Chapter 6: The Letter My Mother Hid
Nobody spoke.
Emily stared at Claire Bennett.
"Who tried to kill my mother?""
Claire glanced toward the corridor.
"Not here.""
Michael stepped closer.
"You came here with Vanessa. You helped her take the jewelry box. Now you're telling us Laura was almost killed?""
Claire's eyes filled.
"I didn't help her take it. I was trying to get it away from her.""
"Then why did you leave with her?""
"Because she had something I needed.""
Daniel crossed his arms.
"What did she have?""
Claire looked at Emily.
"The original letter.""
Emily felt her stomach tighten.
"Why would Vanessa have my mother's letter?""
"Because she found it before I could.""
Michael's voice sharpened.
"Start from the beginning.""
Claire drew a shaky breath.
"I worked for Laura for four years. I handled her appointments, her bills, her correspondence, and most of the paperwork connected to the trust. When she got sick, she became increasingly worried about her finances.""
"Because of Vanessa?"" Emily asked.
Claire nodded.
"At first, Laura thought Vanessa was simply interested in Michael's business. Then she discovered that someone had been requesting copies of her investment statements.""
Michael frowned.
"Why would Vanessa want those?""
"Because she believed the money would eventually become hers.""
Emily stared.
"How?""
Claire looked at the floor.
"She thought that once Laura died, Michael would have full control of the estate. She believed she could persuade him to move the money into a joint account.""
Michael's expression hardened.
"She knew the trust was protected.""
"Yes. Laura explained it to her. That's when things changed.""
Claire looked toward the recorder.
"Your mother began keeping copies of everything. She saved bank statements, emails, and recordings of conversations. She was afraid somebody might alter the original documents.""
Daniel nodded slowly.
"That's why there are duplicate records.""
"Exactly.""
Emily looked at Claire.
"Why didn't you tell my father?""
Claire's face crumpled.
"I tried.""
"When?""
"Several times. But every time I called, Vanessa answered. She told me Michael was traveling or busy. Eventually, she warned me that if I contacted him again, she'd tell him I had stolen from Laura.""
Michael shook his head.
"She said you stole?""
"Yes.""
"Why didn't you go to the police?""
Claire looked at him.
"Because she showed me a document with your signature authorizing a payment from Laura's account. She said you had approved everything and that I was the one creating trouble.""
Michael went still.
"She forged my signature?""
"I believe so.""
Daniel asked, "Do you have proof?""
Claire reached into her coat and removed a folded envelope.
"I have copies of the original bank instructions. Laura gave them to me before she died.""
Daniel took the envelope.
He examined the pages carefully.
"These are useful.""
Michael leaned over his shoulder.
"What do they show?""
"Payments made to a company called Meridian Holdings. The receiving account was opened under a business address associated with Vanessa.""
Emily frowned.
"Another company?""
Claire nodded.
"Vantage Property Group is relatively new. Meridian Holdings was the first company she used.""
Daniel flipped another page.
"There's a payment authorization dated December 2015.""
Michael stared at the signature.
"That's mine.""
"Look closer," Daniel said.
Michael examined it.
Then he shook his head.
"It's not.""
The signature looked close, but the M was too narrow and the final stroke was too short.
Someone had copied it.
Daniel placed the paper inside a clear sleeve.
"This could establish a pattern of unauthorized transactions.""
Emily turned to Claire.
"You said my mother hid a letter.""
Claire nodded.
"She wrote it the week before she died. She told me to keep it somewhere safe. She said it would only be opened if someone attempted to take your inheritance.""
"Where is it?""
Claire looked toward the storage unit.
"It was inside the jewelry box.""
Emily felt her stomach drop.
"But Vanessa has the box.""
"She has the wooden box. She doesn't have the hidden compartment.""
Claire reached into her coat again and pulled out a tiny brass latch.
It was shaped like a leaf.
Emily recognized it immediately.
Her mother's jewelry box had a small carved rose on its lid. The latch was hidden beneath one of the petals.
Emily stared at the piece in Claire's hand.
"How did you get that?""
"I removed it before Vanessa took the box.""
Claire placed it in Emily's palm.
"Your mother showed me how to open the secret compartment. She was afraid Vanessa would find it.""
Michael looked at Claire.
"Why would Laura hide something from me?""
Claire hesitated.
"Because she wasn't sure she could trust you.""
Michael's face tightened.
Emily looked at her father.
"Why?""
Claire spoke softly.
"Laura discovered that someone had used Michael's business credentials to authorize payments. She couldn't prove who did it. She thought he might be involved, but she didn't want to accuse him without evidence.""
Michael shook his head.
"I never took money from Laura.""
"I know that now," Claire said.
"But Laura didn't.""
Emily lowered her eyes.
Her father had been carrying a secret he didn't know existed.
And her mother had died believing the man she loved might have betrayed her.
"Was she alone when she died?"" Emily asked.
Claire's expression shifted.
"No.""
Emily waited.
"Who was with her?""
"I was at the hospital that afternoon. Michael arrived later.""
Michael frowned.
"That's not how I remember it.""
Claire looked at him.
"You arrived after the doctors had already called the family.""
Michael's voice cracked.
"I was stuck in traffic.""
"I know.""
Claire reached into her bag and removed a small photograph.
It showed Laura sitting in a hospital bed, her face pale but her eyes alert. She was holding a small envelope.
On the back was a handwritten note.
For Emily. When the time is right.
Emily touched the photograph.
"I never saw this.""
"Because the envelope disappeared before you received it.""
Michael's face darkened.
"Who took it?""
Claire didn't answer immediately.
Instead, she looked directly at Emily.
"Vanessa.""
Michael stepped back.
"She wasn't even married to me then.""
"No," Claire said.
"But she was already visiting the hospital.""
Emily looked confused.
"Why?""
Claire's eyes moved toward the entrance.
"That's something your father needs to explain.""
Emily turned.
"Dad?""
Michael shook his head.
"I barely knew Vanessa back then. She worked at a company that handled some of my business accounts. We met through a mutual contact.""
Claire's voice was quiet.
"She was also the person who brought Laura's final financial paperwork to the hospital.""
Michael went pale.
"That's impossible.""
"She said you had asked her to help.""
"I never asked her.""
Claire nodded.
"Laura knew that.""
Emily felt dizzy.
Her mother had been sick, frightened, and surrounded by people she didn't completely trust.
And Vanessa had been there.
At the hospital.
Before she ever became Emily's stepmother.
"Did Mom know Vanessa was trying to steal from her?"" Emily asked.
Claire looked at the floor.
"I think she knew more than she could prove.""
Daniel closed the folder.
"We need to preserve these documents. Claire, you'll need to give a formal statement.""
"I will.""
Michael looked at Claire.
"Why did you disappear after Laura died?""
Claire's eyes filled again.
"Because Vanessa came to my apartment with two men. She told me that if I tried to contact the family again, she'd make sure I lost my job and was charged with theft.""
Michael's expression changed.
"She threatened you?""
"She showed me copies of documents with my name on them. She said she could make it look as though I had stolen money from the estate.""
Emily felt a wave of anger.
"Why didn't you tell someone?""
"I was terrified. I had a daughter in college. I couldn't risk everything.""
Claire reached into her bag and pulled out a photograph.
"That's her.""
Emily looked down.
A young woman stood beside Claire in a graduation gown, smiling at the camera.
But Emily's attention was drawn to the woman standing behind them.
Vanessa.
The photograph was dated three weeks before Laura's death.
Emily frowned.
"Why was Vanessa at your daughter's graduation?""
Claire looked at her.
"Because she paid for it.""
Michael stared.
"What?""
Claire nodded.
"Vanessa offered to help my daughter with tuition. She said it was a gift from the family.""
Emily felt sick.
"Was it Laura's money?""
Claire looked down.
"I believe so.""
Daniel took the photograph.
"Do you have the tuition records?""
"Yes.""
"Where?""
"At my daughter's apartment.""
Michael shook his head.
"How much did she pay?""
Claire answered quietly.
"Forty-two thousand dollars.""
The number landed like another stone in Emily's stomach.
Her mother's money had been scattered across people's lives while the family believed the inheritance was untouched.
Emily looked at the small brass latch.
"How do we get the letter?""
Claire hesitated.
"There's a second compartment in the jewelry box. The latch opens it, but the box itself has to be returned.""
"Where is it now?""
"At Vanessa's apartment.""
Michael frowned.
"She left the house tonight.""
"Yes.""
"Then how do you know where she went?""
Claire looked toward Daniel.
"Because she called me.""
Daniel's eyes narrowed.
"When?""
"About fifteen minutes ago.""
Emily's phone vibrated.
She checked the screen.
A message from the unknown number.
I'm sorry I couldn't tell you who I was. Vanessa was monitoring my calls.
Emily looked at Claire.
"Was that you?""
Claire nodded.
"I've been trying to reach you for weeks. Vanessa found out last month and started threatening me again.""
Emily's fingers tightened around the phone.
Another message appeared.
Do not trust the first letter. It was replaced.
Emily looked up.
"What does that mean?""
Claire went pale.
"Show me.""
Emily handed her the phone.
Claire read the message twice.
Then she sat down hard on the metal chair.
"Oh no.""
Michael stepped forward.
"What?""
Claire looked at Emily.
"The letter I told you about. The one in the jewelry box.""
"What about it?""
Claire swallowed.
"Vanessa knows where the hidden compartment is.""
Daniel's expression hardened.
"How?""
Claire's voice dropped.
"Because I told her where I thought Laura had hidden it.""
Michael stared.
"You told her?""
"I thought it was the safest way to make her stop threatening my daughter. I thought she would take the box and leave the rest alone.""
Emily felt cold.
"Then she already has the letter?""
Claire nodded.
"She took the box. And if she knows about the compartment, she's probably removed the original.""
Emily looked at the brass latch.
"Then how do we know what was inside?""
Claire reached into her bag and produced a tiny folded piece of paper.
"I kept this.""
She opened it carefully.
It was a handwritten note from Laura.
Only one sentence was visible.
The truth about the night I fell is not in the letter.
Michael stared at it.
"What night?""
Claire looked at him.
"The night Laura was taken to the hospital.""
Emily frowned.
"Mom had a fall?""
Michael shook his head slowly.
"No. She told me she felt dizzy. She said she'd slipped near the staircase.""
Claire's eyes filled with tears.
"That's what Vanessa told everyone.""
The storage unit seemed to grow smaller.
Emily looked at the note again.
The night her mother fell.
The night that began the final chapter of her life.
She turned toward Claire.
"What really happened?""
Claire opened her mouth.
But before she could answer, Daniel's phone rang.
He checked the caller ID.
His expression changed.
"It's the police.""
Michael stepped closer.
"What happened?""
Daniel answered.
"Daniel Brooks.""
A voice spoke on the other end.
Daniel listened, then looked at Emily.
His face went completely still.
"Yes," he said.
"She's here with me.""
He paused.
Then he asked, "When did you find her?""
Emily's heart pounded.
Daniel ended the call.
Michael grabbed his arm.
"Who?""
Daniel looked between them.
"Vanessa has been involved in a car accident.""
Emily covered her mouth.
"Is she hurt?""
Daniel swallowed.
"She's alive.""
A moment passed.
Then he added:
"But the police found something in her car.""
Michael's voice dropped.
"What?""
Daniel looked at Emily.
"Your mother's original medical records.""
And underneath them was a hospital report with a handwritten note.
*Possible poisoning. Patient unable to identify substance.*
Emily stared at the words.
Her mother hadn't simply fallen.
May you like
Someone might have poisoned her.
And Vanessa had kept the evidence for eleven years.
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