Chapter 3: Unit 317
The police officer took the phone.
“Noah, my name is Officer Daniels. I need you to listen carefully, okay?””
Static crackled through the speaker.
“Okay.””
“Are you hurt?””
“No.””
“Is anyone else there?””
A pause.
“My mom.””
Ava began crying.
“Is she awake?”” Daniels asked.
Another pause.
“I don't know.””
Curtis suddenly spoke.
“He's confused.””
Everyone turned toward him.
Daniels covered the phone microphone.
“Don't say another word.””
Curtis backed away.
The second officer moved beside him.
Daniels returned to the call.
“Noah, can you tell me the name of the storage place?””
“I don't know.””
“Look around. Do you see a number?””
“Three...””
The boy breathed shakily.
“Three-one-seven.””
Wolf looked at the paper.
Unit 317.
Daniels immediately radioed dispatch.
“Possible endangered child located at Bluegrass Self Storage, unit 317. Send units and EMS.””
Curtis stepped backward.
The second officer grabbed his arm.
“Where are you going?””
“Nowhere.””
“Then stay there.””
Ava wiped tears from her face.
“I want to go.””
Daniels shook his head.
“You need to stay here.””
“That's my brother!””
“And we're going to get him.””
“My mom is there!””
Daniels's expression softened.
“I understand.””
“No, you don't!””
Ava pointed at Curtis.
“He's been lying to me for months!””
Curtis shouted:
“I DIDN'T PUT HER THERE!””
The pawn shop went silent.
Curtis realized what he'd said.
Wolf stared at him.
Nobody had accused him of putting Ava's mother anywhere.
Not yet.
Daniels slowly lowered the phone.
“What did you say?””
Curtis shook his head.
“I meant—”
“You didn't put who there?””
“I was responding to her accusation.””
“She didn't make one.””
Curtis's breathing quickened.
The second officer reached for handcuffs.
Curtis suddenly twisted away.
He made it two steps.
Marcus was standing near the door.
He didn't touch him.
Didn't need to.
Curtis stopped when he saw six Black Ridge Riders between him and the exit.
The officer grabbed Curtis from behind.
Metal clicked around his wrists.
“This is insane!””
Daniels spoke into his radio.
“Detain Curtis Hale pending investigation.””
Ava watched her uncle being escorted toward a cruiser.
She expected satisfaction.
Instead, she felt terrified.
Because if Curtis was responsible for any of this, then she had been living under the same roof as him.
Sleeping down the hallway.
Eating meals he cooked.
Trusting him when he said her mother had abandoned them.
Trusting him when he said Noah was safe.
Wolf crouched beside her.
“Ava.””
She looked at him.
“I'm going there.””
“The police—”
“I'm going.””
Wolf studied her.
That stubbornness again.
Mike's stubbornness.
He sighed.
“Then you're not going alone.””
Twenty minutes later, police vehicles crowded the entrance of Bluegrass Self Storage.
The rain had eased to a cold drizzle.
Ava sat in the passenger seat of an officer's SUV.
Wolf and the Black Ridge Riders waited behind the police perimeter.
Daniels had reluctantly allowed them to follow, mostly because Ava refused to leave Wolf.
The storage facility manager hurried toward the officers carrying a master key.
“317 is in Building C.””
“Cameras?””
“Front gate and corridors.””
Daniels immediately stopped.
“You have footage?””
“Thirty days.””
Wolf exchanged a glance with Ray.
That mattered.
A lot.
They reached Building C.
A narrow corridor stretched between rows of metal doors.
“317!””
An officer shouted.
The unit was locked.
“Noah?””
Daniels knocked.
“Noah, it's Officer Daniels!””
Something moved inside.
Then a child's voice.
“Help!””
The lock was cut.
The metal door rose.
A smell rolled outward.
Dust.
Oil.
Damp cardboard.
And something sour.
Flashlights swept inside.
“Noah?””
A small figure appeared between stacks of boxes.
A nine-year-old boy.
Dirty.
Terrified.
Clutching a flashlight.
Ava screamed his name.
“Noah!””
He ran.
Police tried to stop Ava.
Daniels waved them back.
She rushed into the unit and wrapped both arms around her brother.
Noah collapsed against her.
“I thought you weren't coming.””
Ava held him tighter.
“I'll always come.””
Wolf looked away briefly.
Mike should have been there.
Their mother should have been there.
Instead, two children were holding each other in a storage unit surrounded by what remained of their family's life.
Daniels crouched.
“Noah, where's your mom?””
The boy pointed toward the rear.
“Back there.””
Officers moved deeper inside.
Behind stacked furniture was a small partition.
An old mattress.
Blankets.
Water bottles.
Food wrappers.
A woman lay curled beneath a coat.
Ava screamed.
“Mom!””
Paramedics rushed forward.
“Stay back!””
Ava grabbed Wolf's arm.
“Is she dead?””
Wolf couldn't answer.
One paramedic checked the woman's neck.
Another opened an emergency kit.
Seconds felt like hours.
Then:
“I've got a pulse.””
Ava sobbed.
Noah buried his face against her.
Their mother was alive.
Barely.
She was dehydrated, weak, disoriented, and frighteningly thin.
But alive.
As paramedics lifted her onto a stretcher, her eyes fluttered open.
“Ava?””
Ava rushed beside her.
“Mom!””
Her mother's lips trembled.
“Noah?””
“He's here.””
The woman began crying.
Then her eyes moved beyond Ava.
Toward Wolf.
She stared at the patch on his vest.
“Black Ridge?””
Wolf stepped closer.
“Walter Harris.””
Recognition appeared slowly.
“Wolf?””
He swallowed.
“Yeah.””
She closed her eyes.
“Mike said... if anything happened... find you.””
Wolf felt the words like a punch.
Before he could ask what she meant, the paramedics moved her away.
Daniels followed.
Wolf remained inside the unit.
Something didn't fit.
Curtis had wanted everything in here sold.
Why?
Not merely because of money.
If money were the goal, why keep Ava's mother hidden here?
Why was Noah here?
And why had Mike left a warning specifically naming Curtis?
Ray called from the back.
“Wolf.””
Wolf walked over.
Ray stood beside an old steel workbench.
On it sat a locked metal box.
The brass key.
Wolf remembered.
He took it from his pocket.
Daniels had photographed it but allowed Ava to retain it as property belonging to her father.
Ava approached.
“Try it.””
Wolf handed her the key.
“Your dad left it for you.””
Her hand shook as she inserted it.
Click.
The box opened.
Inside were envelopes.
Bank documents.
Photographs.
And an old cellphone.
Ava stared.
“That must be the phone on the inventory.””
Wolf picked it up.
Dead battery.
Beneath it was a sealed envelope.
On the front:
AVA & NOAH.
Ava started crying again.
She opened it.
Inside was a handwritten letter.
Kids,
If you're reading this, something went wrong.
Trust your mother.
Trust Wolf Harris if you can find him.
And whatever Curtis tells you, do not believe I died because of an accident.
Ava stopped reading.
Wolf felt every muscle in his body tighten.
Ray whispered:
“Jesus.””
There was more.
Ava forced herself to continue.
Curtis has been stealing from your grandfather's estate for years. I found proof. Your mother and I were preparing to turn everything over to the police.
I kept copies because Curtis discovered we knew.
If something happens to me, the evidence is on the phone.
Ava lowered the letter.
“My dad knew.””
Wolf stared at the dead phone.
Mike hadn't hidden money.
He'd hidden evidence.
Footsteps approached.
Officer Daniels returned.
“You need to see something.””
They followed him toward the facility office.
The manager had pulled surveillance footage.
Daniels pointed toward the monitor.
Three nights earlier.
11:47 p.m.
A vehicle entered the gate.
Curtis's truck.
It stopped outside Building C.
Curtis climbed out.
Then opened the passenger door.
Noah emerged.
Ava covered her mouth.
Curtis led him toward Unit 317.
“He brought him here,” she whispered.
The footage continued.
Curtis opened the storage unit.
Noah entered.
Curtis remained outside.
Five minutes.
Ten.
Then Curtis suddenly looked toward the security camera.
His face changed.
He hurried back into the unit.
Seconds later, he emerged alone.
He locked the door.
Got into his truck.
And drove away.
Ava started shaking.
“He locked Noah inside.””
Daniels nodded grimly.
But Wolf was focused on something else.
“Go back.””
The manager rewound.
“Stop.””
Wolf pointed at the screen.
Curtis had not arrived alone.
Another vehicle entered the facility thirty seconds behind him.
Black sedan.
It stopped beyond the camera's clearest view.
Someone stepped out.
A woman.
Tall.
Dark coat.
Face partially hidden.
Ava leaned toward the screen.
“Who is that?””
Nobody answered.
The woman walked toward Curtis.
They spoke.
Then she handed him something.
An envelope.
Curtis put it inside his jacket.
Wolf frowned.
“Can you get another angle?””
The manager switched cameras.
The woman crossed beneath a light.
Her face became visible.
Ava gasped.
“No.””
Wolf looked at her.
“You know her?””
Ava stared at the screen.
Her face had gone white.
“That can't be her.””
“Who?””
Ava stepped backward.
“My aunt Rebecca.””
Daniels frowned.
“Curtis's wife?””
“No.””
Ava shook her head.
“Curtis doesn't have a wife.””
“Then who is Rebecca?””
“My dad's sister.””
Wolf felt another piece of the puzzle shift.
Michael's own sister had met Curtis at the storage facility the night Noah disappeared.
“Where does she live?”” Daniels asked.
Ava's voice trembled.
“Chicago.””
“When did you last see her?””
“At Dad's funeral.””
The footage kept playing.
Rebecca walked back toward the sedan.
Before entering, she stopped.
Turned.
And stared directly into the camera.
Then she drove away.
Daniels immediately radioed for identification and vehicle records.
Ava looked down at her father's letter.
“There has to be more.””
Wolf nodded.
“The phone.””
The facility manager found a charger.
They plugged it in.
Nothing.
Then the battery icon appeared.
One percent.
Two.
Three.
The screen finally illuminated.
There was no password.
Only one folder on the home screen.
VIDEOS.
Wolf opened it.
Seven files.
The newest had been recorded the night before Mike died.
Wolf pressed play.
Michael Bennett appeared on the screen.
Older than Wolf remembered.
Tired.
Afraid.
But unmistakably Mike.
He stared into the camera.
“If you're watching this, I probably didn't get the chance to finish what I started.””
Ava began crying silently.
Mike continued.
“Curtis thinks this is about money.””
He shook his head.
“It isn't.””
Wolf leaned closer.
Mike looked over his shoulder as if afraid someone might enter the room.
Then he whispered:
“Curtis didn't steal the inheritance by himself.””
The video shook.
Mike lowered his voice.
“There is someone else.””
Ava wiped her tears.
“Who?””
On the recording, Mike took a breath.
“If anything happens to me, don't trust Rebecca.””
Ava recoiled.
The screen suddenly went black.
Video ended.
Nobody spoke.
Then Officer Daniels's radio crackled.
“Unit Twelve to Daniels. We located the black sedan from your footage.””
Daniels grabbed the radio.
“Where?””
“Abandoned near River Road.””
“Owner?””
A pause.
Then the dispatcher answered.
“Registered to Rebecca Bennett.””
Daniels looked toward Ava.
The radio crackled again.
“There's something else.””
“What?””
“We found blood in the trunk.””
Ava grabbed Wolf's hand.
But the dispatcher wasn't finished.
“And a child's jacket.””
Daniels looked at Noah.
Noah stared back.
Then the boy whispered:
“That isn't mine.””
Ava turned toward him.
Noah's face had changed.
“What is it?”” she asked.
He looked at their father's phone.
Then toward the dark corridor outside the office.
“When Uncle Curtis brought me here... Aunt Rebecca wasn't the only person waiting.””
Wolf crouched.
“Who else was there?””
Noah swallowed.
“A man.””
“What man?””
“I don't know his name.””
“Did you hear Curtis call him anything?””
Noah nodded.
Everyone waited.
May you like
The boy's next words made Wolf's blood run cold.
“He called him Officer.””
