Chapter 9: What Nia Carried
Nia stared at the nurse.
“Gave it to me?””
“You were a baby.””
“That doesn't make sense.””
The nurse shook her head.
“Not directly.””
Angela's face changed.
“Wait.””
She looked at Nia.
“When they took you from me, I had a small envelope.””
David nodded.
“I remember.””
Angela touched her forehead.
“I put it inside her blanket.””
Nia's eyes widened.
“What was inside?””
“The original trust agreement.””
The attorney immediately stepped closer.
“Where was the blanket?””
Angela looked at Vanessa.
Vanessa's lips parted.
“You kept it.””
Nia stared.
“You kept my baby blanket?””
Vanessa nodded.
“I kept everything.””
“Where is it?””
Vanessa looked toward the folding chairs.
“In storage.””
“Where?””
“At home.””
The attorney checked her watch.
“Can you access it?””
Vanessa hesitated.
“Yes.””
Marcus stepped forward.
“Then call someone.””
Vanessa looked at him.
“It's locked.””
“Who has the key?””
Vanessa said nothing.
Nia understood.
“Thomas.””
Vanessa nodded.
David suddenly stood.
“We're going.””
Angela grabbed his arm.
“No.””
He looked at her.
“I need to fix this.””
“You've been fixing it for eighteen years.””
“I can fix it now.””
Nia stepped between them.
“No.””
They both looked at her.
Nia held the photograph against her chest.
“We finish this here.””
The attorney nodded.
“Then we need one thing.””
“What?””
“The original agreement.””
Nia looked at Vanessa.
“Call Thomas.””
Vanessa shook her head.
“He'll know.””
“Good.””
Vanessa took out her phone.
Her fingers trembled as she dialed.
Thomas answered.
“You're wasting your time.””
Vanessa put him on speaker.
Nia spoke.
“Where is my blanket?””
Silence.
Then:
“You still have it?””
Vanessa swallowed.
“Yes.””
Thomas's voice changed.
“Don't touch it.””
Nia's eyes narrowed.
“Why?””
“Because some things are better left alone.””
“You've been saying that all night.””
Thomas laughed quietly.
“You really are your mother's daughter.””
Angela stepped closer.
“Tell me why you wanted the agreement.””
Thomas sighed.
“Because your father was going to expose me.””
David said, “You stole from the company.””
“I borrowed.””
“You forged checks.””
“I protected the family.””
Nia interrupted.
“Enough.””
Everyone fell silent.
She looked at the phone.
“You took seven million dollars?””
Thomas answered calmly.
“No.””
“Then who did?””
A pause.
“Your father.””
David looked shocked.
Nia turned toward him.
Thomas continued.
“He withdrew the money the week before he gave you away.””
Angela looked at David.
“Is that true?””
David's voice was barely audible.
“Yes.””
Nia stared.
“Why?””
“To hire an attorney.””
“What attorney?””
David shook his head.
“She failed.””
Angela's eyes widened.
“You never hired one.””
“I did.””
“Who?””
David didn't answer.
Thomas laughed.
“You're still lying.””
Nia's patience broke.
“Tell me!””
David looked at her.
“I hired someone to find a way to get you back.””
“And?””
“They took the money.””
The attorney frowned.
“Do you have proof?””
David nodded.
“The payment record is in the original file.””
Thomas interrupted.
“And that's why you can't have it.””
Nia's eyes narrowed.
“Why?””
“Because it proves your father wasn't the only one who paid.””
The attorney stepped closer to the phone.
“Who else?””
Thomas didn't answer.
Nia whispered, “Who?””
Thomas finally spoke.
“Your mother.””
Angela froze.
“I never paid anyone.””
“You did.””
“No.””
“You sold something.””
Angela's face went blank.
David whispered, “Angela…”
“What?””
“You sold your mother's house.””
Angela stared at him.
“I sold it because I had no choice.””
Thomas's voice came through.
“You sold it to me.””
Nia looked at Angela.
“You knew him?””
Angela shook her head.
“I didn't know who he was.””
Thomas laughed.
“You signed the deed.””
The attorney's eyes widened.
“That's impossible.””
Thomas said, “Not impossible.””
He paused.
“Convenient.””
Nia felt dizzy.
“So you all knew each other.””
“No,” Angela said.
“I swear.””
Nia backed away.
The room seemed to tilt.
Then Marcus noticed something on Nia's graduation dress.
A tiny silver thread.
He reached toward it.
“What's that?””
Nia looked down.
It was attached near the inside seam.
A small fabric pocket.
She had never noticed it.
Marcus carefully pulled it open.
Something slid into his palm.
A tiny brass key.
Vanessa's face went white.
“No.””
Nia stared at her.
“What?””
Vanessa backed away.
“That key doesn't belong to you.””
Nia closed her fingers around it.
“Where did it come from?””
Vanessa shook her head.
“I don't know.””
The nurse stepped closer.
“I do.””
Everyone turned.
The nurse looked at Nia.
“I sewed that pocket into your blanket the night you were born.””
Angela's eyes widened.
“But the blanket…”
The nurse nodded.
“The envelope wasn't the only thing hidden.””
Nia stared at the key.
“What does it open?””
The nurse's expression became grave.
“A safety deposit box.””
David whispered, “Which bank?””
The nurse looked at Angela.
“You chose it.””
Angela's face drained of color.
“I don't remember.””
The nurse answered softly.
“You don't remember because you were sedated.””
Nia looked at the key again.
Then the attorney's phone buzzed.
A new message.
This time, there was no number.
Only a photograph.
It showed the inside of a safety deposit box.
Inside was the original trust agreement.
And beside it sat a second envelope marked:
*NIA — OPEN ONLY ON HER 18TH BIRTHDAY.*
Nia's hands began to shake.
The ceremony outside was nearly over.
The attorney stared at the photograph.
“Her eighteenth birthday is today.””
Nia looked at the envelope.
Then at Angela.
Then at David.
And finally at Vanessa.
Vanessa whispered:
“Don't open it.””
Nia slowly turned the brass key in her palm.
“Why?””
Vanessa's eyes filled with terror.
“Because the person who wrote that letter…”
She stopped.
Nia stepped closer.
“Who?””
Vanessa looked directly at David.
May you like
“The person who wrote it isn't dead.””
David's face went completely white.
