Chapter 7: The Man Who Was Supposed to Be Dead
I stared at the photograph until my eyes hurt.
The woman standing in front of the blue door wore Sarah's wedding ring.
The little girl reflected in the window looked like Lily.
And the man standing behind them was my father.
My father, Richard Carter, had supposedly died eleven years earlier from a heart attack.
I had attended his funeral. I had watched his casket lowered into the ground. I had even kept his old wristwatch in my bedroom drawer.
Yet there he was.
Alive.
Daniel took the phone from my hand and enlarged the photograph.
"Michael, are you absolutely certain?""
I nodded.
"That's my father.""
"Could it be someone who looks like him?""
I pointed to a scar above the man's left eyebrow.
"He got that scar when I was twelve. He fell off a ladder while fixing our garage roof.""
Daniel studied the photograph.
"Then we need to find out who that woman is.""
"She's Sarah.""
He looked at me.
"How can you be certain?""
I showed him the ring.
"Sarah had that ring custom-made. The inside has our wedding date engraved on it.""
Daniel examined the image again.
"There's something else.""
He zoomed in on the little girl.
"Look at her left wrist.""
A thin silver bracelet was visible.
I recognized it immediately.
It was the bracelet Sarah had bought for Lily on her fifth birthday.
But Lily was six now.
The girl in the photograph appeared older.
Much older.
"Could someone have manipulated the image?"" I asked.
"Possibly. We need the original.""
My phone vibrated.
Another message.
*NASHVILLE. TOMORROW. 10 A.M. COME WITHOUT YOUR BROTHER.*
I showed Daniel.
He shook his head.
"You're not going alone.""
I wanted to argue, but my attention shifted toward the staircase.
Lily was standing there.
She had heard us.
"Daddy?""
I immediately put my phone away.
"Yes, sweetheart?""
She walked down slowly.
"Was that Mommy?""
I knelt in front of her.
"I don't know yet.""
She touched her shaved head.
"Will she still know me without my curls?""
The question nearly destroyed me.
I held her hands.
"Your mommy would recognize you anywhere. Even in the darkest room.""
Lily thought about that.
Then she whispered:
"Can we bring her home?""
I kissed her forehead.
"That's what I'm trying to do.""
That evening, Daniel discovered something about my father's death.
He had requested an archived copy of the original death certificate.
When he called me, his voice sounded unusually serious.
"Michael, your father's death certificate contains an inconsistency.""
"What inconsistency?""
"The physician listed as the certifying doctor never worked at the hospital where Richard supposedly died.""
I sat down.
"Maybe it was a clerical mistake.""
"That's what I thought. But the hospital has no record of admitting him.""
My mouth went dry.
"Then whose funeral did I attend?""
Daniel was quiet.
"I don't know yet.""
I looked toward the living room.
Lily was asleep on the couch, holding Sarah's pink hairbrush.
"Why would my father fake his death?""
Daniel answered carefully.
"Maybe he needed to disappear.""
"From whom?""
"I suspect that's the question Sarah was trying to answer.""
The next morning, we left for Nashville.
Mrs. Bennett agreed to stay with Lily, and Daniel arranged for another investigator to remain nearby.
I carried the photograph in my jacket pocket.
Every mile brought me closer to the blue house.
Every mile also brought back memories of my father.
He had been a complicated man.
Strict. Controlling. Secretive.
After my mother died, he became obsessed with money and appearances. We argued constantly, especially when I married Sarah.
He had called her unsuitable.
He had once told me that marrying her would ruin my future.
I hadn't spoken to him for months before his supposed death.
Now I wondered whether those arguments had been about something much bigger.
At 9:52 a.m., we reached the address.
The house stood at the end of a quiet street.
White walls.
Blue front door.
Large oak tree.
Exactly like the photograph.
Daniel parked two houses away.
"Remember, we don't rush in.""
I stepped out.
My legs felt weak.
I approached the front door and knocked.
Once.
Twice.
Nothing.
Then I noticed a small envelope taped beneath the doorbell.
My name was written across it.
I opened it.
Inside was a single photograph.
Sarah and my father were standing together outside a courthouse.
The date was three weeks before her accident.
On the back, someone had written:
*YOUR FATHER DIDN'T DIE. HE DISAPPEARED BECAUSE HE KNEW WHAT SARAH HAD DISCOVERED.*
I turned toward Daniel.
Before I could speak, the blue door opened.
A woman stood there.
She was thinner than I remembered.
Her hair was shorter.
There were faint lines around her eyes.
But I knew that face.
"Sarah?""
Her lips trembled.
"Michael.""
For two years, I had dreamed about hearing that voice.
Now I couldn't move.
She stepped forward.
I reached for her, but she raised one hand.
"Don't.""
I stopped.
She looked over my shoulder toward Daniel.
"You're not supposed to bring anyone.""
Daniel remained calm.
"Your husband has spent two years believing you were dead.""
Sarah's eyes filled with tears.
"I know.""
I stared at her.
"Then why didn't you come home?""
She looked down.
"Because the people who arranged my disappearance were watching you and Lily.""
I swallowed.
"Who?""
Sarah stepped aside.
"Come inside. There's something you need to see.""
I entered the house.
The living room was filled with photographs, documents, and several old computer monitors.
Then I saw him.
My father.
Richard Carter.
He was sitting beside a window, holding a cup of coffee.
He looked older, but unmistakably alive.
He slowly stood.
"Hello, son.""
I stared at him.
"You let me bury you.""
He lowered his eyes.
"I know.""
"You let me believe you were dead!""
"I had no choice.""
I stepped closer.
"You had eleven years to tell me the truth.""
My father looked at Sarah.
She shook her head.
"Richard, tell him.""
He sighed.
Then he placed his coffee on the table.
"Michael, your mother didn't die of natural causes either.""
The room went silent.
I felt my knees weaken.
"What?""
My father looked directly at me.
"Your mother discovered the same financial operation Sarah uncovered. She was going to expose it.""
May you like
He paused.
"And the man who helped cover up her death was Robert Hayes.""
