Chapter 9 - Evelyn Shaw
Evelyn disappeared the morning police arrived to interview her.
Her apartment had been emptied.
Her company laptop was wiped.
Margaret denied knowing where she was.
“I employ dozens of people.”
Daniel stared at his mother across the interview room.
“Evelyn worked for you for twenty-seven years.”
Margaret shrugged.
“Then perhaps you should ask her.”
Noah’s fall had changed everything.
Child protective investigators documented the incident.
The mansion's foyer camera had captured enough to support Daniel's account.
Margaret insisted she had merely “moved her foot” and Noah fell.
The video suggested otherwise.
Daniel refused to argue with her.
He had learned something.
Margaret wanted him emotional.
Angry Daniel made mistakes.
Calm Daniel frightened her.
So he let Rebecca speak.
A temporary protective order barred Margaret from contacting Noah.
Then the estate litigation began.
Accounts connected to Lucas Carter were frozen.
Margaret's attorneys responded aggressively.
They claimed Daniel was exploiting an “unfortunate family accident” to seize control of Carter Holdings.
Then Daniel received a message from an unknown number.
STOP DIGGING INTO LUCAS.
He showed Rebecca.
“Don't answer.”
Another message appeared.
CLAIRE SHOULD HAVE STOPPED TOO.
Daniel went cold.
Police traced the prepaid number unsuccessfully.
That night, Daniel moved Noah to a secure rental home.
For the first time in months, Noah slept through the night with his hand curled around Daniel’s finger.
Daniel sat beside the crib.
“I’m sorry.”
Noah breathed softly.
“I should've trusted your mom.”
Daniel's eyes filled.
“But I'm going to fix it.”
At 2:13 a.m., his security camera sent an alert.
Someone had placed an envelope outside the house.
Police cleared it first.
Inside was a key.
A storage-unit number.
And one handwritten sentence.
CLAIRE WAS RIGHT ABOUT EVERYTHING.
Rebecca stared at the handwriting.
“Do you recognize it?”
Daniel did.
May you like
Evelyn Shaw had written every birthday card he'd received from his mother for fifteen years.
The message was from her.
