Chapter 7: The Secret Beneath the House
The message remained on Ethan's phone as the black car sped through the rain.
Your mother didn't die because of her heart, Ethan.
And Nathan wasn't the only person in that house the night she died.
Ethan read the words again.
Then he called the number.
It rang once.
Twice.
A recorded voice answered.
“The number you have dialed is unavailable.””
Ethan lowered the phone.
Across from him, Daniel Whitmore watched his expression.
“What happened?””
Ethan handed him the phone.
Daniel read the messages.
His face changed.
“Who sent these?””
“I don't know.””
“Have you received anything like this before?””
“No.””
Daniel looked through the window at the passing streetlights.
“Ethan, perhaps we should wait for the authorities before entering the estate.””
Ethan shook his head.
“If someone knows what happened to my mother, waiting gives them time to destroy the evidence.””
Martin Hayes, seated in the front passenger seat, turned around.
“I've already contacted two security officers. They'll meet us at the property.””
“Good.””
Martin hesitated.
“There's something I haven't told you.””
Ethan looked up.
“What?””
“Three days ago, someone accessed the company's old security archive. They requested footage from the night of your accident.””
“Who?””
“The request came through an administrator account registered under Nathan Brooks.””
Ethan stared at him.
“Did you preserve the footage?””
“We tried. Most of it had been deleted.””
“Most?””
Martin nodded.
“One camera was disconnected before the files were erased. We recovered a few seconds from the backup system.””
“What did it show?””
“A vehicle entering the estate shortly before midnight.””
Ethan leaned forward.
“Whose vehicle?””
Martin hesitated.
“Your mother's.””
The car fell silent.
Ethan looked down at his hands.
His mother had supposedly died at the family estate, several months before his accident. The official report had described her death as sudden and natural.
He had never questioned it.
Why would he?
He had trusted the doctors, the lawyers, and the people who had surrounded him during the funeral.
Now he was beginning to wonder whether the people closest to him had known something he hadn't.
The car turned through the estate's iron gates.
The enormous house appeared through the rain.
Its cream-colored walls were illuminated by old garden lamps. Ivy covered part of the eastern wing, and the fountain in the courtyard stood silent.
Ethan had not returned since his accident.
He stepped out of the car.
For a moment, he couldn't move.
He remembered running through those gardens as a child. His mother calling him inside for dinner. His father laughing beside the fireplace.
The memories felt painfully distant.
Daniel approached.
“Are you ready?””
Ethan nodded.
They entered through the main doors.
The house smelled of polished wood and old books.
A security officer stood near the staircase.
“Good evening, Mr. Cole.””
“Anything unusual?””
“Nothing obvious. But someone appears to have entered through the eastern service entrance.””
Ethan looked toward the hallway.
“When?””
“Within the last few hours.””
Martin immediately called the second officer.
“Secure the perimeter. Nobody leaves without authorization.””
The officer nodded.
Ethan walked toward his mother's office.
The door was still locked.
He remembered the room clearly.
A large oak desk. A fireplace. Shelves filled with family photographs.
And a painting of his mother standing beside a white rose garden.
Daniel removed a key from his pocket.
“Your mother gave me this years ago.””
The lock clicked.
Ethan pushed the door open.
Dust floated through the light.
Everything appeared untouched.
Except for the desk.
One drawer was slightly open.
Ethan approached it.
Inside lay a small silver key and an envelope.
His name was written across the front.
He picked it up.
“Another letter?””
Daniel nodded.
“Perhaps.””
Ethan opened it.
This time, the handwriting was different.
The message was short.
Ethan, if you've found this, then Nathan has begun searching for the archive.
Do not trust the person who claims to have protected you.
The original agreement is not beneath the house.
It is beneath the garden.
Ethan read the last line twice.
“The garden?””
Daniel looked at the painting.
“The white rose garden.””
Ethan turned toward the window.
Outside, the rain had slowed.
Beyond the terrace stood the garden his mother had loved most.
Martin joined them.
“Do you want us to search it?””
“Yes.””
They stepped outside with flashlights.
The garden was overgrown, but the white roses remained.
Ethan moved slowly along the stone path.
He remembered his mother kneeling beside the flowers, teaching him how to remove dead leaves without damaging the stems.
He stopped near a marble bench.
Something was different.
The small bronze plaque beneath it had been removed.
Daniel crouched.
“There's a compartment.””
Ethan looked closer.
A narrow metal panel had been built into the stone base.
He inserted the silver key.
It turned.
The panel opened.
Inside was a small waterproof box.
Ethan pulled it out.
The box contained three items.
An old photograph.
A folded letter.
And a small digital storage device.
Daniel examined the photograph.
His face turned pale.
“What is it?”” Ethan asked.
Daniel handed it to him.
The photograph showed his mother standing beside Nathan Brooks.
But they weren't alone.
A third person stood behind them.
A woman wearing a hospital identification badge.
Ethan recognized her.
Dr. Melissa Grant.
“Why would Melissa be in a photograph with my mother?””
Daniel examined the date.
“Because this was taken two months before your mother's death.””
Ethan looked toward Martin.
“Call Melissa.””
Martin dialed immediately.
After several rings, she answered.
“Martin? Is something wrong?””
“Dr. Grant, Ethan needs to ask you about a photograph.””
There was silence.
Then Melissa spoke.
“What photograph?””
Ethan took the phone.
“One showing you with my mother and Nathan.””
Another pause.
“Where did you find it?””
“In my mother's garden.””
Melissa exhaled.
“Ethan, I was hoping you'd never have to see that.””
“Why?””
“Because your mother asked me to keep something confidential until you were ready.””
“What?””
“Your mother's final medical examination wasn't consistent with the original diagnosis.””
Ethan felt the blood drain from his face.
“You told me she died of a heart attack.””
“I told you what was recorded in the official report.””
“That's not what I asked.””
Melissa lowered her voice.
“Ethan, I need you to understand something. I never had enough evidence to prove what happened. But your mother was afraid. She contacted me because she believed someone was interfering with her medication.””
Daniel covered his mouth.
Ethan gripped the phone.
“Who?””
“I don't know.””
“Did you suspect Nathan?””
“Yes.””
“Did you suspect Victoria?””
Melissa hesitated.
“Yes.””
Ethan looked at the photograph.
“And what about the person who claims to have protected me?””
Melissa didn't answer immediately.
Then she said something that made Ethan's stomach tighten.
“Ethan, your mother specifically warned me about Robert.””
A loud crash came from inside the house.
Everyone turned.
Martin shouted into his radio.
“Possible intruder! Eastern wing!””
The security officers rushed toward the house.
Ethan ran after them.
They reached the hallway just as a shadow disappeared around the staircase.
“Stop!”” Martin shouted.
A door slammed.
One officer chased the intruder while another blocked the rear exit.
Ethan reached his mother's office.
The desk drawer was now open.
The envelope had disappeared.
He looked at the garden box.
The storage device was still there.
But the folded letter was gone.
Someone had taken it.
Daniel hurried inside.
“Ethan!””
He looked toward the hallway.
“What?””
Daniel held up the photograph.
“There was something written on the back.””
Ethan turned it over.
His mother's handwriting appeared beneath the image.
Robert knows the truth about the night I died.
Below that, another line.
But Nathan knows where the evidence is.
Ethan looked toward the staircase.
Then his phone vibrated.
A new message.
This time, there was no threat.
Only an address.
May you like
And a final sentence.
Come alone if you want to know who killed your mother.
