Chapter 13: The Last Thing Eleanor Left Behind
The smoke was already pouring through the front windows when we reached the shop.
I jumped out of the car before Nathan had fully stopped.
“Madison, wait!”” Detective Harris shouted.
But I was already running.
The alterations shop looked exactly as it had when Aunt Eleanor left it to me: faded blue curtains, wooden display cabinets, and the old brass sign above the entrance.
Only now, flames were crawling along the curtains.
I grabbed the door handle.
It was hot.
“Don't touch it!”” Nathan yelled.
He pulled me backward just as a section of the ceiling collapsed inside.
I stumbled against him.
“The certificate is in there!””
“We'll get the fire department to handle it.””
“They'll be too late!””
Daniel came running up behind us, carrying Eleanor's wooden box.
“Madison, listen to me. The certificate isn't the only copy.””
I turned toward him.
“What?””
“Caroline made a duplicate. Eleanor told me years ago that the original design rights were documented in two places.””
“Where's the second one?””
Daniel opened the box and searched through the envelopes.
“I'm looking for the reference.””
A fire engine turned onto the street.
Behind it came two police cars.
Detective Harris began shouting instructions while firefighters prepared their equipment.
I watched smoke billow from the shop.
My childhood was inside that building.
Every pattern Eleanor had drawn.
Every dress I had ever made.
The little wooden stool where she used to sit and tell me that mistakes were simply unfinished ideas.
Nathan squeezed my hand.
“She's not going to take this from you.””
I looked at him.
“Brittany already has.””
“No. She can destroy a building. She can't destroy what you know.””
I wanted to believe him.
Then Daniel found a folded piece of paper.
“Here.””
It was a handwritten note from Eleanor.
The second certificate is with the woman who kept the first promise.
I frowned.
“Who is that?””
Daniel read it again.
Then his expression changed.
“Margaret.””
I stared.
“Richard's wife?””
“Caroline trusted her once. Before everything happened.””
“But Margaret helped cover up the accident.””
“Perhaps. But Eleanor may have known something we don't.””
The detective approached.
“Mrs. Reed is being brought in for questioning. We can ask her.””
I looked at the flames.
“Ask her what? Whether she has another document hidden in her house?””
“Madison, we need to do this properly.””
A firefighter emerged from the building carrying a small metal box.
My heart jumped.
“Is that from the back office?””
He nodded.
“We found it beneath a collapsed cabinet. It's badly damaged, but it may be intact.””
I stepped forward.
The box had a tiny silver star engraved on the lid.
Eleanor's mark.
The firefighter placed it on the pavement.
Daniel opened it carefully.
Inside was a plastic sleeve containing several documents.
One was a certificate of design ownership.
The name printed across the top was Caroline Hayes.
The beneficiary was Madison Carter.
I covered my mouth.
There it was.
The original ownership record.
But the signature at the bottom wasn't Caroline's.
It was mine.
I stared at it.
“That's impossible. I never signed this.””
Daniel examined the date.
“It's dated eleven months ago.””
The month I started making my wedding gown.
The month Eleanor died.
Someone had forged my signature before she passed away.
Detective Harris photographed the document.
“Who had access to your records?””
I looked toward the burning shop.
“Victoria. Brittany. Nathan. Richard.””
Nathan's face tightened.
I turned toward him.
“Did you know?””
“No.””
“Did your father?””
“I don't know.””
The detective looked at Daniel.
“Can the document be authenticated?””
“Yes,” Daniel replied.
“But we need the original registry entry.””
He opened another envelope.
A small address was written inside.
“Caroline's attorney kept a copy in a storage facility outside Nashville.””
I looked at him.
“Then we go there.””
The detective shook his head.
“Not until we've secured the scene.””
Before anyone could argue, a police officer approached.
“Detective, Margaret Reed is here.””
A black sedan stopped behind the police vehicles.
Margaret stepped out.
She looked older than she had at the hotel.
Her hair was untidy, and her hands trembled.
She approached us slowly.
“I heard about the fire.””
I stared at her.
“Did you come to help?””
She looked at the shop.
“No. I came because I know what Eleanor left behind.””
Daniel stepped forward.
“The second certificate?””
Margaret nodded.
“Caroline gave it to me the night before she died.””
I felt my chest tighten.
“Why would she give it to you?””
Margaret looked at me.
“Because she knew I had made a terrible mistake. She thought I might still have enough conscience to protect her daughter.””
“Did you?””
Margaret lowered her eyes.
“No.””
The answer was immediate.
Honest.
And somehow worse than another lie.
She reached into her handbag and removed a small envelope.
“I kept this for twenty-six years.””
The envelope was addressed to Eleanor.
Inside was a photograph of Caroline holding me as a baby.
On the back, in my mother's handwriting, were six words:
If Madison asks, tell her everything.
Margaret began to cry.
“I should have given this to you years ago.””
I took the photograph.
“Why now?””
“Because Victoria called me this morning. She said Brittany had gone too far. She wanted me to help her get rid of the evidence.””
Daniel stiffened.
“What did you tell her?””
“I refused.””
The detective stepped closer.
“Mrs. Reed, you're going to need to come with us.””
Margaret nodded.
“Before I do, there's something else.””
She looked at Nathan.
“Your father didn't just know about the accident. He paid someone to alter the hospital records.””
Nathan went pale.
“Who?””
Margaret swallowed.
“Your grandfather.””
Silence fell.
“My grandfather died twenty years ago,” Nathan said.
Margaret nodded.
“Exactly.””
She turned toward me.
“Richard didn't act alone. The person who arranged the entire cover-up was already dead before anyone began asking questions.””
I looked at Daniel.
He understood before I did.
“The original estate executor,” he whispered.
Margaret nodded.
“Caroline's own lawyer.””
Then she handed Detective Harris a second envelope.
“This contains the name of the person who received the money.””
The detective opened it.
His expression changed.
“That's not possible.””
I stepped closer.
“What?””
He looked directly at me.
“The person who received the first payment was Victoria Carter.””
I exhaled.
“Of course.””
But the detective shook his head.
“No. The second payment went to someone else.””
He turned the page.
May you like
The name was written in bold letters.
*Madison Carter.*
