Chapter 7: Unit 214 Was Already Empty
The warning arrived at 11:18 a.m.
Nia read it twice, then turned her phone toward Tasha.
If you found the key, go to Unit 214 before your husband does.
But check the lock before you enter.
Someone has already been inside.
Tasha stood beside the kitchen table, still holding the court filing Evelyn had printed that morning.
“Absolutely not,” she said.
Nia looked up.
“What?””
“We are not driving to some storage facility because an anonymous stranger tells us to.””
“It's my grandfather's unit.””
“And somebody knows about it. Somebody who apparently knows what messages you're receiving. That doesn't make me want to go faster.””
Angela sat quietly, her fingers wrapped around a mug of tea that had long since gone cold.
“Your grandfather never mentioned a storage unit,” she said.
“He left me the key.””
“I know, sweetheart. I'm just saying we should be careful.””
Nia looked at the brass key on the table.
For six months, she had believed her grandfather's affairs were settled. She had believed Darius when he said there was nothing left to handle. She had accepted that the man who had loved her since childhood had died without leaving anything important behind.
Now every new piece of evidence suggested that someone had spent months making sure she never discovered the truth.
“I need to see what's there,” she said.
Tasha shook her head.
“Then we're doing it properly. We tell Evelyn where we're going. We take pictures of everything. We don't touch anything that could be evidence without documenting it.””
“And if someone is waiting for us?””
“Then we leave.””
Nia nodded.
For once, she didn't argue.
Twenty minutes later, Evelyn called back.
“I've contacted the independent trustee,” she said after hearing about the messages.
“He confirms that your grandfather rented a storage unit under his personal name. The account was paid through an automatic withdrawal, and the unit was not listed among the assets transferred to the trust.””
“Can you tell us what's inside?””
“No. But I can confirm that the rental agreement identifies Samuel as the sole authorized occupant.””
“Could Darius have accessed it?””
“Not legally, unless he had a separate authorization or obtained the key.””
Nia looked at the brass key.
“Someone knew about it.””
“That is concerning. I'm notifying the trustee and documenting the messages. Please don't go alone.””
“We won't.””
“And Nia?””
“Yes?””
“If the unit has been entered, do not assume anything inside is authentic merely because it appears to be your grandfather's handwriting or property. Preserve everything for independent examination.””
When the call ended, Tasha grabbed her purse.
“Fine. Let's go find out what our grandfather was hiding.””
Peachtree Secure Storage stood behind a row of auto repair shops on the edge of the city. The property was surrounded by a chain-link fence, with a keypad-controlled entrance and cameras mounted above the office.
Nia recognized the building immediately.
Her grandfather had brought her here once when she was twelve, supposedly to collect some old furniture.
She remembered the way he had placed a hand on her shoulder and told her never to open a locked door just because someone insisted she had a right to know what was behind it.
At the time, she thought he was teaching her about boundaries.
Now she wondered whether he had been teaching her about survival.
Inside the office, a young employee checked the identification Nia presented.
“Unit 214,” he said.
“One moment.””
He disappeared into the back office.
Tasha leaned toward Nia.
“Something about this feels wrong.””
Nia glanced at the cameras.
“What?””
“The employee didn't ask why we were here. He just looked at your ID and left.””
“He probably needs to check the account.””
“Maybe.””
The employee returned with a clipboard.
“Your grandfather's account is still active, but there was an access attempt yesterday afternoon.””
Nia's stomach tightened.
“By whom?””
“Someone requested access using the account holder's name. The identification didn't match, so our manager denied entry.””
“Do you have a description?””
“White male, approximately six feet tall. Dark suit. He said he was a legal representative.””
Tasha and Nia exchanged a look.
“Richard Hale,” Tasha whispered.
Nia turned back to the employee.
“Did he leave anything?””
The employee hesitated.
“He left a business card.””
He handed it over.
Richard Hale's name was printed in silver lettering.
Beneath it was a handwritten note.
Please call me regarding an urgent matter involving the estate of Samuel Williams.
Nia slipped the card into an evidence envelope Evelyn had given them.
“Can you show us the unit?””
The employee led them through a long corridor of metal doors.
Unit 214 was at the far end.
Before they reached it, Nia saw the lock.
It hung open.
The metal shackle had been cut.
Tasha stopped walking.
“Oh, hell no.””
The employee stepped forward, then froze.
“That wasn't like that yesterday.””
Nia's heart hammered.
“Did you check the unit?””
“No. We don't enter rented units unless there's an emergency or legal authorization.””
Tasha took Nia's arm.
“We're calling the police.””
Nia nodded.
The employee immediately returned to the office to notify his manager while Tasha contacted the authorities. Nia stood several feet from the open door, taking photographs of the lock, the surrounding floor, and the scrape marks along the metal frame.
She didn't touch anything.
Inside, the unit was dim and smelled of dust, cardboard, and old wood.
A metal shelf stood against the back wall. Several boxes lay overturned on the concrete floor. A desk drawer had been pulled out and left hanging at an angle.
Someone had searched the place.
Thoroughly.
Nia could see the rectangular outline where a large object had once rested on the shelf.
“What was supposed to be here?”” Tasha asked.
“I don't know.””
Nia took another photograph.
Then she noticed a framed picture lying facedown beneath a broken cardboard box.
She crouched, careful not to cross the threshold.
The photograph showed Samuel standing outside his old house with two younger people.
One was Camille.
The other was Darius.
But it wasn't the Darius she remembered from their wedding.
He looked younger, thinner, and furious.
On the back of the photograph, Samuel had written a date.
Four years before Nia married him.
Beneath the date were seven words.
The first time he tried to take everything.
Nia felt a chill move through her.
Darius had been involved with the company long before their marriage.
He had been involved with Camille.
And her grandfather had known something was wrong.
A police officer arrived twenty minutes later and secured the corridor. A second officer photographed the damaged lock and took statements from Nia, Tasha, and the facility manager.
Nia explained the history of the unit, the anonymous messages, and the warning about the break-in.
The officer listened carefully.
“Do you know what was taken?””
“No,” Nia replied.
“But the person who entered appears to have searched for something specific.””
“Do you have reason to believe your husband was involved?””
Nia hesitated.
“I have reason to believe he wants documents connected to my grandfather's business. His attorney tried to access this unit yesterday.””
The officer wrote that down.
“Has your husband threatened you?””
“Yes. He assaulted me last night, and his attorney has been pressuring me to hand over evidence.””
“Have you filed a report about the assault?””
“Not yet.””
“We can take that report today. If you have photographs of your injuries or messages from your husband, preserve them.””
Nia nodded.
The officer looked into the unit.
“Whatever is missing, we need to document the scene before anyone moves anything.””
As the police worked, Nia stepped outside to call Evelyn.
The attorney answered on the second ring.
“They broke into the unit,” Nia said.
Evelyn's voice sharpened.
“Are you safe?””
“Yes. The police are here.””
“Good. Don't remove anything. I'll contact the trustee and arrange for counsel to coordinate with the authorities.””
Nia looked through the glass office door.
“Evelyn, there was a photograph inside. My grandfather wrote something on the back. He said Darius had tried to take everything four years ago.””
A pause.
“Four years ago?””
“Yes.””
“That's the year Camille left Atlanta.””
Nia closed her eyes.
“Then this didn't begin with my inheritance.””
“No,” Evelyn said quietly.
“It may have begun long before your grandfather died.””
The call ended.
Nia turned toward the parking lot.
A black sedan was parked across the street.
Her pulse jumped.
The car looked like Darius's, but the windows were tinted. She couldn't see the driver.
Then the engine started.
The sedan pulled away from the curb and disappeared behind a delivery truck.
“Nia?”” Tasha called.
She hurried over.
“What happened?””
“Someone was watching.””
Tasha looked toward the street.
“Did you see who?””
“No.””
They waited until the officers finished documenting the scene. Before leaving, Nia gave them copies of the threatening messages and the photograph of the sedan's license plate from the night her grandfather died.
The officer promised to add the material to the report.
But when Nia returned to Tasha's car, her phone rang.
Daniel Price.
She answered immediately.
“Did you send me those messages?””
“No,” Daniel said. His voice was strained.
“What messages?””
“Someone warned me about the storage unit.””
“I didn't send them.””
“Then how did you know about the unit?””
Daniel went quiet.
“Mr. Price?””
“Because Samuel told me about it.””
Nia gripped the phone.
“When?””
“The week before he died. He said he'd stored a second set of records somewhere safe.””
“Why didn't you tell me last night?””
“Because I thought Camille had already told you.””
“She didn't know the location until I found the key.””
Daniel exhaled.
“Then someone else knows.””
Nia looked at Tasha.
“Do you know who broke into the unit?””
“No.””
“Do you know what was taken?””
“I have an idea.””
“What?””
Daniel's voice dropped.
“Your grandfather told me there was one document that could prove the company records had been altered. He said it was the only thing Darius couldn't explain away.””
“What document?””
“The original board resolution authorizing Darius to take control after Samuel's death.””
Nia stared at the open storage unit.
The document Camille had shown her was a copy. The original had disappeared from the company's records.
Her grandfather had kept another copy.
And someone had just broken in to find it.
“Was it in the unit?”” she asked.
“I don't know.””
“Then what do you know?””
Daniel hesitated.
“Samuel told me that if the original disappeared, I should look for the person who witnessed his signature.””
Nia's heart began to pound.
“Who witnessed it?””
Daniel answered with a name.
Nia felt her knees weaken.
May you like
Because the name belonged to someone who had been sitting on the sofa while Darius beat her the night before.
Denise Carter.
