Chapter 5: The Mother Who Was Supposed to Be Dead
I stared at the signature until the letters blurred.
*Evelyn Hayes.*
My mother's name.
My father's face drained of color.
“No.””
He took the page from me.
His hands were shaking.
“No, that's impossible.””
“What?””
He looked at the signature again.
“Your mother never signed anything after she died.””
“I know.””
“She died eleven years ago.””
“I know.””
Carter's footsteps were getting closer.
Natalie whispered, “There are two exits.””
Dad grabbed the folder.
“Which one?””
“Stairwell.””
We ran.
The door slammed behind us.
We descended two flights before stopping.
My lungs burned.
My stomach tightened.
Dad noticed immediately.
“Are you okay?””
“I think so.””
He crouched beside me.
“Any pain?””
“No.””
The baby moved.
A strong kick beneath my ribs.
I placed my hand over it.
“He's okay.””
Dad looked relieved.
Then he looked at the folder.
“What did Carter know?””
“I don't know.””
“You need to tell me everything about your mother.””
I swallowed.
“My mother was Evelyn Hayes. She died when I was seventeen.””
“How?””
“Car accident.””
“Where?””
“Richmond.””
Dad went silent.
I looked at him.
“What?””
He wouldn't meet my eyes.
“Dad.””
He rubbed his face.
“There were things I never told you.””
My heart sank.
“What things?””
“The accident wasn't straightforward.””
“What does that mean?””
He looked up.
“Your mother was driving home from a meeting.””
“What meeting?””
“I don't know.””
“You just said it wasn't straightforward.””
“I said I didn't know.””
“Dad.””
He sighed.
“She'd been asking questions about the Whitmores.””
The stairwell seemed to tilt.
“What?””
“Your mother had met Carter's father.””
“When?””
“Months before she died.””
I stared at him.
“Why?””
“I don't know.””
“You've had eleven years to tell me this.””
“I was trying to protect you.””
“From what?””
He didn't answer.
I stepped back.
“Was my mother's death an accident?””
Dad closed his eyes.
“I never proved otherwise.””
My phone rang.
Carter.
I rejected the call.
It rang again.
I rejected it again.
A voicemail appeared.
Then another.
Then another.
Dad looked at me.
“Don't listen yet.””
But I already had.
Carter's voice came through the speaker.
“Mara, you're making this much worse.””
Second message.
“You took something that doesn't belong to you.””
Third.
“If you leave that building with the file, there will be consequences.””
I deleted the messages.
Dad stared at me.
“He sounds afraid.””
“He is.””
We exited through the parking garage.
Natalie met us beside Dad's truck.
She looked exhausted.
“You found it?””
I held up the folder.
“Yes.””
Her eyes widened.
“Did you see the name?””
“Yes.””
She looked around.
“Come with me.””
“Where?””
“My apartment.””
Dad shook his head.
“No.””
“She knows something,” I said.
Natalie nodded.
“I do.””
We followed her to a small apartment in Falls Church.
She locked the door behind us.
Then checked the windows.
“Carter has people watching the office.””
“How do you know?””
“I've worked there six years.””
She opened a laptop.
“I've seen things.””
“What things?””
“Payments.””
“To whom?””
“Private investigators.””
She opened a spreadsheet.
“There are monthly payments going to a company called Northbridge Investigations.””
Dad leaned forward.
“What were they investigating?””
Natalie clicked through the files.
“You.””
I stared at the screen.
There were dates.
Addresses.
Hospital visits.
Work schedules.
Photos.
My skin crawled.
“How long?””
“Almost two years.””
“Two years?””
She nodded.
“Since before your pregnancy.””
Dad's voice became quiet.
“Why?””
Natalie opened another file.
“Because Carter wasn't investigating whether you were cheating.””
She turned the screen toward me.
“He was investigating your mother.””
My mouth went dry.
“What?””
“Every record they collected about you eventually led back to Evelyn Hayes.””
I looked at Dad.
He looked terrified.
Natalie clicked another document.
“Your mother's death certificate has a discrepancy.””
“What discrepancy?””
“The original says accidental collision.””
“And?””
“The insurance file says the vehicle was tampered with.””
Dad stood so quickly his chair fell backward.
“That's not possible.””
Natalie looked at him.
“You knew?””
Dad said nothing.
I stared at him.
“Dad?””
He walked to the window.
For a long moment, he didn't speak.
Then he said, “I suspected.””
My voice broke.
“You suspected someone killed Mom?””
“No.””
“You just said the car was tampered with.””
“I suspected someone wanted to scare her.””
“That's not what the report says.””
Dad turned.
“You were seventeen.””
“So you lied to me.””
“I protected you.””
“You lied!””
My voice echoed through the apartment.
The baby kicked.
I immediately lowered my voice.
Dad's eyes filled with tears.
“I couldn't lose both of you.””
I looked away.
Natalie quietly closed the laptop.
Then she said, “There's something else.””
I turned.
“What?””
“Your mother wasn't investigating the Whitmores because of Carter's father.””
“Then why?””
Natalie opened an encrypted file.
A scanned document appeared.
It was a legal agreement.
At the top:
*WHITMORE FAMILY TRUST — CONFIDENTIAL*
Below it was a list of names.
I recognized Carter's father.
His uncle.
Several attorneys.
Then one name that made my blood run cold.
*Evelyn Hayes.*
Beside it was a handwritten note.
*Beneficiary until death.*
I stared.
“My mother was part of their trust?””
Natalie shook her head.
“Not exactly.””
“Then what?””
“She was the original beneficiary.””
My father whispered, “No.””
I looked at him.
“What does that mean?””
Natalie opened another page.
“Your mother wasn't just investigating the Whitmores.””
She pointed at the screen.
“She was supposed to inherit everything.””
The room went silent.
“Everything?”” I whispered.
“The Whitmore family trust.””
My father sat down.
“That trust is worth millions.””
Natalie nodded.
“And there's one condition.””
“What?””
“The beneficiary has to be a direct descendant of the original family member who established it.””
I frowned.
“My mother wasn't a Whitmore.””
Natalie looked at me.
“Exactly.””
My heartbeat accelerated.
“Then why was she named?””
Natalie didn't answer.
She opened the final document.
It contained a birth record.
My name.
My mother's name.
And under *Father* was a name I'd never seen before.
Not my father's.
Not Carter's.
Someone else.
Dad looked at it.
His face collapsed.
I whispered, “Dad…”
He couldn't speak.
Then his phone rang.
He answered.
“Hello?””
His expression changed.
He slowly stood.
“Who is this?””
A man's voice came through the speaker.
Dad's face went white.
The call lasted only twelve seconds.
When he hung up, I asked, “Who was it?””
Dad looked at me.
“It was Dr. Benjamin Cross.””
I felt my stomach drop.
“What did he want?””
May you like
Dad swallowed.
“He said your mother never died in that accident.””
