Chapter 4 - THE OTHER WOMAN
The textile mill stood twelve miles outside Bellhaven, beyond a railway crossing and a line of empty warehouses.
Ryan’s father had managed the facility for twenty-two years. When the company collapsed, Thomas Mercer invested his savings to preserve the building and protect the pensions of the remaining workers.
Three months later, he was found dead inside the records office.
The official report called it a heart attack.
Ryan remembered something else.
His father’s desk had been empty.
Every financial record had disappeared.
Ryan drove Vanessa’s sedan through the darkness while she sat silently beside him. He had refused to leave her at the house.
If she was involved, he wanted her close.
If she was not, he wanted to see her reaction when they found Helen.
The mill appeared beyond the trees, its brick walls broken and its windows covered with plywood.
A dim light moved inside.
Ryan parked behind an abandoned delivery truck.
Vanessa reached for the door handle.
“Stay here,” he said.
“You don’t command me.”
“No. But whoever is inside may be expecting you.”
She turned toward him.
“You still believe I’m responsible.”
“I believe you know more than you’ve admitted.”
Vanessa’s voice softened.
“Ryan, there are things about your mother you don’t understand.”
“Then explain them.”
“She has been giving money away.”
“To whom?”
“Strangers. Charities. People who contact her online.”
“How much?”
“Nearly two hundred thousand dollars.”
Ryan studied her face.
“That would have appeared in her bank records.”
“It did.”
“I monitor the account she uses for household expenses.”
“She has other accounts.”
“My mother has never hidden money.”
“Your father did.”
Ryan stopped moving.
Vanessa looked toward the mill.
“Thomas Mercer left assets no one knew about.”
“How do you know?”
“Because Helen told me.”
“When?”
“After her fall.”
“What assets?”
Vanessa opened the door.
“Ask her yourself.”
Ryan caught her arm lightly before she stepped out.
“Why did you say Caroline was no longer a problem?”
Vanessa’s face became unreadable.
“I didn’t.”
“My watch recorded you.”
“Then perhaps your watch misunderstood.”
She pulled free and walked toward the mill entrance.
Ryan followed.
The side door was unlocked.
Inside, dust covered the concrete floor. Old machines stood beneath hanging sheets. The moving light had disappeared.
“Helen?” Ryan called.
His voice echoed across the building.
A faint sound came from the second floor.
Ryan moved toward the stairs.
Vanessa remained behind.
“Ryan,” she whispered.
He turned.
She was staring toward an office with a broken glass wall.
A woman sat inside.
She was tied to a chair with strips of fabric around her wrists. Her gray hair covered part of her face. A bruise darkened one cheek, but she was conscious.
Ryan hurried inside and loosened the restraints.
The woman lifted her head.
“You’re Thomas’s son.”
“Are you Caroline Reese?”
Her eyes filled with tears.
“Yes.”
“Where is my mother?”
Caroline looked at Vanessa.
Ryan followed her gaze.
Vanessa had not entered the office.
She stood several feet away.
“Tell him,” Vanessa said.
Caroline began shaking.
Ryan placed himself between them.
“Vanessa can’t hurt you.”
Caroline laughed bitterly.
“You don’t know Vanessa.”
“Then help me understand.”
“She found us through the foundation.”
“What foundation?”
Caroline looked at Ryan as though the answer should have been obvious.
“Your father’s.”
Ryan felt the room tilt.
“My father didn’t have a foundation.”
“He did. He created it after the mill closed.”
“For what?”
“To repay the workers.”
Caroline took a painful breath.
“The company pension fund was robbed. Thomas discovered the theft. He used his own assets to begin replacing the money. He placed everything into a private trust.”
“Who controlled it?”
“Helen.”
Ryan turned toward Vanessa.
She was gone.
He ran into the factory.
The main door stood open.
The sedan’s engine started outside.
Ryan reached the exit as Vanessa reversed into the road and disappeared.
He immediately called Captain Ward.
“Vanessa left in the black sedan. My mother is missing. I found Caroline Reese restrained inside the old Mercer mill.”
“Local officers are on the way,” Ward said. “Do not pursue alone.”
“I need the vehicle tracked.”
“We’re working on it.”
“She knows where my mother is.”
“So does Caroline.”
Ryan returned to the office.
Caroline had freed one hand completely. Ryan removed the remaining fabric and helped her stand.
“Who brought you here?”
“Daniel Price.”
“Is that his real name?”
“No.”
“What is it?”
“Daniel Cole.”
Ryan understood.
“He’s Vanessa’s brother.”
Caroline nodded.
“They use different last names when they approach families.”
“Families with elderly relatives?”
“Families connected to dormant trusts.”
Ryan led her toward the entrance.
“How many?”
“I don’t know. At least six.”
“And my mother?”
“She was different.”
“Why?”
“Because Helen knew what they were doing before they entered the house.”
Ryan stopped.
“That doesn’t make sense.”
“She invited Vanessa.”
Ryan stared at Caroline.
“My mother met Vanessa after I did.”
“No,” Caroline said. “Vanessa met you because of your mother.”
Sirens approached in the distance.
Caroline looked toward the road, terrified.
“We can’t wait here.”
“The police are coming.”
“You don’t know which police.”
“What are you saying?”
Caroline pulled a folded photograph from inside her shoe.
It showed Helen standing beside Vanessa outside a courthouse three years earlier.
May you like
On the back, Helen had written a single sentence.
If Vanessa reaches Ryan, the plan has failed.
