Chapter 10: The Last Person Who Saw Daniel Alive
“I was there that night, Evelyn.””
Natalie's words hung between us as my brother stood beside the table, watching us with an expression that was almost too calm.
I pulled my arm away from her.
“You saw Daniel the night he died?””
Natalie nodded, tears gathering in her eyes.
“He called me at ten fifteen. He said he'd found something in the original hospital records and needed to see me immediately. I drove to the hospital where he'd been admitted for observation.””
“What hospital?””
“St. Catherine's. The same one where I was born.””
I stared at her.
“Why didn't you tell me this before?””
“Because I didn't know whether you'd believe me. And because Richard threatened to have me arrested if I ever spoke about that night.””
Richard adjusted his cufflinks.
“She was confused. Daniel was seriously ill, and she was emotionally unstable. Nothing she says about that evening can be trusted.””
Natalie turned toward him.
“You told me he was already dead when I arrived.””
“Because he was.””
“No!”” Her palm struck the table.
“I saw him breathing. I spoke to him. He gave me the notebook!””
Every conversation in the café stopped.
Richard leaned toward her.
“Be careful, Natalie.””
She flinched, and that tiny movement told me more than his words could have.
For years, he had controlled her with fear.
I stood between them.
“Don't you dare threaten my daughter.””
Richard's expression hardened.
“Your daughter? You didn't even know she existed until two days ago.””
The cruelty of the remark struck its target. Natalie lowered her eyes.
But I didn't retreat.
“I may have lost forty years with her, but I won't lose another minute because you're determined to keep us apart.””
Richard took the death certificate from the table.
“Then you'll want to know the truth. Daniel was investigating the company, and Natalie was involved in his final discovery. If you protect her without understanding what happened, you may be protecting the person who killed him.””
He walked toward the door.
Before leaving, he turned back.
“Come to my house tonight, Evelyn. I'll show you the original toxicology report. Then you can decide which one of your children is lying.””
The door closed behind him.
Natalie remained motionless.
I sat beside her.
“Tell me what happened at the hospital.””
She swallowed and opened her notebook.
“When I arrived, Daniel was sitting up in bed. He looked exhausted, but he was alert. He told me that he'd discovered the original birth records and that someone had altered them to hide my identity.””
“Did he tell you who?””
“He said he had proof that Richard was responsible. But he also said Richard hadn't acted alone.””
“Who else?””
“Someone who had access to the hospital's records and the company's financial accounts.””
“Harold?””
“I asked him that. Daniel said Harold had made a terrible mistake, but he wasn't the person who had planned everything.””
I remembered Harold's frightened expression when he showed us the hospital documents.
“What happened next?””
Natalie stared at the table.
“Daniel handed me the notebook. Then he asked me to bring him a bottle of water from the nurses' station. When I returned, a woman was standing beside his bed.””
“Who?””
“I couldn't see her face clearly. She wore a surgical mask and a nurse's uniform. Daniel looked frightened when he saw her.””
“What did she do?””
“She checked his IV, adjusted the monitor, and told me I should leave because he needed rest.””
Natalie's fingers tightened around the notebook.
“I argued. Daniel told me to go. He said he'd call me in the morning.””
“And you left?””
She nodded, crying now.
“I thought he was trying to protect me. I didn't know it would be the last time I saw him alive.””
I took her hand.
“You couldn't have known.””
“I should have stayed.””
“No. The person responsible is the one who hurt him. Not you.””
She looked at me, and for the first time, I saw a flicker of trust.
Then she opened the notebook to a page I hadn't seen before.
A series of names appeared beside a list of hospital room numbers.
One name was circled in red.
*DR. ELAINE MERCER — ROOM 214.*
Beneath it was a second name.
*CLAIRE BENNETT.*
I frowned.
“Who is Claire Bennett?””
Natalie shook her head.
“I don't know. Daniel wrote that name on the final page.””
I called Harold immediately.
He answered on the first ring.
“Evelyn, where are you?””
“At the café with Natalie. Richard just told us Daniel was poisoned.””
Silence.
Then Harold said, “You need to leave that café. Now.””
“Why?””
“Because Richard has already filed a motion to seize the company records. If he obtains the original files, he'll destroy the evidence connecting him to the hospital.””
“Who is Claire Bennett?””
Another silence.
“Harold?””
“Claire was my wife.””
I froze.
“You were married?””
“Thirty years ago. She worked as a nurse at St. Catherine's before we divorced. She disappeared from my life shortly before Daniel discovered the fraud.””
My stomach tightened.
“Was she the woman Natalie saw beside Daniel's bed?””
“I don't know.””
“Did she have access to his medication?””
“Yes.””
I closed my eyes.
Harold's voice broke.
“Evelyn, Claire died two years ago.””
“Then how could she have poisoned Daniel?””
“I don't know. But before she died, she sent me a letter claiming someone had used her hospital credentials to access Daniel's medical file.””
“Who?””
“She never named the person. She said she was afraid.””
I looked at Natalie.
She had gone pale again.
“Harold,” I said, “we're coming to your office.””
“No. I need you to meet me somewhere else. There's a storage facility on Dale Mabry Highway.
Daniel rented a unit under a false name. I found the contract this morning.””
“Is that the storage unit Natalie has the key to?””
“Possibly. What name is on the contract?””
I checked the key's small metal tag.
A number had been stamped into it.
*214.*
Harold exhaled.
“Then that's the place. Meet me there in thirty minutes.””
The call ended.
Natalie rose.
“We need to go.””
As we stepped outside, I noticed a woman standing across the street, wearing sunglasses and a cream-colored coat.
She was watching us.
When our eyes met, she turned and hurried toward a parked car.
I caught a glimpse of her left hand as she opened the door.
A thin scar crossed her thumb.
I stopped breathing.
The same scar Patricia had described on the woman who collected Grace from the hospital.
The car pulled away before I could reach it.
Natalie grabbed my arm.
“Mom, what's wrong?””
I stared after the disappearing vehicle.
“That woman may know where Grace is.””
I called Marcus and told him to meet us at the storage facility.
Then I looked at Natalie.
“Whatever happened to Daniel, whatever Richard has done, we're going to find the truth.””
She nodded, gripping the notebook against her chest.
But neither of us noticed the small black device attached beneath the café table.
May you like
A microphone.
And before we reached the end of the street, someone had already sent a recording of our conversation to Richard.
