PART 4 \u2014 THE MAN WHO WAS SUPPOSED TO BE DEAD
\n\u201cLinda?\u201d
\nEvery hair on my arms stood up.
\nI knew that voice.
\nOlder now.
\nRougher.
\nBut underneath the years was the same voice I had heard thirty-five years ago at that crowded party.
\nJason moved in front of me.
\n\u201cMom, stay back.\u201d
\nRichard\u2019s sister grabbed his arm.
\n\u201cDon\u2019t go in there.\u201d
\nRichard stared toward the hallway.
\n\u201cIs it him?\u201d
\nShe nodded.
\nMy heart hammered.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
\u201cDaniel?\u201d
\nBefore anyone could answer, a man stepped into the kitchen.
\nHe looked to be in his early sixties.
\nSilver hair.
\nDeep lines around his mouth.
\nA scar ran from his left temple toward his ear.
\nBut it was his eyes that stopped me.
\nJason\u2019s eyes.
\nThe same gray-green color.
\nThe same slightly uneven eyebrows.
\nEven the way he tilted his head when he looked at me was painfully familiar.
\nJason slowly turned toward the old photograph on the table.
\nThen back at the man.
\n\u201cNo.\u201d
\nThe stranger\u2019s eyes filled with tears.
\n\u201cJason.\u201d
\nMy son stepped backward.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
\u201cDon\u2019t say my name.\u201d
\n\u201cI\u2019m sorry.\u201d
\n\u201cHow do you know who I am?\u201d
\nThe man looked at me.
\n\u201cBecause I\u2019ve known about him since before he was born.\u201d
\nMy knees nearly gave way.
\n\u201cYou\u2019re Daniel?\u201d
\n\u201cYes.\u201d
\nI stared at him.
\n\u201cBut I thought Peter was the man I met that night.\u201d
\n\u201cYou met me.\u201d
\nThe room became completely silent.
\nI remembered fragments.<\/p>\n
Music.
\nA crowded kitchen.
\nA young man laughing when I spilled my drink.
\nWalking outside because the house was too hot.
\nHe had introduced himself as Peter.
\nOr at least I thought he had.
\n\u201cYou told me your name was Peter.\u201d
\nDaniel closed his eyes.
\n\u201cI lied.\u201d
\n\u201cWhy?\u201d
\n\u201cBecause by then I was already afraid of what Peter had gotten us involved in.\u201d
\nJason stared at him.
\n\u201cSo you\u2019re saying you might be my father?\u201d
\nDaniel looked directly at him.
\n\u201cI\u2019m saying I am.\u201d
\nJason shook his head.
\n\u201cYou don\u2019t know that.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI do.\u201d
\n\u201cHow?\u201d
\n\u201cBecause Michael told me.\u201d
\nMy breath caught.
\n\u201cMy husband knew you were alive?\u201d
\nDaniel nodded.
\n\u201cFor thirty-five years.\u201d
\nSomething inside me cracked.
\nAll those years.
\nAll those nights beside Michael.
\nAll those conversations.
\nHe had known.
\n\u201cYou let me believe Peter might be Jason\u2019s father.\u201d
\n\u201cI never asked you to believe that.\u201d
\n\u201cYou disappeared!\u201d
\n\u201cI had to.\u201d
\n\u201cNo, Daniel. You chose to.\u201d
\nHe flinched.
\nRichard stepped forward.
\n\u201cForget Jason for a second. Explain the accident.\u201d
\nDaniel looked at him.
\n\u201cYou really believed I died?\u201d
\n\u201cI went to your funeral.\u201d
\n\u201cThat wasn\u2019t me.\u201d
\n\u201cThen WHO was in that coffin?\u201d
\nDaniel looked toward Richard\u2019s sister.
\nShe lowered her eyes.
\n\u201cPeter\u2019s cousin, Anthony.\u201d
\nRichard stared at him.
\n\u201cWhat?\u201d
\nDaniel took a slow breath.
\n\u201cAnthony came looking for us after the accident. He\u2019d been drinking. He found Peter\u2019s abandoned car near the old quarry road.\u201d
\n\u201cI don\u2019t understand.\u201d
\n\u201cNeither did I at first.\u201d
\nDaniel rubbed the scar near his temple.
\n\u201cWhen that car hit me, it didn\u2019t kill me. It threw me into the ditch. I was unconscious.\u201d
\n\u201cBut Michael checked you.\u201d
\n\u201cHe thought I was dead.\u201d
\nRichard looked stunned.
\n\u201cThen what happened?\u201d
\n\u201cPeter came back before the ambulance arrived.\u201d
\nRichard shook his head.
\n\u201cNo. I was there.\u201d
\n\u201cYou were running toward the farmhouse.\u201d
\nDaniel pointed toward him.
\n\u201cPeter returned while you were gone. Michael was still with me.\u201d
\nMy stomach twisted.
\n\u201cWhat did Peter do?\u201d
\n\u201cHe convinced Michael that if the police found me, everything would come out. The stolen money. The threats. Everything.\u201d
\n\u201cSo they moved you?\u201d
\n\u201cNo.\u201d
\nDaniel looked toward the window.
\n\u201cPeter did.\u201d
\nRichard whispered, \u201cWhere?\u201d
\n\u201cTo an abandoned hunting cabin his uncle owned.\u201d
\nJason stared at him.
\n\u201cYou were injured and he hid you?\u201d
\n\u201cFor almost two days.\u201d
\n\u201cWhy?\u201d
\n\u201cBecause Peter wanted the documents I had collected against him.\u201d
\nRichard looked sick.
\n\u201cYou said you had copies.\u201d
\n\u201cI did.\u201d
\n\u201cAnd Michael?\u201d
\n\u201cMichael knew where some of them were.\u201d
\nI thought about the red folder.
\nThe bank slip.
\nThe mysterious key.
\n\u201cWhat happened to Anthony?\u201d
\nDaniel hesitated.
\n\u201cPeter called him for help. Anthony arrived drunk and furious. They fought.\u201d
\n\u201cAbout what?\u201d
\n\u201cAnthony realized Peter was planning to frame him for the stolen money.\u201d
\nDaniel swallowed.
\n\u201cAnthony drove away.\u201d
\nRichard stared at him.
\n\u201cAnd?\u201d
\n\u201cHe crashed less than a mile from the cabin.\u201d
\nThe room went silent.
\n\u201cHis car burned.\u201d
\nRichard slowly shook his head.
\n\u201cNo.\u201d
\n\u201cPeter saw an opportunity.\u201d
\n\u201cWhat opportunity?\u201d
\n\u201cTo disappear.\u201d
\nI felt cold.
\nDaniel continued.
\n\u201cAnthony and Peter were similar in age and build. The body was badly burned. Peter planted my wallet and identification with Anthony\u2019s remains.\u201d
\nJason frowned.
\n\u201cBut why would police identify the body as you?\u201d
\n\u201cBecause Michael confirmed it.\u201d
\nI grabbed the edge of the table.
\n\u201cMy husband identified a stranger as you?\u201d
\n\u201cYes.\u201d
\n\u201cWhy?\u201d
\nDaniel looked at me.
\n\u201cBecause Peter threatened him.\u201d
\n\u201cWith what?\u201d
\nDaniel didn\u2019t answer.
\nRichard slammed his palm against the table.
\n\u201cEverybody keeps saying Peter had something on Michael. WHAT WAS IT?\u201d
\nDaniel\u2019s eyes shifted toward me.
\n\u201cIt wasn\u2019t something Michael had done.\u201d
\n\u201cThen what?\u201d
\n\u201cIt was something Michael\u2019s father had done.\u201d
\nI blinked.
\n\u201cMy father-in-law?\u201d
\nDaniel nodded.
\n\u201cMichael\u2019s father was the accountant for Daniel\u2019s father\u2019s construction company,\u201d Richard whispered.
\nDaniel looked at him.
\n\u201cYou remember.\u201d
\n\u201cOf course.\u201d
\nDaniel continued.
\n\u201cPeter discovered that Michael\u2019s father had been manipulating company accounts for years.\u201d
\nRichard frowned.
\n\u201cSo Peter wasn\u2019t the only one stealing.\u201d
\n\u201cNo.\u201d
\n\u201cHow much?\u201d
\n\u201cOver half a million dollars.\u201d
\nI covered my mouth.
\nJason whispered, \u201cGrandpa?\u201d
\nDaniel nodded.
\n\u201cMichael found out shortly before the accident. He confronted his father.\u201d
\n\u201cAnd Peter knew?\u201d
\n\u201cYes.\u201d
\n\u201cPeter threatened to expose Michael\u2019s father unless Michael cooperated.\u201d
\nJason\u2019s face tightened.
\n\u201cSo Dad lied to police to protect his father.\u201d
\n\u201cAt first.\u201d
\n\u201cAt first?\u201d
\nDaniel looked toward me again.
\n\u201cThen he met Linda.\u201d
\nI felt my stomach drop.
\n\u201cWhat did I have to do with it?\u201d
\n\u201cYou were pregnant.\u201d
\nI stared at him.
\n\u201cYou didn\u2019t even know me.\u201d
\n\u201cNo. But I knew about you.\u201d
\n\u201cHow?\u201d
\n\u201cAfter I escaped from Peter, I tried to find you.\u201d
\n\u201cYou escaped?\u201d
\nDaniel nodded.
\n\u201cThe second night at the cabin, Peter left. I walked nearly four miles before a truck driver found me.\u201d
\n\u201cWhy didn\u2019t you go to police?\u201d
\n\u201cI tried.\u201d
\nHis expression darkened.
\n\u201cBut by then, the newspaper said I was dead.\u201d
\nRichard whispered, \u201cAnd you were afraid Peter would finish the job.\u201d
\n\u201cYes.\u201d
\nDaniel looked at me.
\n\u201cI found the friend who hosted the party where we met. She told me your name. She also told me you\u2019d discovered you were pregnant.\u201d
\nJason\u2019s face tightened.
\n\u201cYou knew about me before I was born.\u201d
\n\u201cYes.\u201d
\n\u201cAnd still disappeared.\u201d
\nDaniel lowered his eyes.
\n\u201cYes.\u201d
\nJason laughed bitterly.
\n\u201cWonderful.\u201d
\n\u201cJason\u2014\u201d
\n\u201cNo. Don\u2019t.\u201d
\nHe pointed toward Michael\u2019s photograph.
\n\u201cThat man raised me. Took me fishing. Sat beside my hospital bed when I had pneumonia. Taught me to drive. Paid for college even when he couldn\u2019t afford it.\u201d
\nDaniel\u2019s eyes filled with tears.
\n\u201cI know.\u201d
\n\u201cNo, you don\u2019t.\u201d
\nJason stepped closer.
\n\u201cYou don\u2019t get to walk into my house thirty-five years later and call yourself my father.\u201d
\n\u201cI\u2019m not asking you to.\u201d
\n\u201cThen why are you here?\u201d
\nDaniel looked toward the window.
\n\u201cBecause Peter is going to kill me.\u201d
\nRichard\u2019s sister gasped.
\nOutside, Peter was no longer standing near the sedan.
\nHe had disappeared.
\nRichard rushed to the broken back window.
\n\u201cHe\u2019s gone.\u201d
\nDaniel nodded.
\n\u201cHe knows I came here.\u201d
\n\u201cHow?\u201d
\n\u201cBecause he\u2019s been following me.\u201d
\nJason grabbed his phone.
\n\u201cI\u2019m calling the police.\u201d
\nDaniel shook his head.
\n\u201cDo it. But first you need to understand why he came back.\u201d
\nJason dialed anyway.
\nRichard locked the back door.
\nI stared at Daniel.
\n\u201cWhy did Peter contact Jason?\u201d
\n\u201cTo find Michael\u2019s evidence.\u201d
\n\u201cThe red folder?\u201d
\n\u201cNo.\u201d
\nDaniel looked at me.
\n\u201cThe box.\u201d
\nMy heart skipped.
\n\u201cWhat box?\u201d
\n\u201cThe one Michael\u2019s key opens.\u201d
\nRichard turned sharply.
\n\u201cYou know about the key?\u201d
\n\u201cYes.\u201d
\n\u201cHow?\u201d
\n\u201cBecause Michael and I put the evidence inside together.\u201d
\nI could barely breathe.
\n\u201cMichael visited you?\u201d
\n\u201cOnce a year.\u201d
\nJason stopped dialing.
\n\u201cWhat?\u201d
\n\u201cYour father\u2014Michael\u2014found me in 1992.\u201d
\n\u201cHe knew you were alive?\u201d
\n\u201cYes.\u201d
\n\u201cAnd he kept visiting you?\u201d
\n\u201cEvery year until he died.\u201d
\nJason looked betrayed all over again.
\n\u201cWhy?\u201d
\nDaniel looked at him.
\n\u201cTo show me photographs of you.\u201d
\nMy son froze.
\n\u201cHe brought your school pictures. Baseball photographs. Graduation pictures.\u201d
\nDaniel\u2019s voice broke.
\n\u201cHe told me what you liked. What you were afraid of. What you wanted to become.\u201d
\nJason said nothing.
\n\u201cHe offered me chances to meet you,\u201d Daniel continued. \u201cI refused.\u201d
\n\u201cWhy?\u201d
\n\u201cBecause Michael was your father in every way that mattered.\u201d
\nJason looked away.
\n\u201cAnd because Peter was still out there.\u201d
\nDaniel nodded.
\n\u201cI believed staying dead kept you safe.\u201d
\nRichard suddenly spoke.
\n\u201cWhat evidence did you and Michael hide?\u201d
\nDaniel looked at me.
\n\u201cEnough to put Peter in prison for the rest of his life.\u201d
\n\u201cFor stealing money thirty-five years ago?\u201d
\n\u201cNot just stealing.\u201d
\nHis expression changed.
\n\u201cPeter killed someone.\u201d
\nMy stomach tightened.
\n\u201cAnthony?\u201d
\n\u201cNo.\u201d
\n\u201cWho?\u201d
\nDaniel hesitated.
\n\u201cMichael.\u201d
\nThe room went completely still.
\nI stared at him.
\n\u201cMy husband died from a heart attack.\u201d
\nDaniel shook his head.
\n\u201cNo, Linda.\u201d
\n\u201cDon\u2019t.\u201d
\n\u201cI\u2019m sorry.\u201d
\n\u201cDON\u2019T.\u201d
\nI stepped toward him.
\n\u201cI was there. I saw him in the hospital. Doctors told me his heart stopped.\u201d
\n\u201cI know.\u201d
\n\u201cThen don\u2019t stand in my son\u2019s kitchen and tell me someone killed my husband.\u201d
\nDaniel reached inside his jacket.
\nJason immediately moved between us.
\n\u201cWhat are you doing?\u201d
\n\u201cGetting something Michael gave me.\u201d
\nDaniel slowly removed a sealed plastic bag.
\nInside was a small digital recorder.
\nRichard stared at it.
\n\u201cWhat is that?\u201d
\n\u201cMichael\u2019s insurance policy.\u201d
\nDaniel placed it on the table.
\n\u201cTwo weeks before Michael died, he called me. He said Peter had contacted him.\u201d
\nMy heart began pounding.
\n\u201cNo.\u201d
\n\u201cHe said Peter wanted the evidence back.\u201d
\n\u201cWhy didn\u2019t Michael tell me?\u201d
\n\u201cBecause he was trying to protect you.\u201d
\nDaniel pressed a button.
\nStatic filled the kitchen.
\nThen I heard my dead husband\u2019s voice.
\n\u201cDaniel, if you\u2019re hearing this, something happened to me.\u201d
\nI covered my mouth.
\nJason sank into a chair.
\nMichael continued.
\n\u201cPeter found me. He knows I kept copies. I told him they were destroyed, but he doesn\u2019t believe me.\u201d
\nA pause.
\n\u201cIf I die suddenly, don\u2019t accept the obvious explanation.\u201d
\nMy eyes filled with tears.
\nThen Michael said:
\n\u201cEspecially if they say it was my heart.\u201d
\nI couldn\u2019t breathe.
\nRichard whispered, \u201cOh my God.\u201d
\nThe recording continued.
\n\u201cPeter learned something years ago. Something about a medication I take. He once joked that the right combination could stop a man\u2019s heart and leave very little behind.\u201d
\nI grabbed the table.
\nMichael had taken heart medication for years.
\nDaniel stopped the recording.
\n\u201cWhy are you stopping it?\u201d
\n\u201cBecause the rest is about the box.\u201d
\n\u201cPlay it.\u201d
\n\u201cLinda\u2014\u201d
\n\u201cPLAY IT.\u201d
\nDaniel pressed the button again.
\nMichael\u2019s voice returned.
\n\u201cLinda has the key, although she doesn\u2019t know it. The box is in the place where she and I first decided Jason would be ours.\u201d
\nI whispered, \u201cThe lake house.\u201d
\nJason looked at me.
\n\u201cWhat lake house?\u201d
\n\u201cMichael\u2019s parents had a cabin near Lake Briar.\u201d
\nRichard stared at me.
\n\u201cDoes it still exist?\u201d
\n\u201cYes.\u201d
\n\u201cWho owns it?\u201d
\n\u201cI do.\u201d
\nDaniel looked toward the window.
\n\u201cThen that\u2019s where Peter is going.\u201d
\nI shook my head.
\n\u201cI haven\u2019t been there since Michael died.\u201d
\n\u201cDoes anyone else know about it?\u201d
\n\u201cJason.\u201d
\nMy son nodded.
\n\u201cAnd Peter,\u201d Daniel said.
\nMy stomach dropped.
\nJason stared at him.
\n\u201cHow?\u201d
\n\u201cBecause Peter followed Michael there in 1992.\u201d
\nRichard grabbed his coat.
\n\u201cWe need to get the police there.\u201d
\nJason had already connected with emergency services and was giving the address.
\nThen my phone buzzed.
\nUnknown number.
\nA photograph appeared.
\nMy blood went cold.
\nIt showed the front porch of the lake house.
\nTaken tonight.
\nUnderneath were five words.
\nBRING THE KEY. COME ALONE.
\nJason grabbed my phone.
\n\u201cYou\u2019re not going.\u201d
\nAnother photograph arrived.
\nThis one showed an elderly woman tied to a chair inside the cabin.
\nRichard\u2019s sister screamed.
\n\u201cMom!\u201d
\nRichard went white.
\n\u201cThat\u2019s our mother.\u201d
\nI stared at him.
\n\u201cYou told me your parents were dead.\u201d
\n\u201cMy father is. My mother has dementia. She\u2019s lived in assisted care for six years.\u201d
\nHis sister began sobbing.
\n\u201cHe took her this afternoon.\u201d
\nAnother message appeared.
\nNO POLICE OR SHE DIES.
\nJason looked at me.
\n\u201cWe\u2019re still calling them.\u201d
\nDaniel shook his head.
\n\u201cPeter will be watching the roads.\u201d
\n\u201cSo what do you suggest?\u201d
\nDaniel looked at me.
\n\u201cWe give him what he wants.\u201d
\n\u201cThe key?\u201d
\n\u201cYes.\u201d
\n\u201cAnd then?\u201d
\n\u201cWe end this.\u201d
\nAn hour later, the four of us were driving toward Lake Briar.
\nRichard\u2019s sister stayed behind to speak with police.
\nJason drove.
\nDaniel sat beside him.
\nRichard and I sat in the back.
\nNobody spoke.
\nI held Michael\u2019s brass key in my palm.
\nThe closer we got to the cabin, the more memories came back.
\nMichael teaching Jason to swim.
\nSummer barbecues.
\nChristmas mornings.
\nThe night Michael proposed.
\nAll those beautiful memories.
\nAnd somewhere beneath them, a secret box had been waiting for me.
\nWe parked half a mile away.
\nPolice had agreed to approach from the opposite side of the lake without lights or sirens.
\nDaniel looked at Jason.
\n\u201cYou stay here.\u201d
\nJason laughed.
\n\u201cAbsolutely not.\u201d
\n\u201cYou don\u2019t know Peter.\u201d
\n\u201cAnd you don\u2019t know me.\u201d
\nFor the first time, something almost like pride crossed Daniel\u2019s face.
\nJason noticed it.
\n\u201cDon\u2019t.\u201d
\nDaniel lowered his eyes.
\n\u201cSorry.\u201d
\nWe walked through the trees.
\nThe cabin appeared ahead.
\nOne light burned inside.
\nThe front door was open.
\n\u201cLinda!\u201d Peter called.
\n\u201cI know you\u2019re there.\u201d
\nMy legs trembled.
\nRichard touched my shoulder.
\n\u201cI\u2019m with you.\u201d
\nWe stepped onto the porch.
\nPeter stood in the living room.
\nA gray-haired woman sat tied to a chair.
\nHe held something in his hand.
\nNot a gun.
\nA lighter.
\nThe floor around the chair was wet.
\nThe smell reached me immediately.
\nGasoline.
\nRichard lunged forward.
\nPeter raised the lighter.
\n\u201cTake one more step.\u201d
\nRichard froze.
\n\u201cLet her go.\u201d
\nPeter smiled.
\n\u201cHello, old friend.\u201d
\nThen he saw Daniel.
\nThe smile disappeared.
\n\u201cYou.\u201d
\nDaniel stepped forward.
\n\u201cIt\u2019s over.\u201d
\nPeter laughed.
\n\u201cYou\u2019ve been saying that for thirty-five years.\u201d
\nI held up the key.
\n\u201cYou want this?\u201d
\nPeter\u2019s eyes locked on it.
\n\u201cYes.\u201d
\n\u201cRelease her.\u201d
\n\u201cOpen the box first.\u201d
\n\u201cWhere is it?\u201d
\nPeter pointed toward the old stone fireplace.
\n\u201cMichael was predictable.\u201d
\nI walked toward it.
\n\u201cMom,\u201d Jason whispered.
\n\u201cI\u2019m okay.\u201d
\nI knelt beside the hearth.
\nThere was a loose brick near the bottom.
\nI pulled it free.
\nBehind it sat a small metal box.
\nMy hands shook.
\nThirty-five years.
\nAll of Michael\u2019s secrets were inside something smaller than a shoebox.
\nI inserted the key.
\nClick.
\nPeter moved closer.
\n\u201cOpen it.\u201d
\nI lifted the lid.
\nInside were documents.
\nPhotographs.
\nSeveral cassette tapes.
\nAnd one sealed envelope.
\nWritten across it were three words.
\nFOR LINDA ONLY.
\nPeter\u2019s expression changed.
\n\u201cGive me the papers.\u201d
\nI grabbed the envelope first.
\n\u201cLinda,\u201d Peter warned.
\nI tore it open.
\nInside was a letter from Michael.
\nMy dearest Linda,
\nIf you are reading this, then every secret I kept has finally failed to protect you.
\nTears blurred the words.
\nI continued.
\nJason\u2019s biological father is Daniel. I confirmed it privately after Jason was born. Daniel knows, but he agreed never to interfere because he believed Peter would use Jason to reach him.
\nJason made a strangled sound behind me.
\nDaniel closed his eyes.
\nI kept reading.
\nPeter believes the evidence in this box proves only his financial crimes and his role in Anthony\u2019s death.
\nIt does not.
\nThe most important evidence concerns something Peter did years later.
\nSomething even Daniel does not know.
\nI looked up.
\nDaniel stared at me.
\n\u201cWhat?\u201d
\nPeter\u2019s face had gone pale.
\n\u201cStop reading.\u201d
\nI looked back at the letter.
\nIn 2004, Peter returned under another name. He began watching our family again.
\nMy hands started shaking.
\nJason was twelve in 2004.
\nI remembered strange telephone calls that year.
\nA car that sometimes parked across from our house.
\nMichael installing extra locks and telling me the neighborhood was changing.
\nHe had known.
\nI continued.
\nI discovered Peter had been approaching Jason without our knowledge.
\nJason stepped forward.
\n\u201cWhat?\u201d
\nMy son looked genuinely confused.
\n\u201cI never met him.\u201d
\nMichael\u2019s next sentence answered him.
\nHe used the name Coach Paul.
\nJason went completely still.
\n\u201cNo.\u201d
\nI turned toward him.
\n\u201cWho was Coach Paul?\u201d
\nJason\u2019s lips trembled.
\n\u201cA volunteer at my baseball field.\u201d
\nDaniel whispered, \u201cPeter.\u201d
\nJason stared at the older man across the room.
\nRecognition slowly appeared on his face.
\n\u201cYou gave me rides home.\u201d
\nPeter said nothing.
\n\u201cYou bought me that blue glove.\u201d
\nSilence.
\n\u201cYou told me Dad wasn\u2019t my real father.\u201d
\nMy heart broke.
\nJason suddenly looked at me.
\n\u201cI forgot.\u201d
\n\u201cWhat?\u201d
\n\u201cI didn\u2019t forget him. I forgot what he said.\u201d
\nHe pressed both hands against his head.
\n\u201cI told Dad. I remember now. I came home crying and told Dad some man said I belonged to someone else.\u201d
\nDaniel stared at Peter with hatred.
\n\u201cWhat did you want with a twelve-year-old boy?\u201d
\nPeter smiled coldly.
\n\u201cInsurance.\u201d
\nRichard whispered, \u201cAgainst Daniel.\u201d
\nPeter shrugged.
\n\u201cEveryone needs leverage.\u201d
\nDaniel moved toward him.
\nPeter flicked the lighter.
\nRichard\u2019s mother whimpered.
\n\u201cStay where you are.\u201d
\nI returned to Michael\u2019s letter.
\nThere was one final paragraph.
\nLinda, Peter made one mistake in 2004. He spoke to Jason while I had a recorder running in my truck nearby. That recording contains his confession about Daniel, Anthony, the stolen money, and the threats against Richard\u2019s family.
\nPeter\u2019s face changed.
\nI looked inside the box.
\nThere were four cassette tapes.
\nEach labeled with a date.
\nOne was marked:
\nJUNE 17, 2004 \u2014 PETER \/ JASON.
\nPeter lunged.
\nDaniel tackled him.
\nThe lighter flew across the room.
\nRichard grabbed his mother\u2019s chair and dragged her away from the gasoline.
\nJason kicked the lighter under the couch.
\nPeter and Daniel crashed against the table.
\n\u201cWHERE\u2019S THE TAPE?\u201d Peter screamed.
\nI grabbed the cassette.
\nPeter threw Daniel off and came toward me.
\nJason stepped between us.
\nPeter stopped.
\nFor the first time, the two men stood face-to-face.
\nThe man who had terrorized our family for decades.
\nAnd the boy he had once tried to manipulate.
\n\u201cYou don\u2019t understand,\u201d Peter said.
\nJason stared at him.
\n\u201cI understand enough.\u201d
\n\u201cYou think Michael was some hero?\u201d
\n\u201cHe was my father.\u201d
\n\u201cHe lied to you your entire life.\u201d
\nJason\u2019s voice remained calm.
\n\u201cHe raised me my entire life.\u201d
\nPeter smiled bitterly.
\n\u201cAnd Daniel abandoned you.\u201d
\nJason glanced at Daniel.
\n\u201cThat\u2019s between him and me.\u201d
\nThen he looked back at Peter.
\n\u201cBut you don\u2019t get to use either of them to rewrite who my father was.\u201d
\nSirens sounded faintly across the lake.
\nPeter\u2019s expression changed.
\n\u201cYou called police.\u201d
\nI held up the cassette.
\n\u201cYes.\u201d
\nPeter looked toward the open door.
\nDaniel blocked it.
\n\u201cIt\u2019s finished.\u201d
\nPeter laughed.
\n\u201cNo.\u201d
\nThen he reached into his jacket.
\nRichard shouted.
\nJason grabbed me.
\nBut Peter didn\u2019t pull out a weapon.
\nHe pulled out a photograph.
\nHe threw it onto the floor.
\nIt landed at my feet.
\nI looked down.
\nMichael.
\nAlive.
\nStanding beside Peter.
\nThe date printed in the corner was six months after Michael supposedly died.
\nI stopped breathing.
\n\u201cNo.\u201d
\nJason bent down and picked it up.
\nHis hands began trembling.
\n\u201cMom.\u201d
\n\u201cThat\u2019s impossible.\u201d
\nBut it was Michael.
\nOlder.
\nThinner.
\nWearing the watch I had buried him with.
\nPeter smiled.
\n\u201cYou\u2019ve all been so busy asking who killed Michael.\u201d
\nDaniel stared at him.
\n\u201cWhat are you saying?\u201d
\nPeter looked directly at me.
\n\u201cI never killed your husband, Linda.\u201d
\nI could barely speak.
\n\u201cThen what is this?\u201d
\nHe nodded toward the photograph.
\n\u201cProof.\u201d
\n\u201cProof of what?\u201d
\n\u201cThat Michael\u2019s heart attack was staged.\u201d
\nThe room seemed to spin.
\nJason shook his head.
\n\u201cI saw his body.\u201d
\n\u201cNo,\u201d Peter said. \u201cYou saw the body they gave you.\u201d
\n\u201cShut up.\u201d
\nPeter smiled.
\n\u201cYou want the truth about Michael?\u201d
\nPolice lights flashed faintly through the trees.
\nPeter leaned closer.
\n\u201cAsk Daniel where Michael went after his funeral.\u201d
\nEveryone turned toward Daniel.
\nHis face had gone white.
\nJason whispered, \u201cYou knew?\u201d
\nDaniel said nothing.
\n\u201cDANIEL!\u201d
\nHe closed his eyes.
\n\u201cYes.\u201d
\nMy heart shattered.
\n\u201cYou knew Michael was alive?\u201d
\n\u201cFor six months.\u201d
\nI could barely stand.
\n\u201cWhere did he go?\u201d
\nDaniel looked at me.
\n\u201cHe came to me.\u201d
\n\u201cWhy?\u201d
\n\u201cBecause he believed disappearing was the only way to finally trap Peter.\u201d
\nI stared at the photograph.
\n\u201cThen where is my husband now?\u201d
\nDaniel\u2019s silence terrified me.
\n\u201cWHERE IS MICHAEL?\u201d
\nPeter began laughing.
\nDaniel looked at me with tears in his eyes.
\n\u201cLinda, Michael really is dead.\u201d
\nI felt sick.
\n\u201cBut not eight years ago.\u201d
\n\u201cWhen?\u201d
\nDaniel swallowed.
\n\u201cSeven and a half years ago.\u201d
\nSix months after I buried him.
\nJason whispered, \u201cHow?\u201d
\nDaniel looked toward Peter.
\n\u201cThat\u2019s the part Michael never wanted Linda to know.\u201d
\nPeter\u2019s smile disappeared.
\nPolice shouted outside.
\n\u201cHands where we can see them!\u201d
\nBut I barely heard them.
\nI grabbed Daniel\u2019s jacket.
\n\u201cTell me.\u201d
\n\u201cLinda\u2014\u201d
\n\u201cTell me what happened to my husband.\u201d
\nDaniel looked into my eyes.
\nAnd finally whispered:
\n\u201cMichael didn\u2019t disappear to trap Peter.\u201d
\nMy grip loosened.
\n\u201cThen why?\u201d
\n\u201cHe disappeared because he discovered who had really been helping Peter all those years.\u201d
\n\u201cWho?\u201d
\nDaniel looked at Jason.
\nThen at Richard.
\nAnd finally at me.
\n\u201cThe person who helped Peter was someone inside your family.\u201d
\nMy blood turned cold.
\n\u201cWhat family?\u201d
\nDaniel\u2019s answer was almost lost beneath the police pounding through the doorway.
\n\u201cYour sister, Linda.\u201d
\nI stopped breathing.
\nI had only one sister.
\nCarol.
\nThe woman who had stood beside me at Michael\u2019s funeral.
\nThe woman who had helped me choose his coffin.
\nThe woman who had held Jason while I cried.
\nAnd the woman I was supposed to meet for breakfast the next morning……………<\/p>\n
PART 4 \u2014 THE MAN WHO WAS SUPPOSED TO BE DEAD \u201cLinda?\u201d Every hair on my arms stood up. I knew that voice. Older now. Rougher. But underneath the years … <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":5199,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-6949","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-story"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/echostoryus.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6949","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/echostoryus.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/echostoryus.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/echostoryus.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/echostoryus.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=6949"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/echostoryus.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6949\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6952,"href":"https:\/\/echostoryus.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6949\/revisions\/6952"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/echostoryus.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/5199"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/echostoryus.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=6949"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/echostoryus.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=6949"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/echostoryus.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=6949"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}