Chapter 3 - The Man Who Knew My Father Was AliveThe police arrived twenty minutes later.
Dad explained everything.
The fake will.
The forged signature.
The stolen money.
The mysterious phone call.
The officers took statements from everyone.
The lawyer admitted he had been deceived.
But the strangest part came when one officer checked the security cameras.
Someone had entered the house at 1:18 a.m.
The footage showed a man wearing a dark coat and baseball cap.
His face was hidden.
But he carried something.
A medical bag.
Dad stared at the screen.
“That's him.”
“Who?”
“The man Samuel saw.”
I looked at him.
“The fake doctor?”
Dad nodded.
The officer rewound the footage.
The man entered Dad's office.
He stayed there for seventeen minutes.
Then he left.
The officer asked:
“Mr. Vance, is there anything valuable in that office?”
Dad hesitated.
“Yes.”
“What?”
“My father's journals.”
The officer frowned.
“Financial records?”
“No.”
Dad looked at me.
“Something much more dangerous.”
“What?”
Dad opened the bottom drawer of his desk.
It was empty.
His face changed.
“They're gone.”
“What was in them?”
“My father kept records of every major transaction involving Vance Holdings.”
The officer asked:
“How important are those records?”
Dad answered:
“Important enough that someone would kill to destroy them.”
Nobody spoke.
Then my phone rang.
It was Samuel.
I answered.
“Samuel?”
His voice was shaking.
“Clara, listen carefully.”
“What happened?”
“I found something.”
“What?”
“The man who came to my house last night wasn't your father's doctor.”
“I know.”
“No.”
Samuel sounded frightened.
“You don't understand.”
“What?”
“I know who he is.”
Dad took the phone from me.
“Who?”
Samuel hesitated.
“His name is Nathan Reed.”
Dad went completely still.
“Nathan Reed?”
“Yes.”
“That's impossible.”
“Why?”
“Because Nathan died.”
I felt the blood leave my face.
Samuel continued.
“Twenty years ago.”
Dad sat down.
I had never seen him look like that.
“What happened?”
Dad stared at the floor.
“Nathan was my business partner.”
My mouth fell open.
“What?”
Dad looked at me.
“Before I met your mother, I owned half of Vance Holdings.”
He took a breath.
“Nathan owned the other half.”
“What happened?”
“He stole money.”
“How much?”
“Millions.”
“And then?”
“He disappeared.”
Samuel interrupted.
“He didn't disappear.”
Dad looked at the phone.
“He was arrested under another name.”
“Exactly.”
Samuel said.
“But someone paid his bail.”
Dad's voice was barely audible.
“Who?”
Samuel answered:
“Your father.”
Dad froze.
“My father?”
“Yes.”
I looked at Dad.
His own father had secretly paid the bail of a man accused of stealing millions from their company.
Why?
Dad seemed to read the question on my face.
“I never knew.”
Samuel continued.
“Your grandfather didn't just pay his bail.”
He paused.
“He gave Nathan access to the company again.”
Dad stood abruptly.
“That can't be true.”
“It is.”
“How do you know?”
“Because I found the documents.”
Dad closed his eyes.
“Where?”
Samuel whispered:
“In the old warehouse.”
My heart began pounding.
The same warehouse Dad had just mentioned.
The place where the original records were stored.
Samuel continued.
“And Clara?”
“Yes?”
“There was a letter addressed to you.”
Dad's eyes snapped open.
“To Clara?”
“Yes.”
“What does it say?”
Samuel hesitated.
“I haven't opened it.”
Dad looked at me.
“Why would Grandpa write to you?”
“I don't know.”
Samuel said:
“You should come here.”
Dad grabbed his coat.
“We're leaving.”
I stared at him.
“Now?”
“Yes.”
“Dad, it's freezing.”
“I don't care.”
He looked toward the window.
“If my father left Clara a letter, then whatever is happening now started before she was born.”
And as we stepped outside, I noticed something carved into the frost-covered windshield of Dad's truck.
May you like
Three words.
YOU WERE WARNED.
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