Chapter 16 - The Name Behind the Lie
Caroline stared at the envelope on Margaret’s kitchen table.
For several seconds, neither woman moved.
“Your father lied,” Caroline whispered.
Margaret’s face had gone pale.
“My father died twenty-three years ago.”
“So did my aunt.”
Margaret looked up sharply.
Caroline slowly opened the envelope.
Inside was a single photograph.
It showed Caroline’s father standing outside an old government building beside three men Caroline recognized immediately.
One was Edward.
The second was the county sheriff.
The third was a man whose face had appeared in newspaper photographs for years.
Senator Richard Hale.
On the back of the photograph were six handwritten words:
THE WOMAN THEY BURIED WASN’T HER.
Caroline’s heart pounded.
“What does that mean?”
Margaret looked toward the locked back door.
“It means,” she whispered, “your father helped them bury a secret.”
A sudden knock echoed through the house.
Three knocks.
Then silence.
Margaret grabbed Caroline’s arm.
“Don’t answer.”
The knock came again.
This time, a voice followed.
“Caroline? It’s Travis.”
Margaret’s expression changed instantly.
“Whatever you do,” she said, “don’t let him see that photograph.”
May you like
Caroline looked toward the door.
For the first time, she wondered whether the deputy who had handcuffed the wrong woman had actually been protecting her all along.
