Chapter 9: The Night His Father Buried the Truth
Evelyn didn't speak for nearly a minute.
Jason crouched in front of her.
“Mom, what happened?””
She stared at the letter in Laura's hands.
Then she looked toward the window, where Daniel's SUV had disappeared.
“Your father came home that night covered in blood,” she whispered.
Jason felt his stomach tighten.
“Whose blood?””
“Katherine's.””
Laura went completely still.
“What?””
Evelyn reached for the edge of the coffee table.
“It was raining. Your father arrived after midnight. His shirt was torn, and there was blood on his hands.””
Laura shook her head.
“My mother died in a car accident.””
“Yes,” Evelyn replied.
“That's what the police report said.””
Jason looked between them.
“Are you saying Dad was involved?””
Evelyn closed her eyes.
“I don't know. He never told me everything.””
“Then what did he tell you?””
She took a shaky breath.
“He said Daniel had been driving the car.””
Laura's hand flew to her mouth.
Jason stood.
“Daniel?””
Evelyn nodded.
“Your father said there had been an argument about the property. Katherine wanted Daniel to repay the money he'd borrowed. Daniel refused. They were driving back from the downtown building when the car went off the road.””
Laura's voice trembled.
“Why wasn't Daniel arrested?””
“Because your father said Katherine had been driving.””
Jason looked confused.
“But you just said Daniel was driving.””
“I know.””
Evelyn's eyes filled.
“That was the story your father gave me later. The police report said Katherine was behind the wheel. Daniel told everyone he had been in another car.””
Laura slowly lowered herself into a chair.
“My mother was thirty-nine years old when she died.””
“I know,” Evelyn whispered.
“Why didn't anyone tell me?””
Evelyn looked at her.
“Because your father believed he was protecting you.””
Laura's voice cracked.
“Protecting me from what?””
Evelyn couldn't answer.
Jason picked up the letter addressed to Daniel.
The handwriting was his father's.
He read it aloud.
“Daniel, if you ever try to claim Katherine's property again, remember what happened the night of the accident. I have kept my promise to remain silent for twenty years. But if you force my hand, I will give Laura everything she needs to know.””
He stopped.
There was another paragraph.
*You were not alone in that car.*
Jason looked up.
“Who else was there?””
Evelyn covered her face.
“I don't know.””
Laura opened her handbag and removed a small notebook.
“My mother kept a diary. I found it after she died.””
She placed it on the table.
“I've never shown anyone.””
Jason opened the notebook.
The final entries were dated two days before Katherine's accident.
One entry described an argument with Daniel.
Another mentioned money missing from the property account.
But the last entry was different.
Daniel came to see me again. He says the papers are already signed. I told him they aren't. He became angry and said I would regret making him choose between family and money.
The next page contained a single sentence.
If anything happens to me, ask Robert what he saw.
Jason stared at the name.
“Robert?””
Laura nodded.
“My mother never explained who he was.””
Evelyn suddenly stood.
“Robert Miller.””
Jason turned.
“You know him?””
“He worked for your father. He was the caretaker at the downtown building.””
“Where is he now?””
Evelyn shook her head.
“I haven't seen him in years.””
Jason called Margaret.
She answered immediately.
“Jason?””
“Do you know a Robert Miller? He worked for my father at the downtown property.””
There was a pause.
Then Margaret replied.
“I know the name. He gave a statement during Katherine's accident investigation.””
“What did he say?””
“I'd have to retrieve the file.””
“Please do it now.””
“I'll try. But Jason, why are you asking?””
He looked at Laura.
“Because I think my father lied about who was driving that night.””
Margaret became silent.
Then she said, “Come to my office. There's something you need to see.””
Forty minutes later, Jason and Laura sat across from Margaret's desk.
Evelyn had insisted on coming with them.
Margaret placed a thick archive box on the table.
“I found the original investigation file,” she said.
“How?”” Jason asked.
“Your father kept a copy in his estate records. I remembered seeing a reference to it.””
She opened the box.
Inside were police reports, photographs, insurance documents, and several handwritten statements.
Margaret put on her reading glasses.
“According to the official report, Katherine Moore lost control of her vehicle during heavy rain. The car struck a barrier and rolled down an embankment.””
Laura looked pale.
“Was Daniel in the car?””
Margaret searched through the statements.
“One witness said he saw two people near the vehicle before emergency services arrived.””
“Who?””
“Robert Miller.””
She handed Laura the statement.
The document was dated twenty years earlier.
Robert claimed he'd driven past the accident scene shortly after midnight. He saw a man standing beside the wrecked vehicle.
The man was identified as Daniel Carter.
But there was something else.
Robert also reported seeing a second vehicle parked nearby.
A black sedan registered to Robert himself.
Jason frowned.
“Why was his car there?””
Margaret turned another page.
“That's the problem. Robert later withdrew his statement.””
“Why?””
“He claimed he'd been mistaken.””
Laura stared at the signature.
“Did anyone question him?””
“Apparently not.””
Jason leaned forward.
“Where is he now?””
Margaret checked the file.
“His last known address is in a small town outside Columbus.””
Jason took a photograph of the page.
“I'm going to find him.””
Margaret raised a hand.
“Not alone. If he was pressured twenty years ago, he may be afraid to speak.””
Laura nodded.
“I'll go with you.””
Jason looked at her.
“Are you sure?””
“My mother deserves the truth.””
Margaret closed the file.
“There is another issue. The original accident report lists Daniel as a possible witness, but his signed statement claims he was in another state that night.””
Jason frowned.
“Can we prove he was lying?””
Margaret pulled out one final document.
It was a photograph taken at the downtown building on the night of the accident.
The image was grainy, but two people were clearly visible beside a car.
One was Daniel.
The other was Jason's father.
And behind them stood a third person.
A young woman.
Margaret placed the photograph under the desk lamp.
Laura leaned forward.
Her breath caught.
“That's my mother.””
Jason looked closer.
Then he noticed the date printed on the back.
Katherine had been photographed outside the building at 11:48 p.m.
The accident report said she died at 11:32 p.m.
Laura slowly looked up.
“That's impossible.””
Margaret nodded.
“Unless the official timeline is wrong.””
Jason stared at the photograph.
His father had been there.
Daniel had been there.
And Katherine had been alive eighteen minutes after the time the authorities claimed she died.
Then Jason noticed something else.
A fourth figure was reflected in the building's glass entrance.
Someone standing behind the camera.
Margaret enlarged the photograph with a magnifying glass.
The man's face was partially visible.
Jason recognized him immediately.
It was Robert Miller.
But Robert wasn't simply watching them.
He was holding something in his right hand.
A small leather briefcase.
Laura pointed toward it.
“That's my mother's briefcase.””
Jason looked at her.
“How do you know?””
“Because I still have the matching key.””
Margaret slowly lowered the photograph.
“Then we may finally know where the missing original deed went.””
Jason's phone vibrated.
An unknown number.
He opened the message.
*Stop looking into Katherine's accident. Robert Miller is dead. And if you continue, your mother will be next.*
A second message arrived.
It contained a photograph of Evelyn sitting alone in her living room.
Taken less than ten minutes earlier.
Jason jumped to his feet.
“Mom!””
He immediately called Evelyn.
The phone rang.
Once.
Twice.
Three times.
Then someone answered.
But it wasn't his mother.
A man's voice came through the speaker.
“Hello, Jason.””
Jason stopped breathing.
He knew that voice.
It belonged to his brother.
Daniel laughed softly.
May you like
“Now that you've found the old photograph, I think it's time we talked about what really happened to Katherine.””
Then the line went dead.
