Chapter 3: The Name on the Clipboard
The room seemed to shrink around them.
Marcus stood beside the coffee table, holding the delivery document.
Walter was still staring at the address.
Maya had stopped crying, but only because she was watching her mother with an expression that made Marcus's chest ache.
Renee stood near the hallway.
Her blue shirt was slightly wrinkled now. One hand rested against the wall, and the other clutched her phone.
The employee waited.
“Can we please finish this?”” she asked.
Marcus looked at her.
“Yes. Tell us the name.””
Renee shook her head.
“Marcus, don't.””
He didn't look at her.
“I'm done listening to you tell me what not to do.””
The employee opened the folder again.
“The recipient was listed as Daniel Mitchell.””
Walter's head snapped up.
Marcus went still.
Maya looked confused.
“Who is Daniel?””
Nobody answered.
Renee closed her eyes.
Walter slowly lowered himself onto the sofa.
“Daniel,” he whispered.
Marcus stared at his wife.
“Your brother?””
Renee nodded faintly.
“Why would your brother have Buddy?””
“Because I needed him to.””
Marcus let out a short, disbelieving breath.
“You sent our dog to your brother?””
“He agreed to take care of him.””
“Then why didn't you tell me?””
“Because you would have said no.””
“Of course I would have said no! He's Maya's dog!””
Renee looked toward her daughter.
“I thought she'd adjust.””
Maya's lips trembled.
“Mommy, I want Buddy.””
Renee swallowed.
“I know, baby.””
“No. You don't know.””
The little girl held up the yellow leash.
“Look. I brought his leash. We can go get him.””
Marcus turned away.
The employee watched the family quietly.
Walter finally spoke.
“Daniel lives in Ohio.””
Renee looked at him.
“Yes.””
“How did you arrange to have Buddy transported there?””
“He drove down.””
Marcus frowned.
“Your brother drove from Ohio yesterday?””
“Yes.””
“When?””
“Yesterday morning.””
Marcus stared at her.
“While I was at work?””
Renee nodded.
“And you didn't think that was something I should know?””
“I didn't want another argument.””
Walter looked at the transport employee.
“Do you have proof the dog was actually delivered?””
The woman checked her records.
“Yes, sir.””
“Then show us.””
She hesitated.
“I can show you the delivery confirmation, but I need the account holder to authorize access to the full record.””
Renee immediately stepped forward.
“I'll authorize it.””
Marcus looked at her.
“Now you want to cooperate?””
“I'm trying to get this over with.””
The employee handed her a small digital signature pad.
Renee signed.
The woman tapped through several screens, then turned the tablet toward Marcus.
A photograph appeared.
Buddy was sitting on a gray carpet beside a pair of shoes.
He looked healthy.
His golden fur was neatly brushed, and his red collar was around his neck.
Maya rushed toward the screen.
“BUDDY!””
She touched the photograph with one finger.
“Daddy, he's okay!””
Marcus felt some of the tension leave his shoulders.
At least Buddy was safe.
But something about the photograph bothered him.
The shoes beside Buddy were familiar.
Black leather.
A silver buckle.
Marcus had seen them before.
He looked at Walter.
“Dad, those shoes...””
Walter leaned forward.
His expression changed.
“I know those shoes.””
Renee immediately took the tablet.
“That's enough.””
Marcus reached for it.
“Give it back.””
“It's a private delivery record.””
“It's a picture of our dog!””
The employee gently retrieved the tablet.
“Sir, there's another attachment.””
She opened it.
A scanned document appeared.
At the bottom was a signature.
Daniel Mitchell.
But above the signature was a sentence that made Marcus's stomach tighten.
*Recipient agrees to assume full custody and ownership of the animal.*
Marcus read it twice.
“Ownership?””
Renee rubbed her forehead.
“It was just paperwork.””
“You transferred ownership of Buddy?””
“Marcus—”
“Did you sign away our dog's ownership without telling me?””
“I was trying to make sure he had a stable home!””
Walter stood.
“His home was here!””
Renee turned toward him.
“You don't understand what was happening.””
“Then explain it!””
She looked at the employee.
“Can you give us a minute?””
The woman nodded.
“Of course. I'll wait outside. Please call me when you're ready to complete the confirmation.””
She stepped onto the porch.
Marcus closed the front door.
For several seconds, the only sound was the ticking clock above the fireplace.
Then he turned to Renee.
“Start talking.””
Renee looked at Maya.
“Can you go sit with Grandpa for a minute?””
Maya shook her head.
“I want to hear.””
“Sweetheart, please.””
“No. Everybody keeps telling me to go away when they talk about Buddy.””
Walter reached out his hand.
“Come here, baby.””
Maya walked to him but kept looking at her mother.
Marcus waited until she was seated.
Then he spoke.
“Why did you send Buddy to Ohio?””
Renee took a deep breath.
“Daniel called me three weeks ago. He said he was looking for a dog.””
Marcus frowned.
“Your brother doesn't like dogs.””
“He does now.””
“That makes no sense.””
“He's been lonely.””
Walter shook his head.
“Daniel has been lonely for fifteen years. That doesn't explain why you gave him your granddaughter's dog.””
Renee's eyes flashed.
“Because I had no choice!””
Marcus stared.
“No choice?””
She walked to the coffee table and picked up her phone.
“Look.””
She opened a photograph.
It showed Buddy in the backyard, standing beside Walter's vegetable garden.
Then she swiped.
Another photograph.
Buddy sitting on the living room rug.
Another.
Buddy sleeping beside Maya's bed.
Marcus looked at her.
“Why are you showing me pictures I already know?””
“Look at the dates.””
He leaned closer.
The photographs had been taken over several months.
Some were recent.
Some were nearly a year old.
“What am I supposed to see?””
Renee enlarged one of the pictures.
In the background, near the hallway, was a framed photograph.
Walter and his late wife, Evelyn, standing beside a younger Marcus.
The frame was cracked.
Marcus remembered that picture.
It had been damaged when Buddy was still a puppy.
“What about it?”” he asked.
Renee looked at Walter.
“Your father has been hiding something from you.””
Walter's face hardened.
“Be careful.””
“Why? Because you don't want him to know?””
Marcus looked between them.
“What does this have to do with Buddy?””
Renee put her phone down.
“Everything.””
She walked toward the window.
“Three weeks ago, Daniel came here while you were at work. He saw your father in the backyard with Buddy. They were talking.””
Walter laughed bitterly.
“I talk to the dog every day.””
“He heard you say something about the house.””
Marcus turned.
“What?””
Renee continued.
“Daniel told me your father was planning to change the ownership arrangements.””
Walter's expression became unreadable.
Marcus frowned.
“Ownership arrangements?””
“The house,” Renee said.
Walter shook his head.
“That's private family business.””
“Not anymore.””
Marcus looked at his father.
“Dad, what's she talking about?””
Walter didn't answer immediately.
He walked toward the fireplace, where an old photograph of Evelyn stood beside a small ceramic vase.
Then he looked back at his son.
“Your mother left instructions before she died.””
Marcus nodded slowly.
“I know she left a will.””
“There's more to it.””
Renee crossed her arms.
“Tell him.””
Walter stared at her.
“I wasn't planning to discuss this in front of Maya.””
“Then perhaps you should have discussed it before making decisions that affect everyone.””
Marcus raised his voice.
“Enough! Somebody tell me what is going on!””
Walter took a long breath.
“Your mother created a trust. The house was placed in it. I have been managing it, but I don't own it outright.””
Marcus looked confused.
“Okay.””
“She included conditions.””
“What conditions?””
Walter glanced at Maya.
“One of them concerns your daughter.””
Renee gave a humorless laugh.
“Exactly.””
Marcus turned toward her.
“What?””
“Your father intends to give Maya the house.””
Marcus stared.
The room went silent.
Walter didn't deny it.
Marcus slowly sat down.
“Dad... is that true?””
Walter nodded.
“Your mother wanted Maya to have a secure home. She believed this house should stay in the family.””
Renee's eyes filled with anger.
“And what about us?””
Walter looked at her.
“You and Marcus have a home.””
“A home that belongs to somebody else's trust.””
“It's a family home.””
“That's easy for you to say.””
Marcus rubbed his face.
He suddenly understood why Renee had been so interested in the property documents over the past several months.
Why she had asked about the trust.
Why she had wanted Walter to sign certain papers.
And why she had become increasingly hostile whenever his father mentioned Evelyn.
But the dog?
He still couldn't understand the dog.
“Renee,” Marcus said quietly, “why did you send Buddy away?””
She looked at him.
For the first time, her anger seemed to disappear.
“I was trying to protect us.””
“From what?””
She looked at the empty yellow leash in Maya's hands.
Then she said something that made Walter rise from his chair.
“Daniel told me Buddy had found something.””
Marcus frowned.
“Found what?””
Renee shook her head.
“I don't know exactly.””
Walter's face had gone pale.
“Renee.””
She continued.
“Daniel said Buddy kept digging around the old storage shed. He found a metal box buried underneath the floorboards.””
Walter took a step toward her.
“That's impossible.””
Marcus looked at his father.
“What metal box?””
Walter didn't answer.
Renee picked up her phone again.
“Daniel sent me a photograph yesterday.””
She opened a message thread.
At the top was a photograph of Buddy sitting beside a small rusted metal box.
The box was open.
Inside was a thick envelope.
Marcus leaned closer.
There was handwriting on the envelope.
His mother's handwriting.
He recognized it immediately.
The message beneath the photograph was short.
*I found it. Don't let Walter get there first.*
Marcus looked up.
“Why would Daniel say that?””
Renee's eyes filled with tears.
“Because he thinks your father knows what's inside.””
Walter stared at the screen.
His hands were trembling now.
Then his phone rang.
He looked at the caller ID.
His face drained of color.
Marcus noticed.
“Who is it?””
Walter didn't answer.
The phone continued vibrating.
The name on the screen was unmistakable.
*DANIEL MITCHELL.*
Renee took a step backward.
Maya looked at her grandfather.
“Grandpa, is Uncle Daniel calling about Buddy?””
Walter finally answered.
He put the phone to his ear.
“Daniel?””
A man's voice came through the speaker, faint but urgent.
“Walter, listen carefully. I've got Buddy, and he's safe.””
Walter closed his eyes.
“Where are you?””
“I'm at the house.””
“What house?””
A pause.
Then Daniel said something that made Walter grip the phone.
“The house where Evelyn told me never to go.””
Marcus stood.
“Dad?””
Daniel's voice became louder.
“And there's something else. The box wasn't empty.””
Walter's face turned ashen.
“What did you find?””
Daniel hesitated.
Then he whispered:
“There's a second envelope. And this one has Marcus's name on it.””
The call ended.
For several seconds, nobody moved.
Then Marcus looked at his wife.
“Renee... what did your brother find?””
She stared at the phone in Walter's hand.
May you like
And when the doorbell rang again, she whispered the one thing nobody in that room expected.
“Please don't let him bring that envelope inside.””
