Chapter 10: The Passenger Nobody Remembered
"That's impossible.""
My father's voice barely came out.
Agent Brooks placed his phone on the table.
"We recovered additional medical records from the night of the accident. The original police report listed two occupants. However, a paramedic's handwritten statement mentioned a third person.""
I stared at him.
"My mother?""
Brooks nodded.
"According to the statement, a woman was removed from the passenger side of the vehicle before emergency services arrived.""
Richard shook his head violently.
"That's not true. Your mother wasn't in the car.""
"Then explain why her blood was found on the passenger-side airbag," Brooks replied.
My father lowered his head.
Emma approached him.
"Richard, tell us what happened.""
He looked at her.
For several seconds, he seemed unable to recognize the woman standing in front of him.
Then he spoke.
"Your mother called me that night. She said she had discovered where Thomas was hiding.""
"Where?"" I asked.
"At an old property outside Manhattan. She wanted me to meet her there.""
"Why did I get involved?""
"Because she insisted you come.""
I frowned.
"Why?""
"She said she had found something in the company records that concerned you.""
I remembered the night of the crash.
Rain against the windshield.
The smell of leather.
A sharp metallic sound.
Then nothing.
My father continued.
"On the way there, another vehicle followed us. I recognized it as one of Thomas's cars.""
"What happened?""
"Your mother told me to keep driving. She said we couldn't let them reach the documents.""
"Then?""
Richard rubbed his eyes.
"There was a loud noise. The steering wheel jerked. You lost control.""
"Who was driving?""
"I was.""
My stomach tightened.
"You were driving my car?""
He nodded.
"Why did the police say I was alone?""
Richard looked toward Agent Brooks.
"Because Thomas had people inside the department. By the time the ambulance arrived, your mother was gone.""
"Where?""
"I don't know.""
I grabbed his jacket.
"Don't tell me you don't know!""
He didn't resist.
"I went back to the road after the crash. Your mother was no longer there. Someone had taken her.""
Emma covered her mouth.
"She was alive?""
Richard nodded slowly.
"She was breathing when I last saw her.""
My heart pounded.
"Then why did you tell us she died?""
"Because Thomas sent me a photograph two days later. It showed your mother's body in a hospital morgue.""
Emma began crying.
"Did you see her?""
Richard shook his head.
"No.""
"Then how could you believe it?""
"Because Thomas threatened to kill you if I continued investigating.""
I released his jacket.
"You let me spend seven months believing I had lost everything. You let Emma believe her entire family was gone. And you never told us there might have been another possibility?""
Richard's face crumpled.
"I thought I was protecting you.""
I stepped away.
"That's what everyone says when they want forgiveness without admitting what they've done.""
Agent Brooks interrupted.
"There's something else.""
He opened a secure folder on his tablet.
"Three days ago, we received a photograph from an anonymous source. It was taken inside a private medical facility in New Jersey.""
He turned the screen toward us.
I stopped breathing.
A woman lay in a hospital bed.
Her hair was silver now. Her face was thinner, and there were tubes attached to her arms.
But I recognized her immediately.
My mother.
Emma let out a small cry.
"Mom...""
I touched the screen.
"Is she alive?""
Brooks nodded.
"We believe so.""
"Where is this facility?""
"We're trying to identify it.""
I looked at the photograph again.
Something caught my attention.
A framed picture sat on the bedside table.
It showed three babies.
The same photograph Eleanor had given us.
But there was another detail.
A small handwritten note beneath the frame.
The children are coming home.
I turned toward Eleanor.
"Who sent this?""
She looked frightened.
"I don't know.""
My phone rang.
An unfamiliar number.
I answered immediately.
"Hello?""
A woman's voice whispered.
"Adrian?""
My knees nearly buckled.
"Mom?""
There was a faint sound of breathing.
Then the voice spoke again.
"My baby...""
Emma rushed toward me.
"Put it on speaker!""
I did.
My mother began crying.
"I don't have much time.""
"Where are you? Are you safe?""
"Don't trust Richard.""
My father closed his eyes.
"Margaret," he whispered.
My mother's voice trembled.
"Thomas knows you're looking for me. He knows about the girls. And he knows Adrian can walk.""
I froze.
"How do you know?""
"Because Victor told him.""
My mother's breathing became uneven.
"Adrian, listen carefully. The person who arranged your accident wasn't Thomas.""
I gripped the phone.
"Then who?""
There was a long silence.
Finally, she whispered a name.
"Someone you have been calling family since childhood.""
The call disconnected.
I stared at the screen.
Then Agent Brooks's phone rang.
He answered, listened, and immediately stood.
"Everyone stay here.""
"What happened?"" I demanded.
He looked at me.
"The medical facility in New Jersey has just reported a security breach.""
My mother's photograph disappeared from his tablet.
May you like
And a final message arrived on my phone.
*SHE WAS NEVER YOUR PRISONER, ADRIAN. SHE WAS OUR PARTNER.*
