Chapter 12 - The Father Who Stayed
Richard followed Lena into the garden. Rain had begun to fall, soft at first, then hard enough to darken the stone path.
“I was there when you were born,” he said. “Your mother was terrified. Her brother had been killed, and the Blake family wanted the child because of the trust.”
“What trust?”
“Your biological father, Thomas Carter, was Evelyn’s younger brother. He worked as an accountant for Frank. He copied the books and tried to get out. They killed him before you were born.”
Lena stared at him. “You knew?”
“I knew he was dead. I knew Margaret was carrying his child. I married her because I loved her, and because I could give you a name that would keep you safe.”
“You let me believe you were my father.”
“I was your father in every way that mattered.”
“You let me believe Mom was dead.”
“I thought she was.”
“You kept the key.”
“Because I couldn’t throw away the last thing she trusted me with.”
Lena’s anger did not disappear. But she saw the years in his face, the fear he had carried, and the way his hands shook when he tried to reach for her.
“I need time,” she said.
“I know.”
Inside the house, Alexander was questioning Peter. The older man refused to speak until a lawyer arrived. Marcus had found a second phone in Peter’s coat, with one unread message.
EVELYN IS AT THE MILWAUKEE HOUSE. MOVE HER BEFORE DAWN.
Alexander read it twice.
Margaret took his arm. “We have to get to her.”
He looked at Lena. “Will you come?”
Lena watched the rain slide down the glass doors. Her mother was alive. Her father had lied. Her life had been built around a story that was never true.
But there was one thing she knew.
She was done letting other people decide who she could save.
“I’m coming,” she said.
Then Marcus’s phone rang.
The voice on the other end said, “The Milwaukee house is empty.”
May you like
A pause.
“We found a body.”
