Chapter 9: The Husband Who Had Been Watching Me
Caleb immediately closed the laptop.
"Don't move.""
I looked toward the glass entrance of the bank.
Marcus was standing outside.
He wasn't alone.
A tall man in a navy suit stood beside him, holding a phone and watching the building.
My husband had found us.
Again.
"How did he know we were here?"" I whispered.
Caleb picked up the documents.
"Someone has been tracking your movements.""
"Through my phone?""
"Possibly. We need to assume every device you own has been compromised.""
My hands began shaking.
"Was our entire marriage a lie?""
Caleb looked at me.
"I can't answer that. But the email suggests Marcus knew about your inheritance before your wedding.""
I stared through the glass.
Marcus suddenly looked up.
Our eyes met.
He smiled.
Not the warm smile I remembered from our early years.
It was cold.
Calculated.
Then he raised his phone and called me.
I answered.
"Why are you following me?""
His voice sounded almost amused.
"Following you? Sarah, I'm trying to save you.""
"From what?""
"From people who want to destroy this family.""
I looked at Caleb.
"Which family? Yours?""
Marcus sighed.
"Come outside. We need to talk.""
"No.""
"Sarah, please. Just five minutes.""
"You had eleven years.""
Silence.
Then his voice changed.
"Did you open the box?""
I froze.
He knew.
"What box?""
"Don't insult my intelligence.""
Caleb gestured for me to put the call on speaker.
Marcus continued.
"Whatever you found in there, give it to me.""
"Why?""
"Because it doesn't belong to you.""
I looked at the email on the table.
"Neither did my inheritance, apparently. Yet you spent eleven years trying to get it.""
His breathing became heavier.
"You have no idea what your father did.""
"Then tell me.""
"He destroyed people. He lied to everyone. He built his company by making enemies.""
"And you helped him?""
"I was trying to protect you.""
I laughed.
"By marrying me under false pretenses?""
Marcus went quiet.
Then he said something I wasn't prepared to hear.
"Sarah, I didn't know you were my sister when we got married.""
I stared at the phone.
"That's not what your email says.""
"What email?""
"The one you sent Daniel.""
There was a long silence.
Then Marcus whispered:
"Where did you find that?""
I ended the call.
Caleb looked at me.
"That's enough. We're leaving.""
We exited through the bank's underground parking garage.
Caleb had arranged another vehicle.
As we drove away, I watched the rearview mirror.
Marcus's car remained outside the main entrance.
He wasn't following us.
Not yet.
"Where are we going?"" I asked.
"To meet someone who can help recover Thomas's original recording.""
"Who?""
"Dr. Samuel Reed.""
I turned toward him.
"The doctor who examined my father?""
Caleb nodded.
"He treated Thomas during the final months of his life. He also signed the original toxicology request.""
"Is he alive?""
"Yes. He retired to a small town outside Macon.""
I looked down at the documents in my lap.
"What if he refuses to talk?""
"Then we'll show him the photograph.""
Caleb handed me a folded picture.
It showed Thomas in a hospital bed.
A younger doctor stood beside him.
On the back was a handwritten message.
Samuel, if anything happens to me, Sarah must know the truth.
We arrived at Dr. Reed's home shortly after noon.
A white mailbox stood beside a long driveway.
The house was modest, with a wide front porch and a carefully maintained garden.
An elderly man opened the door.
"Caleb Brooks?""
Caleb nodded.
"Doctor.""
Samuel Reed stared at him for several seconds.
Then his gaze shifted toward me.
His face changed.
"You're Margaret's daughter.""
I nodded.
"My name is Sarah.""
He stepped aside.
"Come in. I've been expecting this day.""
We sat in his study.
The walls were covered with medical books and framed photographs.
Dr. Reed poured three cups of coffee.
Then he placed his hands on the desk.
"Thomas didn't die of a heart attack.""
My stomach tightened.
"What happened?""
"Someone administered a substance that caused severe cardiac complications. It was initially difficult to detect.""
Caleb leaned forward.
"Did you identify it?""
"Yes. But before I could submit the final report, the hospital administration ordered me to stop.""
"Who ordered that?""
Dr. Reed looked at me.
"Your husband.""
I felt the blood leave my face.
"Marcus?""
He nodded.
"He came to my office the night Thomas was admitted. He told me the family wanted privacy.""
"What did he do?""
"He removed Thomas's medical file and instructed the nurses not to discuss the patient's condition.""
Caleb's jaw tightened.
"Did Marcus know his father was being poisoned?""
"I believe he suspected something. But I cannot prove he knew who was responsible.""
I stood.
"Why didn't you report him?""
Dr. Reed opened a drawer.
"Because someone threatened my daughter.""
He removed a photograph.
It showed a young woman leaving a university building.
On the back was a date and a handwritten warning.
Keep your mouth shut.
I sat down slowly.
"This family...""
Dr. Reed nodded.
"Thomas knew he was in danger. Before his disappearance, he gave me a sealed medical report and asked me to keep it safe.""
He opened a locked cabinet.
Inside was a brown envelope.
He handed it to Caleb.
Caleb carefully opened it.
There were laboratory results, medical notes, and a final toxicology analysis.
But the most important document was a handwritten statement from Thomas.
I know who has been poisoning me.
I leaned closer.
The next sentence had been underlined.
It isn't Evelyn.
Caleb looked up.
"Who is it?""
Dr. Reed turned the page.
A name appeared beneath Thomas's handwriting.
Daniel Carter.
I covered my mouth.
But then Dr. Reed pointed to a second paragraph.
"There's another name.""
I looked down.
The second name was written in a different pen.
Marcus Carter.
My husband.
Dr. Reed spoke quietly.
"Thomas believed Daniel supplied the substance. But he suspected Marcus was helping him cover up the medical evidence.""
I felt something inside me break.
"Why would Marcus do that?""
Dr. Reed hesitated.
Then he reached into the envelope and removed a final document.
It was a hospital visitor log.
The entry showed that Marcus had visited Thomas shortly before the cardiac emergency.
But beneath his signature was another name.
Evelyn Carter.
And beside her name was a handwritten note.
*PATIENT REQUESTED PRIVATE MEETING WITH SARAH'S MOTHER.*
I stared at the page.
"My mother was there?""
Dr. Reed nodded.
"Yes. Margaret visited Thomas that night.""
"Did she see what happened?""
He looked toward Caleb.
"She saw enough to understand that Thomas was in danger.""
I could barely speak.
"Where did she go afterward?""
Dr. Reed opened his mouth.
Before he could answer, his telephone rang.
He glanced at the screen.
Then his face turned pale.
"That's impossible.""
Caleb stood.
"Who is it?""
Dr. Reed slowly placed the phone on speaker.
A woman's voice filled the room.
"Samuel, I know Sarah is with you.""
My heart stopped.
It was a voice I recognized from childhood.
A voice I had spent eleven years believing I would never hear again.
"Sweetheart," the woman whispered.
"Please don't trust Caleb.""
I grabbed the edge of the desk.
"Mom?""
The woman began crying.
"Sarah, I need you to listen carefully. The man you've been calling your father isn't Thomas Carter.""
I stared at Caleb.
Then the woman delivered the final revelation.
May you like
"Your real father is still alive.""
And before anyone could ask another question, the line went dead.
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