Chapter 4: The Secret in the Guest Bedroom
My father immediately ordered Daniel to call Detective Harris.
Vanessa began shaking her head.
“No. No, that's not what I meant.””
I stared at her.
“Then explain it.””
She looked toward the door.
“I need to go.””
My father stepped in front of her.
“You're not leaving until you explain what you just said.””
“Daddy, please.””
“Did Marcus tell you he wanted Nia dead?””
Vanessa's mouth trembled.
“I didn't say that.””
“You said she wasn't supposed to survive the night.””
“I was upset!””
My father pointed toward the chair.
“Sit down.””
Vanessa refused.
Then she clutched her stomach.
“My baby. I need to sit.””
Mrs. Brooks appeared with a chair.
Vanessa lowered herself into it, breathing heavily.
I looked at her.
“Is the baby okay?””
She glanced at me.
For one brief moment, her expression softened.
Then she looked away.
“Don't pretend you care.””
I stepped back.
“I care about the baby. That doesn't mean I forgive you.””
Detective Harris arrived fifteen minutes later.
He asked Vanessa to explain her statement.
She immediately changed her story.
“I meant Marcus thought Nia would leave the party. He didn't want her there.””
The detective looked at her.
“Why would he want your sister to leave?””
Vanessa shrugged.
“We've had disagreements.””
“What disagreements?””
“Personal things.””
He turned to me.
“Mrs. Bennett, would you mind waiting outside?””
My father protested.
But I agreed.
I walked into the hallway.
Daniel was standing beside the study door.
He looked uncomfortable.
“Is something wrong?”” I asked.
He hesitated.
“There's something I think you should know.””
I frowned.
“What?””
“Last night, after the ambulance left, I reviewed the cameras around the guest wing.””
“What were you looking for?””
“Someone entered your father's private office.””
I stared at him.
“Who?””
Daniel glanced toward the study.
“Your husband.””
My stomach dropped.
“When?””
“Approximately twenty minutes after you left.””
“Why?””
“He went directly to the filing cabinet.””
I looked toward the study door.
“Did he take anything?””
Daniel nodded.
“A brown folder.””
My father had several brown folders in his office.
But one particular folder came to mind.
The original trust documents.
“Daniel, did you tell my father?””
“I was waiting to confirm what was missing.””
I turned toward the study.
“I need to see that office.””
Daniel led me upstairs.
The office was on the second floor, beside my father's private library.
A heavy wooden door opened into a room filled with bookshelves and framed photographs.
I walked straight to the filing cabinet.
The top drawer was open.
Several folders had been moved.
Daniel pointed toward the empty space.
“This is where the original trust file was.””
I touched the shelf.
“Are you sure?””
“I've maintained these records for nine years.””
He opened another drawer.
Inside were copies of property deeds, company agreements, and insurance documents.
One envelope had been torn open.
I pulled it out.
The return address belonged to a private bank in Atlanta.
Inside was a letter confirming that my father had requested an updated list of authorized signatories for several family accounts.
But the letter had been altered.
A handwritten note was attached.
*Remove Nia Bennett. Add Vanessa Bennett.*
I looked at Daniel.
“Who wrote this?””
“I don't know.””
I turned the paper over.
There was a faint impression from another document.
I held it beneath the desk lamp.
Several words became visible.
*Beneficiary release.*
And beneath that:
*Subject: Lily Bennett.*
My hands went cold.
I called Rebecca immediately.
She answered on the second ring.
“Nia?””
“Someone has been in my father's office. The original trust file is missing.””
“Don't touch anything else. Have security preserve the room.””
“I found a letter changing the authorized signatories.””
“Send me a photograph.””
I did.
A few seconds passed.
Then Rebecca spoke.
“Nia, this is serious.””
“What?””
“The document appears to be part of an attempt to change control of the trust without the required authorization.””
“Can they do that?””
“No. Not legally. But they may have been trying to make the financial institutions believe the changes were approved.””
I sat down.
“Why would Marcus need Lily's trust?””
“Because it may represent a significant asset base. If they could establish control over the trustee arrangements, they might gain access to decisions involving those funds.””
I looked at the empty filing space.
“And if something happened to me?””
Rebecca went quiet.
“Then the documents they've been preparing could become even more important.””
I ended the call.
For a few moments, I couldn't move.
Then Daniel spoke.
“There's something else.””
I looked up.
“What?””
“The camera in your father's office recorded Marcus entering. But the audio system also captured a conversation outside the room.””
He opened his tablet.
The recording began.
Marcus's voice was unmistakable.
“Did you get it?””
Vanessa answered.
“Yes.””
“Everything?””
“The trust file. The original signatures. All of it.””
Marcus lowered his voice.
“And what about Nia?””
Vanessa hesitated.
“She'll be handled.””
My fingers tightened around the edge of the desk.
Marcus spoke again.
“Don't improvise. We already discussed this.””
“I know.””
“Then make sure she doesn't get in the way.””
The recording ended.
I stared at the tablet.
Daniel looked away.
“I'm sorry, Mrs. Bennett.””
I couldn't speak.
For six years, I'd shared a home with that man.
I'd cooked his favorite meals.
I'd stayed awake when he was sick.
I'd given birth to his daughter.
And while I was building a family with him, he was planning how to take it apart.
My phone vibrated.
A text from Rebecca.
*Rebecca:* I've reviewed the trust documents. There is another issue. Call me immediately.
I called.
“Nia, I found a second agreement in the electronic records.””
“What agreement?””
“A proposed guardianship arrangement for Lily.””
I closed my eyes.
“Who was named?””
“Vanessa.””
I gripped the phone.
“Did my father approve it?””
“No. But there's a signature attached.””
“Whose?””
“Yours.””
I froze.
“That isn't possible.””
Rebecca continued.
“It's dated two months ago. It appears to be a scanned copy of your signature.””
I remembered signing several documents that summer.
Marcus had brought home paperwork for our insurance policies.
He'd told me they were routine.
I'd signed where he pointed.
My stomach turned.
“Rebecca, could he have taken my signature from those documents?””
“Possibly. We need the originals.””
I looked at the tablet again.
Marcus's voice echoed in my mind.
Don't improvise.
I heard footsteps behind me.
My father entered the office.
“What happened?””
I handed him the tablet.
He listened to the recording.
When it ended, he sat down heavily.
For the first time in my life, I saw him look old.
“I'm sorry, sweetheart.””
I shook my head.
“You didn't do this.””
“I brought Marcus into this family.””
I knelt beside his chair.
“You trusted the man I married. That's not your fault.””
He touched my hair.
Then his expression hardened.
“Where is Vanessa?””
“In the study with Detective Harris.””
My father stood.
“Good.””
He walked toward the door.
But before he could leave, Daniel's tablet made a sound.
A new security alert.
Someone had entered the estate through the rear service gate.
Daniel checked the screen.
His expression changed.
“Mr. Bennett?””
“What?””
“It's Marcus.””
My father frowned.
“He was here earlier.””
Daniel zoomed in on the image.
Marcus wasn't alone.
A second person was sitting in the passenger seat.
I leaned forward.
Then I recognized the face.
May you like
It was my mother.
And she was carrying the same brown folder Marcus had stolen from my father's office.
