Chapter 7: The Attorney Who Buried My Mother's Truth
For several seconds, nobody moved.
My father stared at Robert as though he were looking at a complete stranger.
“You kept my wife hidden?””
Robert placed the photograph back on the table.
“Arthur, I had no choice.””
My father stepped toward him.
“You had twenty years of my trust. You handled my wife's estate. You handled my company.
You sat at our dinner table. And now you're telling me you helped imprison her?””
“I didn't imprison her.””
“Then explain that photograph!””
Robert loosened his tie.
“Catherine contacted me six years ago. She had discovered that Daniel was moving company money through several shell corporations. She wanted to report him.””
“Then why didn't she?””
“Because she discovered something worse.””
My stomach tightened.
“What?””
Robert looked at me.
“She discovered that Vanessa had been using your father's medical records to prepare documents declaring him mentally unfit to manage his business.””
My father shook his head.
“That's impossible.””
“It's all in the records.””
Robert opened his briefcase and removed another folder.
“Vanessa had arranged for a private psychiatrist to evaluate you. The intention was to obtain a medical declaration that would allow her to take temporary control of your assets.””
My father looked at the papers.
“And you helped her?””
“I helped Catherine.””
“By hiding her?””
Robert's expression hardened.
“Catherine was terrified. She believed Vanessa would have her killed if she exposed the forged adoption records and the financial fraud.””
Olivia moved closer.
“Then why didn't you tell us she was alive?””
Robert looked at her.
“Because Vanessa had people monitoring every communication connected to the Carter family. I couldn't risk revealing her location.””
“That's convenient,” I snapped.
“You could have contacted the police.””
“I tried.””
He removed another document.
“Six years ago, I submitted a confidential report to a financial crimes investigator. Two days later, my office was broken into. The original documents disappeared. The investigator was transferred, and Catherine received a threat.””
My father stared at him.
“So you simply gave up?””
“No. I moved her.””
“Where?””
Robert hesitated.
“First, a private clinic. Then a protected residential facility.””
I looked at the photograph again.
My mother was wearing a pale blue sweater. Her hair was shorter, and she looked tired.
But she was alive.
She had been alive while we buried an empty coffin.
I felt sick.
“Why didn't she call me?””
Robert's voice softened.
“She tried several times. Vanessa intercepted the calls.””
I shook my head.
“That's not possible.””
Robert opened the USB drive's accompanying paperwork.
“Your mother recorded several messages. I kept copies.””
He placed his laptop on the table.
After a moment, a video appeared.
My mother sat in a small room with a white wall behind her.
She looked older than I remembered.
But it was her.
Her brown eyes. Her smile. The tiny crease beside her left cheek.
I covered my mouth.
“Mom…”
The recording began.
“Emily, my darling girl.””
Her voice broke.
“If you're watching this, then I hope you've found Olivia. I hope you're both together.””
She looked down at her hands.
“I need you to know that I never stopped loving you. I never stopped trying to come home.””
A tear rolled down her cheek.
“Vanessa told me that Arthur had moved on. She told me he had married her and wanted nothing to do with me. She said you had grown up believing I was dead.””
My father began shaking his head.
“That's a lie, Catherine. I never stopped loving you.””
The recording continued.
“Then, one day, I learned something that changed everything. Vanessa wasn't simply trying to steal Arthur's company. She was trying to erase every legal claim that could stand in her way.””
My mother leaned closer to the camera.
“And there is one more person you need to be careful of.””
The video suddenly distorted.
Her face disappeared.
A second later, the screen went black.
Robert tried restarting the file.
Nothing.
“What happened?”” Olivia asked.
Robert examined the USB drive.
“The recording is damaged.””
My father slammed his palm against the table.
“Can you recover it?””
“Possibly.””
I looked at Robert.
“Who was the other person?””
He shook his head.
“I don't know.””
“Did you see the complete recording?””
“Yes.””
“Then tell us!””
Robert looked genuinely troubled.
“Your mother said the name was someone who had been part of your family for years.””
My father sat down.
His face had gone pale.
“Someone in my family?””
Before Robert could answer, a bank employee approached us.
“Mr. Carter?””
My father turned.
“Yes?””
“I'm sorry to interrupt, but there's an urgent message from the security office.””
“What message?””
The employee held out a tablet.
“Someone has accessed your private residence.””
I stared at the screen.
A security camera showed a woman entering our mansion through the rear kitchen door.
Vanessa.
She was carrying a black suitcase.
But she wasn't alone.
A second figure followed her.
A woman wearing a long gray coat.
The camera zoomed in.
My breath caught.
I recognized her.
She was the same woman standing beside my mother in the photograph from the storage unit.
Margaret Ellis.
My mother's closest friend.
The woman who had supposedly helped us find the truth.
My father stood abruptly.
“Why is Margaret in my house?””
Robert stared at the screen.
May you like
Then he whispered:
“Because she's the person who arranged Catherine's disappearance.””
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