Chapter 7: The Man Across the Street
I had heard the name Thomas Bell before.
But hearing it from my mother while his car sat across the street made every memory of that name feel different.
The black sedan remained motionless.
Engine running.
Windows dark.
I stepped closer to the curtain.
Rebecca grabbed my arm.
“Don't.””
“Why?””
“Because if he's watching, I don't want him to know we've seen him.””
I turned.
“You knew he was alive?””
“I knew he disappeared.””
“That isn't an answer.””
“No,” Rebecca said.
“It isn't.””
Mom walked slowly toward the kitchen table.
Her hands were shaking so badly that she had to hold the chair for support.
“David,” she whispered, “lock the doors.””
I did.
Front door.
Back door.
Windows.
Then I pulled the curtains shut.
The sedan stayed outside.
For another ten minutes, nobody spoke.
Finally, I turned to Rebecca.
“Start at the beginning.””
She nodded.
“Your father discovered that Thomas had been stealing from the company. Not a little. Hundreds of thousands.””
“How?””
“Fake invoices. Shell companies. Payments routed through accounts your father couldn't see.””
I remembered the company records Michael had found.
Harper & Lane Consulting.
“Was Harper & Lane one of them?””
Rebecca looked surprised.
“Yes.””
My stomach tightened.
“Vanessa's company.””
Rebecca nodded.
“Thomas taught her how to build shell companies.””
Mom closed her eyes.
“I should have known.””
I looked at her.
“You knew Thomas was involved.””
“I knew your father suspected him.””
“And you still let Vanessa into our lives?””
Mom's eyes filled with tears.
“I didn't know she was his daughter until after you married her.””
Rebecca frowned.
“When did you find out?””
“Three months later.””
I stared at her.
“You knew three months after my wedding?””
“Yes.””
“And you said nothing?””
“I was terrified.””
I walked away.
My whole marriage had become a chain of secrets.
Rebecca followed me into the living room.
“David, there's something else.””
I stopped.
“What now?””
“The money Vanessa moved wasn't all stolen.””
I turned.
“What?””
“She moved some of it to protect it.””
“From Thomas?””
“Yes.””
“Then why didn't she tell me?””
Rebecca gave me a tired look.
“Would you have believed her?””
I thought about the coffee.
The hospital.
The statements.
The secret company.
“No.””
“Exactly.””
“That doesn't excuse stealing.””
“I didn't say it did.””
She sat on the sofa.
“Vanessa made a terrible decision. But she wasn't trying to keep all the money.””
“Then where is it?””
Rebecca looked at Mom.
“Your mother knows.””
Mom nodded slowly.
“The money is in an offshore trust.””
My jaw tightened.
“Whose name?””
“Rebecca's.””
I stared at her.
“Then why did Vanessa transfer seventy-five thousand to Rebecca?””
“Because she needed Rebecca to activate it.””
“Activate what?””
“The protection clause.””
I didn't understand.
Rebecca explained.
“Your father created a clause in the trust. If his heirs were ever threatened because of the money, the trust could be frozen and moved into protected custody.””
“Why would Vanessa need that?””
“Because Thomas found out she was moving the money.””
“And?””
“He threatened her.””
“How?””
Rebecca reached into her folder.
She pulled out photographs.
Vanessa outside her boutique.
Vanessa getting into her car.
Vanessa at home.
My hands went cold.
“When were these taken?””
“Over the last four months.””
“Who took them?””
“We don't know.””
Rebecca handed me another photograph.
It showed Vanessa standing outside the hospital.
My mother was visible through the glass behind her.
On the back, someone had written:
*She knows.*
I looked at Mom.
“What does Thomas want?””
She whispered:
“Everything.””
The sedan suddenly pulled away.
I watched it disappear down the street.
Rebecca stood.
“He knows we're here.””
“How?””
She pointed toward the window.
A tiny red light blinked on the streetlamp.
“Camera.””
My heart pounded.
“That's been there for weeks.””
Mom covered her mouth.
“I didn't know.””
Rebecca moved quickly.
“Turn off every light.””
We did.
The house fell dark.
I called Michael.
He answered immediately.
“David?””
“Thomas Bell is watching my mother's house.””
There was a pause.
“Are you certain?””
“Yes.””
“Leave.””
“What?””
“Take your mother and Rebecca somewhere safe.””
“Where?””
“Hotel. Police station. My office. Anywhere public.””
Before I could respond, headlights appeared at the end of the street.
Not one vehicle.
Two.
Rebecca looked at me.
“Too late.””
The cars stopped.
Doors opened.
Three men stepped out.
My pulse slammed against my ribs.
“Who are they?””
Rebecca shook her head.
“I don't know.””
Mom whispered:
“David, there's a room upstairs.””
“What?””
“A room your father built.””
She took my hand.
“There's something hidden there.””
I followed her.
Rebecca came behind us.
Mom pushed aside an old painting in the hallway.
A keypad appeared in the wall.
I stared.
“Mom, what is this?””
She entered six numbers.
The wall clicked.
A narrow door opened.
Inside was a small room.
No windows.
A metal cabinet.
A desk.
And dozens of boxes.
Mom walked to the desk.
She opened a drawer.
Inside was a cassette recorder.
An old one.
Beside it was a note.
My father's handwriting.
*David, if you're reading this, they found you.*
I stared at the sentence.
Then footsteps sounded downstairs.
Someone had entered the house.
Rebecca grabbed my arm.
“Don't move.””
The footsteps stopped beneath us.
Then a man's voice called from the hallway.
“Evelyn?””
Mom began to cry.
May you like
Because she recognized the voice.
Thomas Bell had finally come inside.
