Chương 6
Maria moved closer.
“What is that?”
Daniel unfolded it.
Three words were written in his father’s handwriting.
Do not trust Frank.
He looked at Maria.
Neither of them spoke.
The name carried immediate weight.
Frank Bell.
His father’s attorney.
The man who had handled the estate.
The man Rachel mentioned.
The man who supposedly called about Maria.
Daniel felt the pieces shift.
Not enough to form a picture.
Enough to know the picture he had been given was incomplete.
“Did your father ever tell you why he stopped using Frank?” Maria asked.
Daniel shook his head.
“He never stopped.”
Maria looked surprised.
“He did.”
“No.”
“Yes.”
“When?”
“About a month before he died.”
Daniel stared at her.
“That’s impossible.”
“Why?”
“Because Frank handled everything.”
Maria stepped closer.
“Did your father tell you that?”
Daniel did not answer.
He had assumed it.
Everyone had.
After his father became sick, Frank had been the person everyone contacted.
The person who organized paperwork.
The person who explained decisions.
The person who seemed to know what Richard Mercer wanted.
But nobody had actually asked Richard.
Daniel looked at the note again.
Do not trust Frank.
The simple sentence felt more frightening than a long explanation.
Because his father had chosen every word.
No accusation.
No story.
No emotion.
Just a warning.
A phone rang downstairs.
Daniel and Maria froze.
The sound echoed through the house.
Daniel reached for his phone.
It was not his.
Maria looked toward the kitchen.
“My phone.”
She moved quickly.
Daniel followed.
Her phone was on the counter.
The screen showed an incoming call.
Unknown number.
Maria stared at it.
“Answer it.”
She looked at him.
“What?”
“You know who it is.”
“No.”
“Then why are you afraid?”
Her eyes narrowed.
“That is not fair.”
“No.”
Daniel looked at the phone.
“But it is true.”
Maria picked it up.
For several seconds she said nothing.
Then her face changed.
“Where are you?”
Daniel watched her carefully.
A pause.
“No, you can’t do that.”
Another pause.
Then Maria lowered her voice.
“You should have told him.”
Daniel felt his stomach tighten.
She looked at him.
The person on the other end said something.
Whatever it was made Maria close her eyes.
When she spoke again, her voice was barely audible.
“I know.”
She ended the call.
“Who was it?”
Maria placed the phone down.
“Evelyn.”
Daniel felt the room tilt.
“She’s alive?”
“Yes.”
“Where is she?”
Maria looked toward the front window.
“She wants to meet.”
“When?”
“Tonight.”
Daniel grabbed his keys.
Maria stopped him.
“She said not to come alone.”
He looked at her.
“With who?”
Maria hesitated.
Then she said the name that made the entire day feel like it had been built around one missing piece.
“Your sister.”
Daniel looked at Maria as if the name had changed the shape of the room.
“Rachel?”
Maria nodded once.
“She needs to be there.”
“Why?”
“I don’t know.”
The answer frustrated him immediately.
“You don’t know anything.”
The words came out harsher than he intended.
Maria accepted them without defending herself.
Maybe that was what bothered him most.
She was not trying to win.
She was not trying to make herself look innocent.
She was simply standing there with the weight of something she had carried alone for too long.
“She said your sister has to hear it from Evelyn,” Maria said.
Daniel looked at the phone.
“Why would Evelyn want Rachel there?”
Maria picked up her thermos from the counter and stared at the faded scratches on the side.
“I think because Rachel knows more than she has told you.”
The sentence settled between them.
Daniel immediately reached for his own phone.
He called his sister.
She answered after three rings.
“Daniel.”
The way she said his name told him she already knew why he was calling.
“You talked to Evelyn.”
Silence.
Not long.
Just long enough.
“Who told you that?”
“So you did.”
“Daniel.”
“Did you talk to her?”
Rachel exhaled.
“I was trying to protect you.”
He leaned against the counter.
“That sentence is getting old.”
“I know.”
“No, you don’t.”
“I do.”
Her voice changed.
The confidence disappeared.
“I know because I used the same excuse Dad used.”
Daniel looked toward Maria.
She was watching him carefully.
“What does that mean?”
Rachel did not answer immediately.
“Where are you?”
“At home.”
“Is Maria there?”
“Yes.”
Another pause.
“Then you found the bag.”
Daniel felt a cold feeling move through him.
“How did you know about the bag?”
“Because I saw it.”
“When?”
“Months ago.”
The answer made his grip tighten around the phone.
“Rachel.”
“I know.”
“No, you don’t get to say that.”
He walked away from Maria, though he did not know why.
Maybe because he wanted one person in the conversation who belonged to the life he understood.
“You knew about Evelyn.”
“Yes.”
“You knew about the watch.”
“Yes.”
“You knew about the flash drive.”
“No.”
The answer came quickly.
Daniel stopped.
“What?”
“I knew Dad had something hidden.”
“Then why didn’t you tell me?”
Rachel’s breathing became uneven.
“Because Dad asked me not to.”
Daniel closed his eyes.
Another person.
Another promise.
Another secret.
“Everyone keeps saying he asked them not to tell me.”
“Because he did.”
“Why?”
“Because he thought you would destroy everything trying to fix it.”
Daniel almost laughed.
It was the same accusation Maria had made without saying it.
“You both think I’m that reckless?”
“No.”
Rachel’s voice softened.
“We think you’re exactly like him.”
The words hurt more than he expected.
Daniel looked at the kitchen table.
The envelopes.
The photograph.
The empty space where the flash drive had been.
“What does that mean?”
“It means Dad spent his whole life believing he could carry every problem alone.”
She paused.
“And you learned from him.”
Daniel had no response.
Because he hated how true it sounded.
“When is the meeting?” he asked.
“Tonight.”
“Where?”
Rachel hesitated.
“An old motel outside town.”
May you like
“That sounds safe.”
“It’s where she wants to meet.”
