Chapter 18: Frank's Last Secret
The black sedan remained outside for nearly ten minutes.
Nobody moved toward the window.
Marcus quietly stepped into the hallway and called Cole.
“Check the parking lot. Don't approach the car.””
Cole went outside.
The sedan pulled away before he reached the entrance.
When Marcus returned, Daniel was still holding the phone.
“Catherine?””
“Yes?””
“Did you see the car?””
“No. Why?””
“Someone may be watching us.””
Catherine went silent.
Then she whispered, “Thomas.””
Peter took the phone.
“Ms. Bell, this is Peter Walsh. We need you to preserve every document, message, and recording you have concerning Thomas. Do not confront him.””
“I have something,” Catherine said.
“What?””
“A box.””
Peter looked at Margaret.
Catherine continued.
“Thomas left it at my apartment after Lorraine died. He told me never to open it. I didn't understand why until I started searching for my birth mother.””
“What's inside?””
“Letters. Hospital records. And a photograph of Frank Whitmore.””
Margaret's fingers tightened around the edge of the table.
“Frank visited you?””
Catherine hesitated.
“I think so.””
Margaret's heart began pounding.
“When?””
“I was little. Maybe five or six. There's a picture of him standing outside our house.””
Margaret closed her eyes.
Frank had visited their daughter.
He had known where she was.
And he had never told her.
“Can you send us the photograph?””
“I can send a copy. But there's something else.””
Catherine's voice dropped.
“I found a letter addressed to you.””
Margaret stared at the phone.
“To me?””
“Yes. It was written by Frank. It was never mailed.””
Peter immediately asked, “Can you read it?””
Catherine hesitated.
“I've read it many times.””
“Please.””
There was a rustling sound.
Then Catherine began reading.
My dearest Margaret,
I have done something I never thought I could forgive myself for. I allowed a child to grow up believing another man was her father. I did it because I believed Thomas would destroy Helen, Richard, Daniel, and Catherine if I challenged him openly.
I told myself I was protecting everyone. Perhaps I was also protecting my own cowardice.
I visited Catherine twice. The first time, she was five. She showed me a drawing of a house with a woman standing in the doorway. She said it was the home she wanted when she grew up.
I wanted to tell her that she already had a home. I wanted to tell her she had a mother waiting for her.
But Thomas was watching.
Margaret covered her mouth.
Catherine continued.
I have evidence that Thomas falsified the adoption records. I have evidence that he used Helen's illness to obtain control over her children and her property. I also have evidence that he did not act alone.
There is one person who helped him.
Someone Margaret trusts.
The letter stopped there.
Catherine turned the page.
“But the next page is missing.””
Peter looked up.
“Missing?””
“Yes. There's a torn edge.””
Ethan leaned closer.
“Can you photograph the entire letter?””
“I'll send it.””
Peter nodded.
“Good. We'll need to compare the handwriting and the dates.””
Margaret was staring at the table.
“Someone I trust.””
Daniel looked at her.
“Who could Frank mean?””
Margaret shook her head.
“I don't know.””
Helen suddenly reached for the phone.
“Ask Catherine about the wedding ring.””
Catherine heard her.
“What wedding ring?””
Helen looked at Margaret.
“The ring Frank told me to keep.””
Margaret opened her purse and pulled out a small photograph of Helen wearing her original wedding ring.
“Do you know anything about it?”” she asked.
Catherine was quiet.
Then she said, “Yes.””
Everyone leaned closer.
“Thomas gave me a ring when I turned eighteen. He said it belonged to my birth mother. He told me it was the only thing he had saved from her.””
Margaret stared at the photograph.
“Can you describe it?””
“Gold band. Small blue stone. There's a tiny engraving inside.””
Helen gasped.
“That was my ring.””
Margaret looked at her sister.
“You gave it to Catherine?””
Helen shook her head.
“Thomas stole it.””
Catherine continued.
“I still have it. The engraving says H.W. and F.W.””
Margaret felt her knees weaken.
H.W. and F.W.
Helen Whitmore and Frank Whitmore.
The ring had belonged to Helen and Frank.
Peter frowned.
“Why would Frank's initials be engraved in Helen's wedding ring?””
Helen looked toward the window.
“Because Frank wasn't just my brother-in-law.””
Margaret turned slowly.
“What are you saying?””
Helen's eyes filled.
“Frank was the man I loved before I met Thomas.””
The room went silent.
Margaret felt as though the floor had disappeared beneath her.
Helen continued.
“We were young. We thought we would marry. But our parents disapproved.
Frank left town for work. I met Thomas afterward.””
Margaret stared at her sister.
“You never told me.””
“I couldn't.””
“Frank married me.””
Helen nodded.
“He loved you. He always loved you.””
Margaret looked away.
“Then why did you keep this secret?””
Helen's voice broke.
“Because Catherine was Frank's daughter.””
Daniel stood abruptly.
“Wait.””
Peter looked at him.
Daniel's expression had changed.
“Then Catherine isn't just our sister.””
Helen shook her head.
“No.””
She looked at Margaret.
“She is your husband's biological daughter.””
Margaret sat down.
The photograph suddenly made sense.
Frank holding the baby.
The initials on the ring.
The letter he had never mailed.
But one question remained.
“Why did Frank and I adopt her if he was her father?””
Helen looked at her.
“Because Thomas threatened to expose the affair and claim Catherine for himself. Frank believed the only way to protect her was to make her legally yours.””
Margaret began crying.
“Why didn't he tell me?””
“Because he was afraid you'd leave him.””
Margaret shook her head.
“I would have helped him.””
Helen reached for her.
“I know.””
For several seconds, neither sister spoke.
Then Ethan's phone buzzed.
A message had arrived from Catherine.
It contained three photographs.
The first showed the gold ring.
The second showed Frank standing outside a small house.
The third showed an old envelope with a handwritten label.
*Evidence — Thomas Bell and Eleanor Price.*
Peter stared at the screen.
“Eleanor?””
Margaret looked up.
“Frank's lawyer?””
Peter nodded.
“Catherine, can you tell us what this envelope contains?””
Catherine's voice trembled.
“I haven't opened it. I was afraid.””
“Please open it now.””
There was a pause.
Then the sound of paper tearing.
Catherine spoke again.
“It's a bank transfer record.””
Peter leaned closer.
“Read the names.””
“Thomas Bell.””
“And?””
Catherine hesitated.
“Eleanor Price.””
Margaret felt her heart sink.
Catherine continued.
“The transfer was made three days after Frank died.””
Peter stared at the screen.
“How much?””
“Two hundred and fifty thousand dollars.””
Margaret covered her mouth.
Then Catherine read the note attached to the transaction.
Final payment for keeping the second will sealed.
Nobody moved.
Daniel looked at Margaret.
“Eleanor?””
Margaret shook her head.
“No.””
But her voice lacked conviction.
Her husband's most trusted lawyer might have been paid to hide the truth.
And if that was true, everything they thought they knew about Frank's final wishes could be wrong.
Then Catherine spoke again.
“There's one more thing.””
“What?”” Peter asked.
“On the back of the transfer record, Frank wrote a warning.””
Catherine turned the paper over.
Her voice dropped to a whisper.
“Eleanor didn't take the money for herself.””
Peter frowned.
“Then who received it?””
May you like
Catherine read the final line.
*Ask Margaret who she was protecting when Frank died.*
