Chapter 7 - THE BROTHER I NEVER KNEW
I stared at the photograph for almost a full minute.
“Who's Daniel?”
My mother said nothing.
Brooke looked at the floor.
Eliza whispered:
“Nolan…”
I turned toward her.
“You knew?”
“I knew there was a son.”
My voice cracked.
“You knew I had a brother?”
“Not for certain.”
Mother finally spoke.
“Daniel is dead.”
I turned toward her.
“You said Lillian was dead.”
“She was.”
“And now Daniel?”
“He died years ago.”
“How?”
Mother looked away.
Rachel stepped forward.
“Mrs. Mercer, where is Daniel's death certificate?”
Mother said nothing.
Detective Reed asked:
“Was Daniel legally registered as your husband's son?”
Mother's silence answered.
We searched the records.
Daniel Mercer had existed.
Born twelve years before me.
Mother had never listed him as a family member.
My father had paid for his schooling secretly.
There were bank transfers.
Medical bills.
Tuition payments.
Then one final payment.
A month before my father's death.
$250,000.
To Daniel Mercer.
But the account was closed shortly afterward.
Rachel frowned.
“This doesn't make sense.”
I stared at the records.
“Because he's not dead.”
She looked at me.
“What?”
“The payment.”
I pointed.
“Someone accessed this account after the supposed date of death.”
The final transaction was six months later.
Daniel was alive.
Someone had been hiding him.
We found him two days later.
He lived under another name in Wyoming.
When I knocked on his door, he stared at me.
Then laughed bitterly.
“So you finally came.”
I froze.
“You know me?”
“I've known about you my whole life.”
He invited us inside.
Daniel was forty-six.
He looked remarkably like our father.
Same eyes.
Same jaw.
Same expression when angry.
“You're my brother.”
“Yes.”
“Why did nobody tell me?”
“Because your mother wanted you to believe you were an only son.”
“Why?”
“Because your father left me evidence.”
“What evidence?”
Daniel pointed to a locked safe.
“Everything.”
Inside were documents.
Photos.
Bank statements.
And a letter from my father.
Daniel gave it to me.
Daniel,
If Diane discovers you have this, she will come after you. Keep Nolan safe. He is the only person who can legally stop her.
I looked up.
“Why me?”
Daniel answered.
“Because your father made you executor.”
I stared at him.
“What?”
“Your mother didn't know.”
Rachel took the document.
Her eyes widened.
“This is legitimate.”
Daniel smiled sadly.
“Your father planned everything.”
Then he handed me another envelope.
“This is the final piece.”
Inside was a handwritten confession.
Not from my father.
From my mother.
I read it.
She admitted manipulating the warehouse sale.
She admitted using Brooke.
She admitted knowing about the false loan.
And she admitted ordering Evan to frighten Eliza.
But there was one final sentence.
I never intended to kill Nolan.
I stopped reading.
Rachel took the letter.
“There is more.”
She pointed to the bottom.
But Evan decided otherwise.
I looked up.
“What does that mean?”
Daniel's expression changed.
“It means Evan wasn't working for your mother anymore.”
My phone rang.
Detective Reed.
“Nolan, we found Evan.”
“Where?”
“He's at the warehouse.”
“Alive?”
“Yes.”
“What is he doing?”
May you like
A pause.
“Waiting for you.”
