Chapter 9: The Father Who Sold His Son
I ran toward the SUV.
The rear door was open.
Alicia's restraints lay on the ground.
But she was nowhere to be seen.
"ALICIA!""
Marcus grabbed my arm.
"Daniel, stop!""
I shoved past him.
Two men were fighting near the courthouse entrance. One of them was Ethan. The other wore a dark jacket and had his face partially covered.
Richard was nowhere in sight.
I looked toward the street.
A white van was speeding away.
Alicia was inside.
I ran after it, but Marcus caught me again.
"You're not catching that thing on foot!""
I turned on him.
"Then get a car!""
He pulled out his phone.
"I'm calling the police.""
Alicia had disappeared again.
After three years of searching, I had found her.
And within minutes, someone had taken her away.
I punched the side of the SUV.
The pain shot through my hand.
I didn't care.
Marcus looked at me.
"Daniel, listen. We have to think.""
I stared at the empty vehicle.
"She was right there.""
"I know.""
"I could have touched her.""
"I know.""
"And now she's gone.""
Marcus put a hand on my shoulder.
"We're going to find her.""
I looked at the courthouse.
Richard had disappeared.
So had Ethan.
But one thing remained.
The documents they had brought.
I returned to the parking lot and found several pages scattered near the SUV.
Most were financial records.
One was a medical report.
It contained the name of the facility where Alicia had been treated three years earlier.
Another page contained a handwritten address.
*RIVERBEND CARE CENTER — SAVANNAH, GEORGIA.*
Underneath was a name.
*THOMAS BROOKS.*
My adoptive father.
I looked at Marcus.
"That's where he is.""
Marcus nodded.
"We need to go.""
I called the detective and explained what had happened.
He promised to send officers to the courthouse and arrange a search for the white van.
Then I called Mrs. Carter.
She answered immediately.
"Mr. Brooks?""
"Is Lily okay?""
"She's sleeping.""
"Keep her with you. Don't open the door for anyone.""
"Of course.""
"Has anyone tried to contact her?""
There was a pause.
"Actually, yes.""
My stomach tightened.
"Who?""
"A woman called about ten minutes ago. She said she was your sister.""
I froze.
"I don't have a sister.""
"She knew Lily's name. She knew where she was staying.""
"Did you tell her anything?""
"No, sir. I told her to call you.""
"Did she leave a number?""
Mrs. Carter gave it to me.
I wrote it down.
Then I asked her to contact the police.
When I ended the call, Marcus was staring at me.
"What?""
"Daniel, that number is familiar.""
"From where?""
He checked his phone.
Then he showed me a photograph from the storage unit.
It was the bank statement.
The same number appeared in the contact details for one of the offshore accounts.
I felt my stomach drop.
Someone connected to Richard had contacted my daughter.
I called the number.
A woman answered.
"Hello?""
"Who is this?""
Silence.
Then:
"Daniel?""
I recognized the voice.
It was Vanessa.
I looked at Marcus.
"Where are you?""
"At your house.""
"Why?""
"Because someone came looking for Lily.""
"Who?""
"Ethan.""
I closed my eyes.
"Where is Lily?""
"She's safe. Mrs. Carter took her to Marcus's apartment.""
"How did you get to my house?""
"I followed Ethan.""
"Why didn't you call the police?""
"I did.""
I could hear sirens in the background.
Then Vanessa whispered:
"Daniel, I found something.""
"What?""
"A recording.""
"Where?""
"In the basement.""
My father's old house.
The Roswell property.
I remembered the brass key.
117.
"What's in the recording?""
Vanessa hesitated.
"Your adoptive father.""
I stopped walking.
"Is he talking about Alicia?""
"Yes.""
"What does he say?""
Vanessa took a breath.
"He says he helped Richard fake his death. But he also says something about the night Alicia disappeared.""
"Tell me.""
"He says he didn't shoot her.""
I stared at Marcus.
"Who did?""
Vanessa's voice dropped.
"Ethan.""
I felt cold.
"Are you sure?""
"Yes. Your adoptive father says Ethan fired the gun because Alicia refused to give him the documents.""
"Then why did he tell Richard he was responsible?""
"Because he helped them move Alicia afterward.""
My jaw tightened.
"Where did they take her?""
"I don't know. But there's more.""
"What?""
Vanessa started crying.
"Your adoptive father says he saw Alicia alive last week.""
I closed my eyes.
Last week.
She had been alive.
She had been close enough for someone to see her.
"Where?""
"At Riverbend.""
I looked at the address again.
"Why was she there?""
"I don't know.""
"Did he say anything else?""
Vanessa hesitated.
Then she whispered:
"He said Alicia wasn't the only person he helped hide.""
I stared at the road.
"Who else?""
Vanessa lowered her voice.
"Your mother.""
We drove to Savannah just after midnight.
Marcus took the wheel while I reviewed the documents.
The road was dark and wet from the rain.
Every few minutes, I checked my phone.
No calls from Alicia.
No messages.
Nothing.
I kept seeing her face in the parking lot.
The fear in her eyes.
The way she had looked at me when Richard mentioned Lily.
I remembered the first time I held Lily.
She had been tiny, wrapped in a pink blanket, and Alicia had been laughing through tears.
I had never questioned whether she was my daughter.
Biology had never mattered.
I had loved her before I knew her face.
And I would protect her regardless of what the documents said.
Marcus glanced at me.
"You okay?""
"No.""
"Good. I'd be worried if you were.""
I almost smiled.
Then he asked:
"Do you think Vanessa is telling the truth?""
I looked out the window.
"I don't know.""
"She could be leading us into a trap.""
"Maybe.""
"Then why are we going?""
"Because if my father is alive, I need to hear it from him.""
Marcus nodded.
A few minutes later, my phone vibrated.
An unknown number.
A message.
Don't come to Riverbend. Your father is not the only person waiting.
I showed Marcus.
He slowed down.
"That's not good.""
I typed a response.
Who is this?
The reply came immediately.
Someone who knows what happened to Alicia.
Then another message.
Ask Thomas why he buried two wedding rings.
I stared at the screen.
Two wedding rings.
One belonged to Alicia.
The other?
My adoptive mother had died when I was six.
I remembered her ring.
A simple gold band.
But why would anyone bury it with Alicia's?
I looked at the photograph from the storage unit.
The image of my father and Ethan outside the warehouse.
Then I noticed something I had overlooked.
My father was wearing a wedding ring.
But he had never remarried after my adoptive mother's death.
The ring was silver.
With a small black stone.
I recognized it.
It was Richard Hayes's ring.
I turned toward Marcus.
"Something is wrong.""
"What?""
"That photograph. My father was wearing Richard's ring.""
Marcus glanced at me.
"Maybe he borrowed it.""
"Or maybe the man in the photograph wasn't my father.""
The thought was so disturbing that I almost rejected it.
But then I remembered the voicemail.
The voice.
The resemblance.
And the fact that Richard had admitted my adoptive father was alive.
I searched through my phone for the photograph and enlarged it.
The man's face was partly obscured.
But the shape of his ears was different.
My father had a small scar behind his left ear from an accident when I was a child.
The man in the photograph had no scar.
I looked at Marcus.
"That's not my father.""
Marcus stared at the screen.
"Then who is it?""
I zoomed in again.
The man had the same jawline as Ethan.
The same narrow eyes.
The same posture.
My stomach dropped.
"It's Ethan.""
Marcus shook his head.
"No.""
"Look at the ring.""
He leaned closer.
Then he went silent.
The photograph had been altered.
The man standing beside Richard was not my adoptive father.
It was Ethan wearing his clothes.
Someone had wanted me to believe my father was alive.
Someone had deliberately sent me down this path.
My phone rang.
This time, the caller ID displayed a name.
*THOMAS BROOKS.*
I answered.
"Hello?""
A weak voice came through.
"Daniel?""
I stopped breathing.
"Dad?""
There was a long pause.
Then the voice whispered:
"Son, don't come to Riverbend.""
"Where are you?""
"I'm not there anymore.""
"Where are you?""
"Listen to me. Richard has found your mother.""
I gripped the phone.
"Where?""
"At the old family estate.""
"Which estate?""
"The one your grandfather left behind.""
I looked at Marcus.
"Why?""
My father began coughing.
"Because Margaret has something he needs.""
"What?""
"The original adoption papers.""
I swallowed.
"Why are they important?""
My father was quiet.
Then he said:
"Because you were never adopted, Daniel.""
I stared into the darkness.
"What?""
"Richard changed the records. Your mother signed nothing. The documents were forged.""
I felt my heart pounding.
"Then why did everyone tell me I was adopted?""
"Because Richard needed you to believe you had no legal claim to your grandfather's estate.""
My father took a shaky breath.
"And there's something else.""
"What?""
"Your grandfather didn't leave you forty million dollars.""
I frowned.
"Then what did he leave?""
My father whispered:
"An entire company.""
I looked at Marcus.
Then came the words that changed everything.
"Daniel, your grandfather's company is worth more than four hundred million dollars. And Richard has been using your name to control it for thirty-five years.""
The line crackled.
"Dad?""
"Son, you need to find the original trust documents.""
"Where are they?""
My father began crying.
"With Alicia.""
Then I heard a loud crash.
A man's voice shouted in the background.
My father whispered one final sentence.
"Daniel, I'm sorry. I was the one who handed Alicia over to Ethan.""
The call ended.
I stared at my phone.
Marcus pulled the car onto the shoulder.
Neither of us spoke.
Then I noticed a new message.
It was from Alicia.
A photograph appeared.
She was standing inside a dark room, holding a newspaper dated that day.
On the back wall was a familiar clock.
I recognized the location immediately.
My grandfather's old estate.
Below the photograph were seven words.
Come alone. Your father is waiting.
May you like
And underneath those words was a second message.
Not the one who raised you.
