Chapter 9: The Son Nobody Told Me About
I stared at the photograph.
Dad looked younger, perhaps twenty-five. His hair was thicker, his face thinner, and his smile was almost unrecognizable.
The woman beside him held a newborn wrapped in a blue blanket.
She was beautiful.
And she looked nothing like my mother.
“Who is Lauren?”” I asked again.
Dad placed the photograph on the desk.
“She was my girlfriend before I met your mother.””
“And Daniel?””
“My son.””
The words landed heavily.
I sat opposite him.
“You have a brother?””
“Yes.””
“Where is he?””
Dad looked at the photograph.
“I don't know.””
I waited.
He took a long breath.
“Lauren and I were young. I was twenty-three. I had just started working for a construction company, and she was studying nursing.””
“What happened?””
“She became pregnant. I wanted to marry her.””
“But?””
“She left.””
“Why?””
Dad rubbed his hands together.
“She said she didn't want me involved. She told me she was moving away with her family.””
“Did you try to find them?””
“Yes. For years.””
“And you never told Mom?””
“I told your mother everything before we got married.””
“Did Mom know about Daniel?””
He nodded.
“She knew I had a son. She even tried to help me find him.””
I looked at the photograph again.
“Then why did you say you didn't have a son?””
“Because I never got to raise him. I never even knew whether he was still alive.””
I swallowed.
“Did Mom ever meet Lauren?””
Dad hesitated.
“Yes.””
“When?””
“About six months before she died.””
My stomach tightened.
“Why?””
“She received a letter from Lauren.””
“What did it say?””
“That Daniel wanted to meet me.””
I stared at him.
“And did you?””
Dad shook his head.
“I was out of the country when the letter arrived. Your mother arranged a meeting, but it never happened.””
“Why not?””
“Lauren canceled.””
I stood and walked toward the window.
Everything was becoming connected.
Vanessa.
My mother's financial accounts.
The hospital.
A son Dad had never raised.
A woman named Lauren.
“Do you think Daniel was the person Rebecca saw?””
Dad looked down.
“I don't know.””
“Could Vanessa have known him?””
“Possibly.””
“Could he have been involved in the money transfers?””
Dad didn't answer.
I turned.
“Dad, somebody is sending me messages about Mom. Someone knew about the blue box. Someone knows about the hospital records. How much of this family have you kept hidden?””
He looked devastated.
“More than I should have.””
I shook my head.
“That's not an answer.””
“No. It isn't.””
He opened an old filing cabinet and began searching through folders.
After several minutes, he pulled out a yellow envelope.
“Your mother kept this.””
He handed it to me.
Inside was a letter addressed to Dad.
The handwriting was unfamiliar.
Marcus,
I know Eleanor told you I wanted to meet. I still do. But someone contacted me and warned me that coming near your family would put Daniel in danger.
I don't know who is behind it.
I only know that the woman who called me knew things about your finances that nobody outside your household should know.
Please be careful.
Lauren.
The letter was dated four months before my mother died.
I looked at Dad.
“Did you ever receive this?””
“No. I've never seen it.””
“Then how did Mom get it?””
He turned the envelope over.
There was a stamp from a law office.
Whitmore and Associates.
The same firm that had handled Mom's trust.
Dad took out his phone.
“We need to call the attorney.””
Before he could dial, the doorbell rang.
We looked at each other.
Dad walked to the entrance.
I followed him.
A young man stood on the porch.
He was tall, with dark hair, a neatly trimmed beard, and a black jacket.
He looked about thirty.
His eyes were familiar.
Too familiar.
He glanced at Dad.
“Marcus Bennett?””
Dad nodded.
“Who are you?””
The young man looked at me.
Then back at him.
“My name is Daniel.””
Dad's hand tightened around the door.
For several seconds, he couldn't speak.
Finally, he stepped aside.
“Come in.””
Daniel entered slowly.
He looked around the mansion.
“It's strange being here.””
Dad stared at him.
“You know this house?””
Daniel nodded.
“I've seen pictures.””
He placed a leather folder on the table.
“I'm not here for money.””
Dad looked at him carefully.
“Then why are you here?””
Daniel glanced at me.
“Because I think somebody is trying to frame you for what happened to Eleanor.””
I felt my stomach tighten.
“What do you know about my mother?””
Daniel opened the folder.
Inside were bank statements, photocopies of company registrations, and several emails.
“I've been investigating Bennett Strategic Ventures.””
Dad leaned forward.
“Why?””
“Because someone used my identity to open a business account.””
He placed a document on the table.
The registered director was Daniel Bennett.
I looked at him.
“Did you open this company?””
“No.””
“Then who did?””
He pointed to the authorization page.
“Vanessa.””
Dad picked up the document.
“She registered a company in your name?””
“Yes. She used my old identification records. I didn't even know it existed until a bank contacted me about an unpaid business loan.””
I stared at the paperwork.
“Is this the company that received Mom's inheritance?””
Daniel nodded.
“Some of it.””
Dad looked at him.
“How much?””
“Based on the records I recovered, approximately three hundred thousand dollars.””
My stomach turned.
“Where did it go?””
Daniel opened another page.
“Some was transferred to Caleb. Some went to an account in Vanessa's name. But a large amount went somewhere else.””
“Where?””
He turned the page.
A property company appeared.
The registered owner was listed as Lauren Bennett.
Dad froze.
“Your mother?””
Daniel shook his head.
“No. My mother.””
I looked at the name.
“Why would Vanessa send money to Lauren?””
Daniel leaned back.
“Because Vanessa told my mother she could get us both a share of your family's estate.””
Dad stood.
“What?””
Daniel nodded.
“She approached Lauren two years ago. She said you were going to change your will and leave everything to Maya. She offered my mother money if she helped establish a claim against your estate.””
Dad's voice became cold.
“Did Lauren agree?””
Daniel shook his head.
“She refused. Then Vanessa threatened her.””
I looked at Daniel.
“Why didn't you go to the police?””
“I tried. But I didn't have enough evidence.””
He opened the final folder.
Inside was a photograph of Vanessa meeting someone outside a restaurant.
The man standing beside her wore a dark coat.
I recognized him immediately.
Dr. Collins.
Dad stared at the photograph.
“When was this taken?””
“Six months ago.””
I looked at Daniel.
“Why were they meeting?””
He placed another photograph on the table.
This one showed Vanessa handing Dr. Collins a thick envelope.
Daniel spoke quietly.
“I believe Vanessa paid him to keep quiet about the original hospital records.””
Dad's face hardened.
“Do you have proof?””
“Not yet.””
Then Daniel pulled out a final document.
A bank transfer receipt.
The amount was $75,000.
The recipient was Dr. Richard Collins.
The date was two weeks after my mother's death.
Dad sat down slowly.
I felt sick.
“Is Dr. Collins involved in what happened to Mom?””
Daniel shook his head.
“I don't know. But there's something else you should see.””
He opened his phone.
A photograph appeared.
It showed Vanessa sitting in a hospital corridor beside a man wearing a baseball cap.
The timestamp was from the night my mother died.
Daniel enlarged the image.
The man's face became clearer.
Dad stood abruptly.
“That's impossible.””
I looked at him.
“Who is it?””
He pointed at the screen.
“That's Caleb.””
I frowned.
“Caleb was only eight when Mom died.””
Daniel shook his head.
“No. Look at the date again.””
I leaned closer.
The photograph was taken last year.
Not the night my mother died.
The man beside Vanessa was much older.
He was wearing the same gold chain Caleb always wore.
But he wasn't Caleb.
His face was almost identical.
Same jaw.
Same eyes.
Same crooked smile.
Daniel looked at Dad.
“There's another person you need to know about.””
He took a breath.
“His name is Michael. He's Vanessa's older son.””
I stared.
“Vanessa has another son?””
Daniel nodded.
“And he's the person who has been moving the money.””
Dad looked toward the front door.
“Where is he?””
Daniel's expression darkened.
“That's the problem.””
He slid one final photograph across the table.
It showed Michael standing beside Vanessa outside the bank.
In his hand was a folder bearing my mother's name.
On the back of the photograph was a handwritten message.
*The final transfer is scheduled for tomorrow.*
Dad immediately grabbed his phone.
“I'm calling the bank.””
Daniel stopped him.
“There's no point.””
“Why?””
Daniel looked directly at me.
“Because the money isn't being transferred out of the trust anymore.””
He pointed to the last line of the document.
The destination account belonged to a company that had been registered in my name.
Without my knowledge.
And according to the transfer instructions, I had personally authorized the transaction.
The amount?
<text weight="semibold" tabularNums> $62,400.</text>
Every dollar that remained of my mother's inheritance.
I stared at the document.
Then my phone rang.
A notification appeared.
*Your account has been successfully verified.*
Beneath it was a second message.
*Your transfer will be completed within 24 hours.*
I looked at Dad.
“Someone has stolen my identity.””
Daniel slowly nodded.
May you like
Then he said:
“And whoever did it has access to your original signature.””
