Chapter 13: The Photograph
I turned the photograph over again.
My mother's handwriting was unmistakable.
*This was taken three days before I learned the truth about Emma's father.*
Then:
*Richard was not supposed to be in this photograph.*
I looked at Margaret.
“What does that mean?””
She crouched beside the box.
“Look at the background.””
I examined the picture.
It had been taken at my mother's house. I was maybe five years old, sitting on Daniel's shoulders. My mother stood beside us, smiling.
Richard stood several feet behind them.
But there was something strange.
His reflection appeared in the glass patio door.
He wasn't looking at the camera.
He was looking directly at my mother.
And in his hand was a phone.
Margaret zoomed in on the photograph.
“Someone was taking a picture of him.””
“Who?””
She shook her head.
“I don't know.””
I picked up the wooden box.
There was a false bottom.
I knew because one corner was slightly raised.
My fingers slipped underneath it.
The panel lifted.
Inside was a flash drive.
And a folded police report.
My hands started shaking before I even opened it.
The report was dated the night my mother died.
But unlike the report we'd found in the archives, this one contained an additional witness statement.
*Witness: Daniel Carter.*
I read it.
Then I read it again.
Daniel had told police that he arrived at the crash scene at 12:31 a.m.
He had seen a dark sedan parked fifty yards away.
He had also seen Richard standing beside my mother's car.
But there was one sentence that made my blood run cold.
*Mr. Carter stated that Richard appeared to be speaking to a woman before fleeing the scene.*
I looked at Margaret.
“Claire?””
“Maybe.””
I plugged the flash drive into Margaret's laptop.
There were dozens of files.
Bank statements.
Insurance records.
Emails.
Photographs.
And one video.
The filename was simple:
*FINAL_11_58PM*
I clicked it.
My mother appeared on the screen.
She was sitting in her car.
The timestamp read *11:58 p.m.*
Her face was pale.
She looked directly into the camera.
“If you're watching this, then I'm probably dead.””
I covered my mouth.
Margaret leaned closer.
My mother continued.
“Emma, I'm sorry.””
She took a breath.
“Your biological father is not Richard.””
I already knew.
But hearing my mother say it made my chest ache.
“His name is Daniel Carter.””
I froze.
“What?””
Margaret stared at the screen.
Daniel.
The man I had pushed out of my graduation photo.
The man I'd called my mother's husband.
The man who had spent ten years raising me.
My mother continued.
“I lied because I thought it was the only way to protect you.””
I couldn't breathe.
“Richard found out about Daniel. He threatened to expose him unless I gave him access to my inheritance.””
I looked at the photograph.
Richard had known.
All these years.
My mother hadn't hidden Daniel's identity because she was ashamed.
She had hidden it because Richard had threatened us.
The video continued.
“Daniel doesn't know the entire truth.””
My heart broke.
“He thinks Emma is his daughter because I never told him the paternity test came back positive.””
I stared at the screen.
Daniel was my biological father.
My real father.
The man I'd rejected was the man who had raised me.
My mother wiped tears from her face.
“Richard isn't working alone.””
The video suddenly glitched.
Then resumed.
“Claire helped him at first, but she discovered what he was planning.””
I leaned forward.
“What was he planning?””
My mother's voice became a whisper.
“He wants Emma to believe Daniel abandoned her.””
A car door slammed outside.
Margaret froze.
We looked toward the garage entrance.
A shadow moved across the driveway.
Then someone called my name.
“Emma.””
Richard.
He stepped into the garage.
His suit was torn at the shoulder.
His face was bruised.
He looked nothing like the confident man from graduation.
He looked desperate.
“Give me the flash drive.””
I stood.
“No.””
“Emma, you don't understand.””
“I know who my father is.””
Richard's face went blank.
I lifted the photograph.
“Daniel.””
Richard stared at it.
Then he whispered, “Your mother should never have told you.””
Margaret moved between us.
“You're under investigation.””
Richard laughed bitterly.
“You think this ends with me?””
“What does that mean?”” I asked.
He looked directly at me.
“I didn't take your money.””
I stared at him.
“You transferred it to yourself.””
“Yes.””
“But I didn't keep it.””
My stomach dropped.
“Where is it?””
Richard slowly reached into his pocket.
He pulled out his phone.
Then he showed me a transaction.
Every dollar I'd thought he'd stolen had been transferred again.
To another account.
An account belonging to *Daniel Carter*.
My blood went cold.
May you like
Richard smiled.
“You should ask your real father where your money went.””
