Chapter 3 - The Ghost in the Shadows
I stood on the sidewalk, my phone pressed tightly to my ear, the sound of my own breathing loud in the quiet morning air.
"Ray?" I whispered. "You're... you're alive?"
"Keep walking to your car, Erin," Ray’s voice rasped. He sounded tired, strained, and incredibly dangerous. "Do not look back at the house. Just get in and drive."
My instincts as a doctor told me to stay calm, but my instincts as a mother told me to scream. I did what he said. I got into my SUV, locked the doors, and started the engine.
"How are you alive?" I demanded. "Sarah found the death certificate from Mexico. The body was identified."
"It was identified by your sister," Ray said, letting out a dark, bitter laugh. "Lauren flew down to Mexico, looked at a burned body in a morgue, and swore to the authorities it was me. It was convenient for her. And, at the time, it was convenient for me."
"You faked your death," I whispered, the puzzle pieces finally starting to click together. "To escape your creditors. To escape the lawsuits."
"And to cash out the insurance policy," Ray added. "Five million dollars. Split between Lauren, your mother, and me. But Lauren got greedy. Once the death certificate was filed and the money hit the trust, she cut me out. She blocked my calls. She threatened to go to the FBI and tell them I was alive if I ever came back to the States."
"So you've been watching her," I said, cold sweat dripping down my spine.
"I've been watching all of them," Ray said. "And I was watching yesterday when you brought Grace over. I saw Lauren throw those glasses on the driveway and stomp on them. I saw her drag Grace inside. I wanted to step in, Erin. Believe it or not, I always liked Grace. But if I show my face, I go to federal prison for the rest of my life."
"You're a monster," I said, my voice shaking with pure rage. "You let a seven-year-old child take the fall for your disgusting, illegal games! She was terrorized because of your money!"
"I didn't know Lauren would do that," Ray said, his tone turning pleading. "But you have to stop, Erin. If you go to the police, the trust gets frozen. The feds will investigate the offshore accounts. If they find out I'm alive, they'll come after me, but they'll also arrest your mother and your sister. Your family will be completely destroyed."
"They destroyed themselves the moment they touched my daughter," I spat. "I don't care about Lauren. I don't care about my mother. And I certainly don't care about you."
"You should care," Ray said, his voice dropping to a low, chilling whisper. "Because Lauren isn't the only one who has secrets. Why do you think your mother was so willing to help her? Why do you think Helen put her own name on that trust?"
I frowned, a sudden sense of dread washing over me. "What do you mean?"
"Ask your mother about twenty-five years ago," Ray said. "Ask her about the medical malpractice lawsuit that almost ruined your father’s clinic. Ask her where the money came from to settle it out of court. The 'Trust' isn't new, Erin. It’s just been renamed."
Before I could ask another question, the line went dead.
I sat in my car, staring at the steering wheel. Twenty-five years ago. I was ten years old. I remembered my father being incredibly stressed, locked in his study for weeks, while my mother whispered hushed arguments on the phone late at night. Then, suddenly, the stress vanished. My father’s clinic was saved, and we went on a lavish family vacation to Hawaii.
I had always assumed it was a bank loan.
But what if it wasn't? What if my mother had been laundering money, or hiding assets, for decades?
My phone buzzed again. This time, it was a text from an unknown number. It was a photo.
My stomach plummeted.
The photo was of the hotel pool where I had left Grace. In the background of the image, Grace was laughing, splashing in the water with her nurse. But in the foreground, out of focus but clearly visible, was the side of a man's face.
May you like
Ray.
He was at the hotel. He was near my daughter.
