities. Nobody is going to break into a storage facility tonight.””
Adrian glanced toward the windows.
“Tonight may be too late.””
Dad rose.
“Explain.””
Adrian pulled out his phone and showed us a message.
It was from an unknown number.
*THE GIRL HAS THE LETTER. YOU HAVE UNTIL MIDNIGHT.*
Beneath it was a photograph of our mansion.
The picture had been taken from across the street.
It showed me standing beside the silver sedan that afternoon.
My stomach dropped.
Someone had been watching us.
Dad took Adrian's phone.
“When did you receive this?””
“Twenty minutes ago.””
“Why didn't you tell us?””
“I was trying to establish whether it was a genuine threat.””
Robert immediately called the police.
Vanessa appeared at the top of the staircase.
She had heard enough to understand.
“Oh, God,” she whispered.
Dad turned toward her.
“What do you know?””
She descended slowly, gripping the railing.
“I know that message.””
Adrian stared at her.
“You've received one like it?””
Vanessa nodded.
“Not the same words. But the same number.””
Robert ended his call long enough to ask, “When?””
“Last month.””
Dad looked stunned.
“Last month?””
Vanessa nodded again.
“It said I should stop looking for Claire. It said the past would stay buried if I did.””
“Why didn't you tell me?””
“Because I thought it was a prank.””
“Then why did you try to sell the car today?””
Vanessa looked toward the driveway.
For a long moment, she seemed unable to speak.
“Because the message came again this morning,” she whispered.
“It said the car had to be gone before sunset.””
Dad stared at her.
“You knew someone was threatening you, and you decided to sell my daughter's inheritance?””
“I thought getting rid of the car would make them leave us alone!””
“You thought destroying evidence would protect Jasmine?””
“I didn't know the case was inside!””
“But you knew something was there.””
Vanessa's face crumpled.
“I knew Claire had hidden something. I didn't know what.””
Robert moved toward her.
“Mrs. Carter, you're going to need to provide every message, every number, and every communication you've received. Don't delete anything.””
“I won't.””
Dad looked at her with an expression I had never seen before.
“You could have told me.””
Vanessa wiped her face.
“I know.””
“No. You could have told me three years ago. You could have told me the morning Claire disappeared. You could have told me when Jasmine cried herself to sleep because she thought her mother didn't love her.””
She lowered her head.
“I know.””
Outside, the police sirens grew louder.
I clutched my mother's letter.
She had told me that good intentions didn't erase the consequences of a choice.
I looked at Vanessa and wondered whether she had ever understood that.
Then my father's phone rang.
The number was hidden.
He answered on speaker.
A woman's voice filled the foyer.
“Daniel?””
Dad stopped breathing.
I knew that voice.
I had heard it in the recording.
I had heard it in the home videos.
I had heard it in my dreams.
“Mom?”” I whispered.
The woman went silent.
Then she spoke again.
“Jasmine, sweetheart, I need you to listen carefully.””
I pressed the phone closer.
“Mom, where are you?””
“I'm somewhere safe for the moment.””
“Why didn't you come home?””
A painful pause followed.
“Because I was afraid the people looking for me would find you.””
Tears streamed down my face.
“I don't care about any of that! I just want you!””
“I know, baby. I know.””
Dad covered his mouth with his hand.
The woman's voice trembled.
“Daniel, have you found the safe?””
“Yes,” he said.
“I know where it is.””
“Then you need to go there before midnight.””
Robert leaned toward the phone.
“Claire, this is Robert Hayes. Can you confirm your identity and current safety? We need to arrange a secure meeting.””
“I can't stay on the line.””
“Claire, wait—”
“Jasmine, there's something inside that safe that will tell you why I had to disappear.””
I gripped the phone.
“What is it?””
My mother took a shaky breath.
“The truth about who signed the papers that made me a danger to my own family.””
Then I heard a sound behind her.
A door opening.
My mother's voice became a whisper.
“Daniel, don't let Vanessa—”
The call ended.
Dad stared at the phone.
May you like
Vanessa began sobbing.
And from somewhere outside the mansion, a car engine roared to life.
