Chapter 10 - The House Beneath the House
The phrase followed Daniel all the way home.
Back underground.
He repeated it to Clara.
Her face lost color.
"Underground where?"
"No one knows."
Rebecca had already begun searching old property records.
Evelyn had lived in four houses during Daniel's childhood.
One stood out.
A farmhouse outside Briarwood, owned by Thomas's parents before their deaths.
Daniel remembered visiting occasionally.
An old barn.
Apple trees.
A basement that always smelled damp.
"Grandpa sold it," Daniel said.
"When?" Clara asked.
"After Grandma died."
Rebecca checked.
"No."
Daniel frowned.
"What?"
"Your grandfather transferred it."
"To who?"
Rebecca turned her laptop around.
Carter Family Holdings.
The same entity on the bank statements.
Daniel stared.
"So my mother owns it?"
"Effectively."
They contacted Brennan.
Within hours, police had enough to visit the property regarding stolen property and potential financial fraud, though not enough for a full search warrant.
Daniel insisted on going.
Clara remained home with Marcus and Marcus's wife, Jen.
Before Daniel left, Clara caught his sleeve.
"Don't disappear into this."
He looked at her.
"What do you mean?"
"You came home two days after our son was born and found me unconscious."
Daniel's expression tightened.
"I know."
"I need you to remember that this story isn't only about your mother."
He waited.
"It's also about us."
The words hurt because they were true.
"I'll come back."
"Promise?"
"Yes."
This time, Daniel intended to deserve the promise.
The farmhouse sat behind a rusted gate.
Brennan arrived with two detectives.
Evelyn wasn't there.
The caretaker claimed he hadn't seen her in months.
The house smelled like old wood and dust.
Daniel walked through rooms he barely remembered.
Then the basement.
Concrete walls.
Shelves.
Old tools.
Nothing unusual.
Brennan examined a wall.
"Fresh mortar."
The caretaker frowned.
"That repair's old."
"How old?"
"Ten years maybe."
One detective used a flashlight.
"There used to be a doorway."
Daniel's skin prickled.
"To where?"
The caretaker shrugged.
"Root cellar."
"Can we open it?"
Brennan shook his head.
"Not without consent or warrant unless we have exigent circumstances."
Daniel almost shouted.
Instead, he stared at the sealed wall.
Back underground.
He called Clara.
"We found something."
He explained.
Silence.
Then Clara said, "Daniel..."
"What?"
"I found something too."
"What?"
"The black notebook."
He froze.
"Mom took it."
"She took one."
Daniel's pulse jumped.
"You made a copy?"
"No."
Clara sounded uneasy.
"I think your mother replaced it."
"What do you mean?"
"The notebook in the drawer wasn't mine."
Daniel tried to understand.
"Then whose?"
"I don't know."
"Where is yours?"
"Inside Noah's bassinet."
He almost laughed.
"You hid it in the bassinet?"
"Under the removable padding."
"What does it contain?"
"My notes."
"About Mom?"
"About everything."
Daniel heard pages turning.
Then Clara went silent.
"What?"
"Daniel, there's writing on the last page."
"Yours?"
"No."
His stomach tightened.
"What does it say?"
Clara read:
You are looking in the wrong basement.
Daniel stared at the sealed wall.
"Who wrote that?"
"I don't know."
"Is someone in the house?"
Marcus immediately checked every room.
No one.
Daniel asked, "Was the bassinet ever out of your sight?"
Clara thought.
"At the hospital."
"When?"
"When Noah had his newborn screening."
Daniel looked toward Brennan.
"Someone accessed the notebook while we were at the hospital."
Clara's breathing changed.
"There's more."
"What?"
"The handwriting."
"What about it?"
"I've seen it before."
"Where?"
A long pause.
"On the notes your mother used to leave me."
Daniel closed his eyes.
"Then she wrote it."
"No."
Clara's voice dropped.
"Those weren't your mother's handwriting."
Daniel went still.
"How do you know?"
"Because I have a birthday card from her."
Silence.
May you like
Clara whispered:
"Daniel, somebody has been pretending to be Evelyn."
