Chapter 5: The Girl in My Mother's Photograph
I stared at my phone.
"Lily?""
"Yes.""
"How did you get my number?""
"Your father's lawyer gave it to me.""
I glanced at Robert.
He immediately shook his head, as if warning me not to say too much.
"Why are you looking for me?"" I asked.
Lily hesitated.
"Because your mother left something with me before she died.""
"What?""
"Something Vanessa has been trying to find.""
My fingers tightened around the phone.
"Where are you?""
"At a coffee shop near the old courthouse. But I don't think it's safe to meet there.""
"Why?""
"Because I saw Detective Collins outside my apartment this morning.""
Robert stood abruptly.
"Tell her to stay where she is," he whispered.
I repeated the words.
Lily went silent.
Then she said, "Ethan, I have to tell you something. Vanessa knows about your release.""
"I know.""
"No. You don't understand. She knows about the storage unit, too.""
My stomach dropped.
"How?""
"Because she asked me about it yesterday.""
Robert leaned closer to the phone.
"Ask her whether she has the original documents.""
I repeated his question.
Lily's breathing became uneven.
"Yes. I have something. But I can't explain over the phone.""
"Where can we meet?""
She gave me an address.
Then she added one final warning.
"Don't bring Robert.""
The call ended.
I looked at Robert.
He was staring at the table.
"Why doesn't she trust you?""
"I have no idea.""
"She said Vanessa knows about the storage unit.""
Robert rubbed his forehead.
"Then we need to move quickly.""
I folded the photograph and placed it inside my jacket.
"She told me not to bring you.""
He nodded slowly.
"Then you should go alone.""
I studied his face.
"Do you know something about Lily?""
Robert didn't answer immediately.
Finally, he said, "Your father once told me that the worst thing he ever did was keep a secret from his son.""
"What secret?""
"I think Lily can answer that better than I can.""
The address led me to a small apartment building near downtown Atlanta.
I parked two streets away and walked the remaining distance.
A young woman stood beneath the entrance awning.
She wore a dark green coat and held a brown leather handbag against her chest.
When she saw me, she froze.
"Ethan?""
"Yes.""
She looked at my face for a long moment.
Then her eyes filled with tears.
"You look just like him.""
"Like my father?""
She nodded.
I stepped closer.
"You're Lily?""
"Yes.""
We stood awkwardly for several seconds.
Then she reached into her handbag and removed an old photograph.
It showed my mother holding a newborn baby.
Beside her stood my father.
He was smiling.
I looked at the baby.
"Is that you?""
Lily nodded.
"Your mother named me Lily.""
I stared at the photograph.
"But you said you were my mother's daughter.""
"I am.""
"Then why didn't I know about you?""
She lowered her eyes.
"Because your mother gave me up for adoption when she was nineteen.""
I felt the ground shift beneath me.
"Before she met my father?""
"Yes. She was young. She didn't have much money, and my biological father refused to acknowledge me.""
"Then why is my father in this picture?""
Lily looked at me.
"Because William Walker adopted me.""
I couldn't speak.
She continued.
"He raised me for four years. He used to visit me every weekend. Then your mother and he had you, and they decided I would have a better life with my adoptive parents.""
I swallowed.
"Did my mother ever tell me about you?""
"No. She wanted to, but she was afraid it would upset your family.""
"Did Dad know?""
"Of course. He never stopped caring about me.""
I looked at her again.
There was something familiar about her eyes.
Something I had seen in old family photographs.
"Why didn't Dad tell me?""
Lily's expression changed.
"Because your mother asked him to protect you from the truth until you were old enough.""
I sat on the low brick wall beside the entrance.
"Apparently, everyone in my family had secrets.""
Lily sat beside me.
"Your mother didn't want secrets. She wanted to keep us safe.""
She opened her handbag and removed a small silver locket.
I recognized it immediately.
My mother had worn one just like it in every photograph I remembered.
"She gave me this before she died," Lily said.
Inside was a tiny picture of my mother holding two babies.
One was me.
The other was Lily.
On the back, my mother had written:
Two children. One family. No matter what happens, never let them turn you against each other.
My eyes burned.
I had spent years believing I was alone.
And all that time, I had a sister.
"Why did you say Vanessa was looking for you?""
Lily closed the locket.
"Because I found something in my adoptive parents' belongings after they passed away.""
She removed a folded document.
It was a bank statement.
The account holder was listed as a company I recognized.
Walker Construction Holdings.
The transaction date was twenty years earlier.
The amount was $75,000.
I looked up.
"What is this?""
"Your mother discovered that Vanessa had been moving money out of the company before she married your father.""
"Seventy-five thousand?""
"That was only one transfer.""
Lily unfolded another page.
It contained a handwritten note.
Payment to H. Whitmore — $15,000.
I stared at the name.
Judge Whitmore.
The same man who had sentenced me.
Lily nodded.
"Your mother kept copies of everything. She gave the original records to my adoptive father because she feared Vanessa would search the house.""
"Where are they now?""
"At the storage facility.""
I stood.
"Storage 214?""
Lily's face went pale.
"How do you know that number?""
"My father gave me the key.""
She grabbed my arm.
"Then we have to go now.""
"Why?""
"Because I saw Vanessa there yesterday.""
I felt my stomach tighten.
"What was she doing?""
"She was talking to a locksmith.""
Before I could respond, a black SUV pulled into the parking lot.
Lily looked over my shoulder.
Her face drained of color.
"That's Collins.""
The driver's door opened.
Detective Collins stepped out.
He wasn't alone.
A second man emerged from the passenger side.
Judge Whitmore.
Collins adjusted his jacket and looked directly at us.
"Well, well. The Walker children reunited.""
Lily grabbed my hand.
"Run!""
We sprinted toward the rear entrance.
Behind us, Collins shouted.
"Stop them!""
I pushed Lily through the door and slammed it shut.
We raced down the hallway, reached the rear stairs, and burst into the alley.
But there was already a car waiting.
A black sedan.
The passenger window rolled down.
Vanessa sat inside.
She looked at me and smiled.
Then she held up a small silver object.
My father's wedding ring.
"Hello, Ethan," she said through the open window.
"Did you really think you could find your mother's secrets without me knowing?""
She opened her handbag.
Inside was a folded document.
My mother's original trust agreement.
And beneath it, I saw a photograph of Lily as a little girl.
Vanessa leaned closer to the window.
"There's something your sister hasn't told you.""
May you like
Then she looked directly at Lily.
"Ask her why your mother was driving that night.""
