Chapter 14: The Last Man Thomas Trusted
The photograph changed everything.
Robert Hayes wasn't simply refusing to help.
He was being held.
Officer Harris immediately contacted the tactical response team.
“We have two possible hostage situations,” she said.
“One involving a minor, and another involving an attorney who may possess evidence connected to an organized property fraud investigation.””
Rose looked at the photograph.
“Can you save him?””
“We're going to try.””
Samuel paced the room.
“Robert knows where the sealed trust is stored. If we lose him, we lose our best chance of proving the original agreement.””
Evelyn shook her head.
“Not necessarily.””
She opened her handbag and removed a small brass key.
“Thomas gave me this, too.””
Samuel stared.
“What's that?””
“The key to the private archive.””
“Where is it?””
“Inside the old Hayes and Whitmore building.””
Samuel looked confused.
“That building was sold.””
Evelyn smiled sadly.
“Not the building. The basement archive. Robert kept a private room beneath the old records office.””
Marcus leaned forward.
“Can we get inside?””
“Possibly. There's a service entrance behind the building.””
Officer Harris immediately stopped her.
“No one is entering without police authorization.””
Evelyn nodded.
“Of course.””
But Rose wasn't listening.
She was staring at the photograph of Robert.
She remembered the attorney from Thomas's funeral.
He had stood beside her, holding her hand while she cried.
He had promised that the trust would protect Caleb.
Now he was in danger because of that promise.
“Officer Harris, I want to help.””
The officer looked at her.
“You've already helped by giving us the documents and statements.””
“Then let me do one more thing.””
“What?””
“Call Judge Price.””
Marcus immediately shook his head.
“Absolutely not.””
Rose looked at him.
“She's the person who wants the original trust. If I can get her talking, perhaps we can learn where Caleb is.””
Officer Harris considered the idea.
“Any conversation must be recorded and monitored.””
Rose nodded.
She called the number listed on the probate office's public website.
A receptionist answered.
Rose asked to speak with Judge Eleanor Price.
After several minutes, the judge came on the line.
“Mrs. Bennett. I understand you've been asking questions about your estate.””
Rose gripped the phone.
“Why did you reject my husband's trust amendment?””
A pause.
“I'm not familiar with the matter.””
“I have your signature.””
“Then perhaps you should bring the documents to my office.””
“I know what you did.””
The judge's voice became colder.
“Be careful, Mrs. Bennett. Accusing a judge of misconduct is a serious matter.””
“So is stealing an old woman's home.””
Another pause.
Then Price laughed softly.
“You really don't understand what you're involved in.””
“Then explain it.””
“Your husband was stubborn. He refused reasonable offers. He made promises he couldn't keep. People invested millions based on the assumption that your property would become available.””
Rose felt her hands shaking.
“Thomas didn't owe you anything.””
“He owed the people who made the development possible.””
“No. He owed his family.””
The judge sighed.
“Bring the original trust to the courthouse at midnight. Your grandson will be released once the document is verified.””
“And Robert Hayes?””
“Mr. Hayes is irrelevant.””
Rose's heart pounded.
“Is he alive?””
The judge didn't answer.
“Is he alive?””
Price's voice hardened.
“For your sake, I suggest you stop asking questions.””
The call ended.
Officer Harris looked at the recording device.
“We have a potentially significant admission, but not enough.””
Marcus glanced at Samuel.
“Can you identify where Robert is being held?””
Samuel studied the photograph.
“The office windows. I recognize the building.””
He enlarged the image.
“That's not the original Hayes and Whitmore building. It's the old records annex.””
Evelyn nodded.
“The basement archive is connected to it.””
Officer Harris contacted the tactical team.
They began preparing a rescue operation.
Meanwhile, Rose sat with Linda in the station's family room.
Linda had been quiet all evening.
“Mom?””
Rose looked at her.
“What?””
“Do you think Caleb will forgive me?””
Rose didn't answer immediately.
“That's something you'll have to ask him.””
“I know.””
“You can't expect him to forget what happened.””
Linda nodded.
“I don't.””
Rose studied her daughter.
“Why did you really help Michael?””
Linda looked down.
“At first, I was scared. Then I started believing him. He told me Dad had hidden money from us. He said Thomas had left me nothing because he never loved me as much as Caleb.””
Rose frowned.
“Your father loved you.””
“I know that now.””
“He built your bedroom with his own hands. He worked overtime to pay for your college. He kept every drawing you made when you were little.””
Linda began crying.
“I know.””
Rose reached for her hand.
“But you need to understand something. Your father didn't leave you out of the trust because he hated you. He left it for Caleb because he knew you would have your own life.””
Linda nodded.
“He trusted me to protect you.””
Rose gently withdrew her hand.
“And you didn't.””
Linda lowered her head.
For several minutes, neither spoke.
Then Linda said something unexpected.
“Mom, Michael told me there was another beneficiary.””
Rose looked up.
“What?””
“He said the trust was supposed to be divided between Caleb and someone else. A woman whose identity Thomas kept secret.””
“Who?””
“I don't know. Michael said her name was written in a sealed appendix.””
Rose turned toward Samuel.
“Is that true?””
Samuel looked troubled.
He opened the trust binder.
“There is a sealed appendix.””
He checked the final section.
Then he stopped.
The envelope was empty.
Samuel's face changed.
“That's impossible.””
Officer Harris approached.
“What?””
“The appendix is missing.””
Evelyn looked at the binder.
“Thomas gave me the original. It was sealed when I received it.””
Samuel examined the envelope.
“Someone opened it.””
Marcus frowned.
“Could Michael have taken it?””
“Possibly.””
Rose stared at the empty envelope.
“Who was the other beneficiary?””
Samuel shook his head.
“I don't know. Thomas told me the identity would be revealed only if the trust was challenged.””
Officer Harris looked at Rose.
“Do you have any idea who he might have named?””
Rose thought about Thomas's final months.
He had been unusually secretive.
He had made several telephone calls from the garden.
He had once asked her whether she remembered a little girl they had met at the hospital years earlier.
At the time, she thought he was confused.
Now she wondered.
Before she could say anything, an officer entered.
“Officer Harris, we have a development.””
The tactical team had reached the records annex.
Robert Hayes was alive.
But he wasn't alone.
They had found three people inside.
Robert.
A security guard.
And a woman.
The officer handed over a photograph.
Rose stared.
The woman wore a dark coat and held a folder against her chest.
Her face was familiar.
Not from the present.
From the past.
Rose's lips parted.
“That's…”
Marcus leaned closer.
“Who is it?””
Rose whispered:
“That's the little girl Thomas and I met at the hospital.””
Samuel looked at her sharply.
“What little girl?””
Rose stared at the photograph.
The girl was now a woman in her thirties.
And on the back of the photograph, the officer had written a name.
*Grace Whitmore.*
Samuel went completely still.
“That's my daughter.””
Margaret, who had been sitting silently nearby, stood up.
“Samuel, you told me Grace died with you.””
Samuel looked at her.
May you like
His voice cracked.
“I thought she did.””
