Chapter 8: What Happened the Night My Father Died
Thomas arrived twenty minutes later carrying a leather briefcase and wearing the expression of a man who had spent the drive preparing for the worst.
He listened as I explained the amended will, Ashley's parentage, and Daniel's attempt to claim the trust.
When I finished, he removed his glasses and rubbed the bridge of his nose.
"Michael, I need to be very careful about what I tell you.""
I leaned forward.
"Why?""
"Because I handled your father's estate, and some of the documents you found may be fraudulent. I cannot authenticate them without examining the originals.""
"Did my father leave a trust for Ashley?""
Thomas looked toward Rebecca.
Then he answered.
"No.""
Rebecca gasped.
Thomas opened his briefcase and removed a thin file.
"Your father established a confidential trust shortly before his death. But Ashley was not the beneficiary. Michael was.""
I stared at him.
"What?""
Thomas placed a certified copy of the original agreement on the table.
"The trust was intended to protect the construction company from Daniel's creditors. Your father transferred ownership of several properties into it. The assets were supposed to pass to you upon his death.""
I looked at the document.
There it was: my name, my father's signature, and the date.
"So Daniel forged the amendment?""
"That appears likely. But I can't say who assisted him.""
I turned toward Rebecca.
She was staring at the paper as though it had become a weapon.
"Arthur Mills prepared the trust," Thomas continued.
"He disappeared shortly after your father's death. We assumed he had moved overseas.""
"Was he involved with Daniel?""
Thomas hesitated.
"I believe he was.""
I remembered the photograph of Daniel and Rebecca outside the motel.
"What about my father's death?"" I asked.
"The note says I need to learn the truth about that night.""
Thomas closed the file.
"Your father called me at 8:40 p.m. the evening before he died. He told me he had discovered that Daniel was planning to transfer the company's properties. He wanted to amend his will and report the fraud.""
"Why didn't you tell me?""
"Because he asked me not to involve you until he had secured the evidence. He believed Daniel might retaliate against you.""
I felt anger rising in my chest.
"My father was trying to protect me, and I spent years believing Daniel had simply made terrible business decisions.""
Thomas nodded sadly.
"The next morning, I learned your father had been admitted to the hospital. By the time I arrived, he was unconscious.""
"Did you see Rebecca there?""
Thomas looked directly at my wife.
"Yes.""
Rebecca gripped the edge of the table.
I turned toward her.
"You were at the hospital?""
She nodded.
"Tell me what happened.""
She stared at the floor.
"Daniel called me that night. He said your father had discovered everything and was going to the police. He asked me to retrieve the documents from his study.""
"Did you?""
"Yes.""
"What did you take?""
"The original trust agreement. The letter your father wrote to you. And a small notebook containing Daniel's financial records.""
I felt sick.
"You stole evidence from a dying man?""
"I didn't know he was going to die!""
"Then what happened?""
Rebecca began speaking faster.
"When I arrived at the hospital the next morning, your father was already unconscious. Daniel told me he had suffered a medical emergency. He said if the police found the documents, they'd investigate everyone connected to the fraud.""
"And you believed him?""
"I was scared.""
"Of what?""
"Of losing Ashley. Of Daniel being arrested. Of being charged with helping him.""
Thomas leaned forward.
"Did Daniel tell you to alter the trust documents?""
Rebecca nodded.
"He said he needed a way to claim the properties before the company was dissolved. He gave me the amended will and told me to deliver it to Arthur.""
"Did you?""
"Yes.""
Thomas's expression hardened.
"That document was never filed with the probate court.""
Rebecca looked up sharply.
"What?""
"The will naming Ashley as beneficiary is not in the official record. If it was submitted anywhere, it was done privately.""
I felt the pieces shifting.
Daniel had created a fake inheritance to convince Ashley that I owed her money. He had used my wife's guilt to keep her silent. And he had stolen from me while pretending to be dead.
But one question remained.
"What happened to my father's notebook?""
Rebecca shook her head.
"Daniel kept it.""
Thomas looked at me.
"If that notebook still exists, it could establish the fraud. We need to preserve every document you found and contact the appropriate authorities.""
Before I could respond, the doorbell rang again.
Emily checked the security camera.
"It's a woman," she said.
"She says her name is Laura Mills.""
Thomas went pale.
"Arthur's daughter.""
I opened the door.
A woman in her early forties stood on the porch, holding a manila envelope. Her dark hair was pulled into a tight bun, and rain dotted the shoulders of her coat.
"Michael Carter?"" she asked.
"Yes.""
"My father told me to deliver this if Daniel ever returned.""
She handed me the envelope.
I opened it.
Inside was a photograph of my father sitting in a hospital bed, taken sometime during his final night. Beside him stood Rebecca, younger and visibly distressed.
On the back, someone had written a date and a single sentence.
*She was the last person he spoke to before he lost consciousness.*
I looked at Rebecca.
She shook her head.
"I didn't hurt him.""
Laura stepped inside.
"My father said the same thing. He believed Rebecca was trying to protect your brother, not kill your father.""
"Then why bring me this?""
Laura's eyes filled with tears.
"Because my father kept something else. A recording from the hospital's security system. He said it would prove who entered your father's room that night.""
Thomas stood abruptly.
"Where is it?""
Laura tightened her grip on her handbag.
"I don't have it.""
"Who does?""
She looked toward the window.
Then she whispered, "Daniel.""
My phone rang.
An unknown number.
I answered without speaking.
Daniel's voice came through, calm and almost amused.
"Did Laura bring you the photograph?""
I felt my blood run cold.
"How do you know about that?""
"Because Arthur was a coward, and cowards always leave insurance behind.""
"What do you want?""
"The notebook. The original trust agreement. And the flash drive from your father's box.""
"You'll get nothing.""
Daniel sighed.
"Then you should know that I have the hospital recording. And if you involve the police, I'll make sure the entire world hears what happened in that room.""
The line went dead.
I lowered the phone.
Rebecca was crying again.
But this time, she wasn't looking at me.
She was staring at the photograph of herself standing beside my father's hospital bed.
May you like
And she whispered something that made Thomas slowly sit back down.
"He was conscious when I left.""
