Chapter 5 - What Her Father Left Behind
The storage building stood on the edge of town.
Laura arrived at 8:54 a.m.
She stayed in her car for several minutes.
Then she noticed something unusual.
Daniel's car was parked near the entrance.
Her husband had supposedly been out of town.
Laura called him.
No answer.
She stepped out of the car.
The storage building was nearly empty.
Margaret stood near a metal door.
“You came.”
Laura stopped several feet away.
“Where's Daniel?”
Margaret looked toward the parking lot.
“He came here before you.”
“Why?”
“He wanted the same thing you do.”
Laura's anger rose.
“What is going on?”
Margaret unlocked the door.
Inside was a small storage unit.
Boxes covered the floor.
Old photographs.
Bank statements.
Legal folders.
A broken desk.
And a wooden box.
Margaret pointed toward it.
“That belongs to you.”
Laura stared at the box.
“My father left it?”
“Yes.”
“Why didn't you give it to me?”
“Because I was afraid.”
“Of what?”
Margaret looked at her.
“Of what would happen if you opened it.”
Laura knelt.
The box had no lock.
She lifted the lid.
Inside was a notebook.
A flash drive.
Several letters.
And a brass key.
Laura picked up the notebook.
Her father's handwriting covered the first page.
Laura,
If you're reading this, then something has gone wrong.
Laura stopped.
Her eyes filled with tears.
She continued.
There are people who believe the house is worth far more than money.
I found out why.
The next page contained a list of names.
Laura recognized three.
Margaret.
Daniel.
And a name she had never heard before.
Elliot Crane.
Her father had written beside the name:
Do not trust him.
Laura looked up.
“Mom.”
Margaret said nothing.
“Who is Elliot Crane?”
Margaret closed her eyes.
“He was your father's business partner.”
“Why would Dad warn me about him?”
“Because your father discovered that Elliot had been using the property for something illegal.”
Laura stared.
“What?”
“I don't know all of it.”
“You're lying.”
Margaret flinched.
Laura opened another letter.
This one was dated two months before her father's death.
The first line made her heart race.
If anything happens to me, the house must never be sold.
Laura looked at Margaret.
“You knew.”
“Yes.”
“You knew all these years.”
“I was trying to keep you safe.”
“You let me buy the house.”
“I thought the danger was gone.”
“Was it?”
Margaret didn't answer.
A sound came from outside.
Both women froze.
Footsteps.
Someone was approaching.
Margaret whispered, “Put everything back.”
“Why?”
May you like
“Because if he sees that you found the box, we won't get another chance.”
The door handle began to turn.
