Chapter 9: The Secret Sarah Was Paid to Keep
Officer Miller immediately contacted the officers searching for Sarah.
But her phone was switched off.
Her house was empty.
And the car registered in her name had been found abandoned outside a shopping center.
Sarah had disappeared.
I sat beside Lily in the hospital waiting area while Ray spoke with Officer Miller.
I couldn't understand why someone who claimed to love us would keep doing this.
Lily leaned against me.
"Do you think Aunt Sarah hurt Mommy?""
I looked at her.
"I don't know.""
"She used to bring Mommy flowers.""
"I remember.""
"Mommy liked the yellow ones.""
I nodded.
For a moment, we were just two children remembering our mother.
Then Lily whispered, "I don't want another family.""
I wrapped my arm around her.
"You have me.""
She looked up.
"Forever?""
"Forever.""
Ray returned and sat across from us.
"Your aunt has been found.""
I immediately sat upright.
"Where?""
"At a motel outside town.""
"Is she coming here?""
"She's being brought to the station.""
Officer Miller approached a few minutes later.
"We need to ask you something, Noah.""
I nodded.
"Your mother made a recording before she died. Did she ever mention a small black device?""
I thought about the box.
"The recorder?""
"No. Something smaller. Perhaps a phone or a memory card.""
I shook my head.
Officer Miller looked toward Daniel.
Daniel spoke quietly.
"Margaret told me she made two copies. One went into the wooden box. The other was supposed to stay with Sarah.""
"Why Sarah?"" Ray asked.
"Because Margaret thought Curtis would never suspect his wife's sister.""
I stared at the floor.
"Why did Sarah give Curtis the documents?""
Daniel looked uncomfortable.
"Because he paid her.""
The words hit me harder than I expected.
"How much?""
Daniel shook his head.
"I don't know.""
Officer Miller's phone rang.
He answered, listened, then nodded.
"Bring her in.""
Twenty minutes later, Sarah entered the station.
Her eyes were swollen.
Her clothes were wrinkled.
She looked nothing like the woman I remembered from family holidays.
When she saw me, she started crying.
"Noah.""
I didn't stand.
She approached the table.
"Sweetheart, please.""
I looked at her.
"Did Curtis pay you?""
She stopped.
"Who told you that?""
"Daniel.""
Sarah lowered herself into the chair.
For several seconds, she said nothing.
Then she nodded.
"Yes.""
Lily moved closer to me.
"Why?""
Sarah looked at her.
"Because I was in debt. I had lost my apartment, and Curtis offered to help me.""
"So you helped him take our money?"" I asked.
"No. Not at first.""
She wiped her face.
"He told me Margaret was hiding money from him. He said he had legal rights to it because they were married.""
"Did you believe him?""
"I wanted to.""
"Why?""
Sarah looked down.
"Because I was desperate.""
Officer Miller placed the forged guardianship document on the table.
"Did you sign this?""
Sarah nodded.
"Yes.""
"Did you know it was false?""
"I knew it wasn't what he told me it was.""
Ray leaned forward.
"That's a convenient distinction.""
Sarah looked at him.
"I know what I did was wrong.""
I couldn't hold it in anymore.
"You let him keep us!""
Sarah started crying harder.
"He promised me he would send you to a good school. He said you would live with him until everything was settled.""
"Then why didn't you visit?""
"I tried.""
"Once?""
She covered her face.
I continued.
"Did you know Lily was locked in that room?""
Sarah lowered her hands.
"No.""
"Did you know I was working until midnight?""
"Noah, I swear—"
"Did you know I was hungry?""
She couldn't answer.
Officer Miller opened another folder.
"We need to discuss the missing recording.""
Sarah looked toward the door.
"I don't have it.""
Daniel's expression hardened.
"Don't lie.""
She turned toward him.
"You don't know what happened!""
"Then tell us.""
Sarah began trembling.
"Curtis gave me the recording after Margaret died. He told me to destroy it.""
Officer Miller leaned forward.
"Did you?""
"No.""
"Where is it?""
Sarah looked at me.
I saw something different in her expression.
Fear.
Not fear of Curtis.
Fear of what the recording might reveal.
"It's in a safety deposit box.""
Officer Miller immediately asked for the bank information.
Sarah gave him the name of a local bank and an account number.
But when officers contacted the bank, they discovered the box had already been opened.
The withdrawal had occurred that morning.
The person who signed for it wasn't Sarah.
It was Curtis.
Ray stood so quickly that his chair scraped backward.
"He's got the recording.""
Officer Miller grabbed his radio.
"Get units to his last known address. Now.""
Sarah started shaking her head.
"No. No, he can't have it.""
I looked at her.
"Why?""
She stared at me.
Then she whispered something that made the entire room go silent.
"Because the recording proves Curtis didn't act alone.""
"Who helped him?"" Officer Miller demanded.
Sarah began crying again.
"I don't know what he plans to do with it.""
"Who helped him?""
She looked at Daniel.
Then at Evelyn.
Finally, her eyes settled on me.
"Your mother recorded a conversation between Curtis and someone else. Someone who promised to make the investigation disappear.""
Ray stepped closer.
"Who?""
Sarah swallowed.
"Someone inside the police department.""
Officer Miller went completely still.
Sarah continued.
"Margaret said she recognized the voice. She told me it belonged to the detective who investigated the financial fraud.""
Officer Miller's expression hardened.
"Which detective?""
Sarah looked at the floor.
Then she whispered the name.
"Detective Robert Hayes.""
I looked at Officer Miller.
He slowly closed the folder.
"That's impossible.""
Sarah shook her head.
"He's Curtis's cousin.""
Nobody spoke.
I remembered the officer who had visited the truck stop months earlier.
The one Curtis had called by his first name.
The one who had looked at me, asked whether everything was fine, and left without checking the storage room.
Officer Miller stood and walked into the hallway.
Ray remained beside us.
I looked at Sarah.
"Why didn't you tell anyone?""
She started crying.
"Because Curtis said if I talked, he would tell everyone I was involved in Margaret's death.""
I stared at her.
"Were you?""
Sarah's face collapsed.
"Noah, I didn't hurt your mother.""
"Then what did you do?""
She looked at me for a long time.
Finally, she reached into her handbag and removed a folded piece of paper.
"I kept this because Margaret gave it to me before she died.""
Officer Miller returned.
He stopped when he saw the paper.
Sarah slid it across the table.
It was a handwritten note.
My mother's handwriting.
At the bottom were three words:
Don't trust Robert.
But above them was something even more frightening.
A date.
And a time.
The exact time Mom had died.
I looked at Sarah.
"What does this mean?""
She began sobbing.
"Your mother didn't die when the hospital told us she did.""
My heart stopped.
Ray slowly turned toward her.
"What are you saying?""
Sarah looked at me.
"Someone changed the official time of death.""
Then she pointed to the note.
"And Margaret wrote this because she knew someone was coming back for her.""
Officer Miller took the paper.
His phone rang almost immediately.
He answered.
Listened.
Then his face turned pale.
"Where is he?""
A pause.
"Secure the building.""
He ended the call.
Ray stood.
"What happened?""
Officer Miller looked directly at me.
May you like
"Detective Robert Hayes has just entered this station.""
And he was carrying the missing wooden box.
