Chapter 7: Beneath the Shop
Arthur's repair shop smelled exactly as I remembered.
Motor oil.
Rubber.
Metal.
A faint trace of smoke from the old coffee maker in the corner.
I stepped behind the counter.
Dust floated through shafts of sunlight.
Every wrench hung exactly where Grandpa had left it.
I touched one.
My fingers shook.
“You're sure this is the place?”” I asked.
Daniel nodded.
“Arthur said he built something beneath the shop in 2003.””
I searched the floor.
Concrete.
Oil stains.
Nothing.
Then I remembered my seventh birthday.
Arthur had blindfolded me and led me into the shop.
He'd made me swear never to tell anyone about a hidden door.
I hadn't thought about it in years.
I walked to the hydraulic lift.
Pressed my palm against the wall.
A click sounded.
A section of concrete shifted.
Daniel exhaled.
“Oh, God.””
A narrow staircase descended.
We went down.
At the bottom was a room filled with filing cabinets.
Boxes.
Hard drives.
Photographs.
And an old tape recorder.
I pressed play.
Arthur's voice filled the room.
“If you're hearing this, Lucas, you're old enough to know the truth.””
I sat down.
“I didn't keep you from your parents because they were poor parents.””
Static crackled.
“I kept you because they were dangerous.””
I looked at Daniel.
The tape continued.
“Your parents were working for Elias Vance. They helped move stolen funds through shell companies. When I discovered what they'd done, I confronted them.””
My mother's voice appeared in a recording.
“Arthur, you don't understand.””
Then Dad's.
“We can fix it.””
Arthur answered.
“No. You can confess.””
The tape stopped.
Another recording began.
My mother was crying.
“Arthur, please. If Elias finds out the baby is connected to you, he'll use him.””
I stared at the recorder.
My heartbeat thundered.
Arthur's voice came next.
“Then you leave. Tonight.””
Mom answered:
“You're serious?””
“Yes.””
“And Lucas?””
“He stays with me.””
The tape ended.
I pressed play again.
Nothing.
Daniel looked at me.
“You heard him.””
My eyes burned.
“He told them to leave me.””
“He told them to leave you alive.””
I stood.
Another box caught my attention.
Inside were photographs.
Dozens.
Arthur had taken pictures of me every year.
Five.
Six.
Seven.
Eight.
Twenty.
Twenty-five.
On the back of each one, he'd written something.
*Today he laughed at a squirrel.*
*He fixed his first engine.*
*He asked if his mother loved him.*
I picked up the final photograph.
Me at twenty-nine.
Sitting beside Arthur in the hospital.
On the back:
*He still thinks being abandoned was his fault.*
I broke down.
Daniel said nothing.
Then a metallic clank sounded upstairs.
Someone was in the shop.
We froze.
Footsteps crossed the concrete floor.
Then Mom's voice.
“Lucas?””
Daniel whispered, “She followed us.””
I grabbed the recorder.
We climbed the stairs.
My mother stood beside the hydraulic lift.
Dad was with her.
And behind them was a police officer.
For one second, I felt relief.
Then I recognized him.
The fake officer from the bank.
He smiled.
“You really should stop digging.””
I raised the recorder.
“You should hear this.””
I pressed play.
Arthur's recorded voice filled the shop.
The fake officer's face changed.
Mom looked horrified.
Dad whispered,
“Arthur kept that?””
“Yes.””
The officer raised his gun.
Daniel shoved me aside.
The shot hit him.
“Daniel!””
He collapsed against the workbench.
I grabbed the nearest fire extinguisher and swung.
The officer fell.
Dad ran.
Mom didn't.
She stared at me.
Then she slowly sank to her knees.
“Lucas.””
I looked at her.
“Why?””
She covered her face.
“Because Elias threatened to kill you.””
“You left me anyway.””
“I thought distance would save you.””
“You never came back.””
She looked up.
“He wasn't the only one watching.””
“What does that mean?””
She pointed toward the old office above the shop.
“Arthur had another reason to keep you here.””
I climbed the stairs.
Inside the office, I found a locked drawer.
The brass key opened it.
Inside was one final document.
Not a deed.
A birth certificate.
My father's name was blacked out.
Under *Father*, a different name appeared.
*Arthur Hale.*
I stared at it.
Daniel, bleeding downstairs, called out.
“Lucas!””
I looked over the railing.
His face was pale.
“You need to read the back.””
I turned the certificate over.
May you like
A handwritten sentence waited there.
*This document is the reason your parents abandoned you.*
