Chapter 5: Uncle Daniel's Offer
I read the message three times.
Daniel knew about the key.
That meant he'd been watching me.
Or Nicole had told him.
I immediately showed Dad.
He pulled the car into a gas station parking lot and read the messages.
His jaw tightened.
"He's not meeting you anywhere.""
"I wasn't planning to.""
Dad called Daniel.
It went straight to voicemail.
He tried again.
Nothing.
Ethan leaned forward from the back seat.
"Is Uncle Daniel bad?""
Dad looked at him through the rearview mirror.
"I don't know, buddy. But we're going to find out.""
We drove to the law office of Margaret Collins, the attorney who had handled my mother's estate.
She was a small woman in her sixties with silver hair and sharp blue eyes.
When she saw the photograph, she immediately locked the office door.
"Richard, where did you get this?""
"My son found it.""
Margaret examined the torn edges.
Then she looked at me.
"Maya, do you still have anything that belonged to your mother?""
I hesitated.
"The brass key.""
Her eyes widened.
"You found it?""
Dad turned toward me.
"What key?""
I reached into my backpack and pulled out a small envelope.
Inside was the brass key I'd discovered in my mother's jewelry box.
Margaret took it carefully.
"Isabelle told me about this key.""
"What's it for?"" I asked.
She walked to a filing cabinet and removed a thick folder.
"Your mother rented a private safety deposit box at a bank downtown. She gave me the key number and instructed me to keep the information confidential until you turned eighteen.""
Dad stared at her.
"Why didn't you tell me?""
Margaret met his eyes.
"Because Isabelle specifically instructed me not to.""
"She was my wife!""
"And Maya was her daughter. Isabelle believed her safety depended on keeping certain information away from you until the appropriate time.""
Dad looked wounded.
"Did she think I would hurt our child?""
Margaret softened her voice.
"No. She thought someone might use you to reach her.""
I felt my throat tighten.
"Who?""
Margaret didn't answer immediately.
Instead, she placed the photograph under a desk lamp.
"Your mother discovered financial irregularities involving Daniel's company. She suspected money from her investment accounts was being transferred without authorization.""
"How much?"" Dad asked.
"At least six hundred thousand dollars.""
Dad sat down.
"Daniel told me he lost money in a failed business venture.""
"That was the explanation he gave Isabelle too.""
Margaret opened the folder.
Inside were copies of bank transfers, company records, and several letters.
One letter had my mother's handwriting.
Margaret read the first lines aloud.
Richard, if you're reading this, something has gone terribly wrong. Daniel has been accessing accounts that were never his. Nicole knows more than she's admitting.
Dad's face hardened.
"She named Nicole?""
Margaret nodded.
"Your wife believed Nicole was helping Daniel obtain access to the family assets.""
I felt sick.
"Why would Nicole do that?""
Margaret looked at me.
"Because she and Daniel had been connected long before Nicole married your father.""
Dad stood.
"How long?""
Margaret turned a page.
"According to Isabelle's notes, they were business partners before she met you.""
Silence.
Dad stared at the papers.
"My brother introduced Nicole to me.""
"Yes," Margaret replied.
"He told me she was a friend of his from college.""
Margaret removed another document.
"Isabelle believed that introduction was deliberate.""
I felt the room spin.
Nicole hadn't simply entered our family by chance.
Daniel had brought her into our lives.
Dad lowered himself into a chair.
"Why would my brother do this?""
Margaret's answer was quiet.
"Your family had something he wanted.""
She opened a separate document.
It contained a list of properties and investment accounts.
At the bottom was a trust valued at nearly two million dollars.
"Isabelle discovered that Maya was the sole beneficiary. Daniel couldn't access the principal without authorization. But if Maya were declared legally incapable of managing her affairs, the court could appoint a guardian or trustee.""
I remembered Nicole's accusations.
The pregnancy test.
The school scandal.
Her plan to send me away.
"She wanted everyone to think I was irresponsible.""
Margaret nodded.
"Exactly.""
Dad covered his face.
"She was going to destroy my daughter's future.""
Margaret placed another paper on the desk.
"There's more. Isabelle's accident investigation was reopened privately before her death. She believed someone had tampered with her vehicle.""
I gripped the edge of the desk.
"Who?""
Margaret looked at the photograph.
"We don't know. But this is why I need the original recording and the safety deposit box.""
Dad reached for his phone.
"I'm calling the police.""
Margaret nodded.
"Do that. And don't contact Daniel again.""
But before he could dial, the office telephone rang.
Margaret answered.
"Collins Legal.""
Her face changed.
"Yes, this is she.""
She listened for several seconds.
Then she slowly looked at Dad.
"What do you mean he's already there?""
She put the call on speaker.
A man's voice came through.
"Ms. Collins, this is Officer Harris. We're at the bank. Someone attempted to access Isabelle Bennett's safety deposit box this morning.""
Dad stood.
"Who?""
The officer paused.
"We have him in custody.""
"Who is it?""
The answer made Margaret drop her pen.
"Daniel Carter.""
Then the officer added:
"But that's not the strange part. He wasn't carrying the key.""
Dad looked at me.
I felt the brass key burning against my palm.
May you like
The officer continued.
"He had a second document. A document claiming Maya Bennett had already transferred ownership of the entire inheritance.""
