Chapter 9: The Last Person My Father Trusted
I was in the elevator before Emily finished calling security.
“Find her location!””
Emily held her phone against her ear.
“Detective Miller is tracing the call.””
I pressed the emergency button.
“Get the SUV downstairs.””
“It's already moving.””
The elevator doors opened.
I ran.
Patricia followed me into the lobby.
“Marcus, wait!””
I turned.
“What?””
“We need to think this through.””
“My mother has disappeared.””
“I understand. But if Samuel Cross is involved, we need to make sure we're not walking into another trap.””
I stared at her.
Then I took a breath.
“Fine. What do we know?””
Patricia opened her tablet.
“The call connected through a mobile network near the old courthouse. Detective Miller has officers in the area.””
“Any cameras?””
“Several.””
Emily approached.
“Mr. Reed, we have a location.””
She showed me the map.
An abandoned parking structure two blocks from the courthouse.
I looked at her.
“Let's go.””
The parking structure was almost empty.
A security camera blinked above the entrance.
Detective Miller's team had already arrived.
I stepped out of the SUV.
“Where is she?””
The detective approached.
“We found her handbag near the second level.””
My stomach tightened.
“Is there blood?””
“No.””
“Then where is she?””
“We're checking the surrounding streets.””
A uniformed officer approached carrying a small envelope.
“Detective, we found this near the vehicle.””
Miller opened it.
Inside was a photograph.
My mother stood beside an older man wearing a gray suit.
Samuel Cross.
On the back, someone had written:
*THE ORIGINAL AGREEMENT IS WITH ME.*
I stared at the photograph.
“When was this taken?””
“Yesterday,” Miller said.
I looked at the detective.
“Could Samuel have taken her?””
“Possibly.””
“Then find him.””
Miller nodded.
“We've already issued an alert.””
My phone vibrated.
An unknown number.
One message.
If you want Eleanor alive, bring the original land deeds to the old courthouse at six.
I showed it to Miller.
He read it.
“Do not respond.””
I looked at the clock.
4:58 p.m.
“That's less than an hour.””
“We'll handle this carefully.””
I stared at the message.
“Whoever sent this knows exactly where the documents are.””
Miller nodded.
“Which means they may have access to someone inside the company or your family records.””
I looked at Emily.
She was standing beside the SUV, pale and silent.
“Emily?””
She looked up.
“Yes?””
“Where is the original land deed?””
Her lips parted.
Then she whispered:
“Your father gave it to Samuel Cross.””
At 5:20 p.m., Detective Miller arranged a meeting with the bank.
The original documents were not in our possession.
They were held in a secured archive under Samuel Cross's legal authority.
But there was another copy.
My mother had kept it in her personal safety deposit box.
The bank confirmed that the box had been opened that morning.
Its contents were gone.
I looked at Patricia.
“Can we trace the withdrawal?””
“The bank has the identity verification record. The person who accessed it used Eleanor's credentials.””
“But my mother was with us.””
“Exactly.””
I turned toward Detective Miller.
“Someone impersonated her.””
Miller nodded.
“Or someone used a previously authorized identity document.””
I looked at the photograph.
The woman in the picture looked like my mother.
But now I wasn't certain it had been her.
“Can we identify who took the documents?””
“We're working on it.””
I looked at Emily.
“Find Samuel Cross's home address.””
She began typing.
A moment later, she stopped.
“Mr. Reed?””
“What?””
“His office is registered at the same address as Northbridge Advisory.””
I stared at her.
“The company that received the payments?””
“Yes.””
I felt a cold anger settle inside me.
“Then Samuel isn't just connected to this. He's in the middle of it.””
At 5:45 p.m., we arrived outside the old courthouse.
Detective Miller's officers had positioned themselves around the building.
I was instructed to remain inside the vehicle.
I didn't like it.
But I understood.
If someone was holding my mother, rushing inside could make things worse.
At 5:58, my phone rang.
Samuel Cross.
I answered.
“Where is my mother?””
A calm voice replied.
“Good evening, Marcus.””
“Where is she?””
“Safe.””
“Prove it.””
A short pause.
Then I heard my mother's voice.
“Marcus?””
“Mom!””
“I'm here.””
“Are you hurt?””
“No.””
Samuel returned to the phone.
“Now, about the documents.””
“What do you want?””
“The original land deeds.””
“You already have copies.””
“I want the originals.””
“Why?””
“Because Richard is prepared to close the acquisition tonight.””
I looked at Miller.
He gestured for me to keep talking.
“Then let him.””
Samuel laughed.
“You don't understand the legal structure. Without the originals, your mother's trust can be challenged.””
“Not if the ownership records are valid.””
“Are they?””
I didn't answer.
Samuel continued.
“Bring the documents to the courthouse. Come alone.””
“I'm not coming alone.””
“Then your mother remains where she is.””
The call ended.
Detective Miller looked at me.
“We need to identify the exact location.””
Emily raised her hand.
“There's something.””
She showed us a photograph.
It was a recent image from the courthouse's security system.
Samuel Cross was standing near a side entrance.
Behind him was a woman wearing a dark coat.
My mother.
I stared at the screen.
“Can you enhance that?””
Miller nodded.
An officer worked on the image.
A few seconds later, another person became visible.
Standing near the doorway.
Richard Harlan.
I looked at the detective.
“They're both here.””
Miller immediately gave instructions to his team.
“Secure the exits. Nobody moves until we have visual confirmation.””
I watched the courthouse entrance.
At 6:12 p.m., a side door opened.
Samuel stepped outside.
He carried a leather briefcase.
He looked toward the parking area.
Then he lifted his phone.
My phone rang.
I answered.
“I'm here,” I said.
Samuel smiled.
“I can see you.””
“Where's my mother?””
He pointed toward the building.
“Inside.””
“Let her go.””
“Give me the documents.””
I opened the SUV door.
Detective Miller grabbed my arm.
“Mr. Reed, wait.””
I stopped.
Samuel spoke again.
“There's something you should know before you make your next decision.””
“What?””
“Your father didn't leave the company to you because he trusted you.””
I stared at him.
“He left it to you because he had no choice.””
I felt my jaw tighten.
“What does that mean?””
Samuel lifted the briefcase.
“Your father signed a second agreement.””
“What agreement?””
“One that transferred control of the land portfolio to Richard Harlan if your mother ever returned.””
I looked at Miller.
He was listening carefully.
“Why would my father do that?””
Samuel smiled.
“Because he was trying to protect you from a scandal.””
“What scandal?””
He leaned closer to his phone.
“Your father wasn't the only person who falsified the original ownership records.””
I froze.
“Who else?””
Samuel's expression changed.
Then he said:
“Your mother.””
I looked toward the courthouse.
My mother appeared behind him.
Her face was pale.
“Marcus!”” she shouted.
Samuel turned.
A second later, a man stepped out from the doorway and grabbed her arm.
Richard Harlan.
I started forward.
Detective Miller shouted:
“Police! Hands where we can see them!””
Everything happened at once.
Officers rushed toward the entrance.
Richard pulled my mother behind him.
Samuel dropped the briefcase.
Someone shouted.
A car engine roared.
Then my mother broke free.
She ran toward the officers.
Richard tried to follow.
Two officers tackled him before he reached the stairs.
Samuel was arrested beside the briefcase.
I ran toward my mother.
“Mom!””
She stumbled into my arms.
I held her tightly.
For a moment, I didn't care about the documents, the money, or the company.
She was alive.
She was here.
And I wasn't going to lose her again.
At 8:30 p.m., we sat in a private room at the police station.
My mother held a cup of tea with both hands.
Detective Miller stood near the door.
“Mrs. Reed, we need your statement.””
She nodded.
But before she spoke, she looked at me.
“Marcus, there's something you need to hear first.””
I sat opposite her.
“Go ahead.””
She took a breath.
“Samuel was your father's lawyer for twenty years. Richard knew that. He used their relationship to gain access to the original documents.””
“How?””
“Your father trusted Samuel with the land records. When Richard began threatening the company, Samuel told your father he could protect the assets.””
“And he betrayed him?””
She nodded.
“Samuel helped Richard create the false transfer agreement.””
I looked at Detective Miller.
“Then why did my father keep working with him?””
“Because he was trying to collect evidence.””
My mother lowered her eyes.
“Your father believed Samuel would eventually turn against Richard.””
“Did he?””
“No.””
She paused.
“Not until it was too late.””
I leaned forward.
“What did Samuel mean about you falsifying the ownership records?””
My mother looked at me.
“It's true.””
I felt my chest tighten.
“What?””
“Twenty-seven years ago, when your father arranged my disappearance, we created a separate legal identity for me.””
I stared.
“Why?””
“To keep Richard from finding me.””
“And the ownership records?””
She nodded.
“Your father transferred part of the original land portfolio into a trust under my name. But the trust was registered using the identity we created.””
I shook my head.
“So the documents are false.””
“The identity was false. The ownership wasn't.””
I looked at Patricia.
She had joined us after the arrest.
“Can that be corrected?””
Patricia considered the question.
“Possibly. But we'll need the original records and evidence that the trust was legally established.””
My mother nodded.
“That's why Samuel wanted the deeds.””
I leaned back.
“Where are they?””
She looked toward Detective Miller.
“Inside the briefcase.””
Everyone turned.
Miller opened the case.
Inside were several documents.
But the original land deeds were missing.
Instead, there was a sealed envelope.
My name was written across the front.
I recognized the handwriting.
My father's.
I opened it carefully.
Inside was a letter.
Marcus,
If you are reading this, then Richard has finally made his move.
There is something I never told you.
The original land portfolio was never meant to belong to Reed Meridian.
I stopped.
My mother leaned forward.
“What does it say?””
I continued reading.
It belongs to the people who helped build this company.
The men and women who worked beside me when we had nothing.
I created an employee trust because I wanted them to share in what they helped create.
I placed the controlling documents in a separate trust, and I made your mother its guardian.
You were never meant to own everything, Marcus.
You were meant to protect it.
I lowered the letter.
For twenty years, I'd believed my father was building a company for our family.
But he'd been building something much larger.
I looked at my mother.
“Where are the original deeds?””
She closed her eyes.
“Your father hid them somewhere only you would think to look.””
“Where?””
She took my hand.
“At the first house.””
I stared at her.
Our childhood home.
The house that had been sold after my father's death.
The house where I'd spent the happiest years of my life.
May you like
Then she whispered:
“Under the floorboards in your old bedroom.””
