Chapter 11 - The Man Who Changed the Children's Names
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Samuel Pike did not want to speak to me.
That became obvious when Charlotte contacted him about Havenbridge Family Services.
He refused the first request.
Ignored the second.
Then sent a brief email through an attorney saying he had no comment about the 2022 placements.
But the preservation requests and pending investigations gave his attorney reason to reconsider.
A week later, Pike agreed to a formal interview with counsel present.
We met in a neutral office downtown.
Samuel was sixty-two, thin, nervous, and constantly adjusting his glasses.
He looked nothing like the confident administrator I remembered from Renee's adoption process.
Charlotte began.
“Mr. Pike, we're trying to establish what happened to Elena Vega's children following the warehouse incident.”
Samuel stared at his hands.
“I don't remember every case.”
I leaned forward.
“You received two hundred fifty thousand dollars from my family's charitable trust.”
His face tightened.
“That was an institutional payment.”
“For what?”
“Emergency placement coordination.”
“Of how many children?”
He looked toward his attorney.
Then whispered:
“Two.”
I felt my pulse increase.
“Where did the second child go?”
Samuel swallowed.
“I can't disclose protected records informally.”
Charlotte nodded.
“Then identify the records and explain which agency has lawful custody of them. We can use the appropriate process.”
Samuel rubbed his forehead.
“The records weren't all kept in the same system.”
“Why not?” she asked.
“Because there was an instruction to separate the cases.”
I stared at him.
“From whom?”
He hesitated.
Then said:
“The instruction came through the trust's legal representative.”
My father's longtime legal adviser had represented the family relief fund during that period.
Charlotte wrote down the name.
Samuel continued.
“The little girl was referred to the foster system. Her brother was placed under a different case number.”
“Why?”
“I was told there were safety concerns.”
“Who decided that?” Charlotte asked.
Samuel looked exhausted.
“I should have demanded written confirmation from the appropriate authority. I didn't.”
I leaned forward.
“What happened to Elena?”
He went pale.
Then answered:
“I never personally saw evidence that she died.”
The words struck me like a blow.
“What?”
“I saw a report identifying a woman believed to be Elena. Later, I learned the identification had been questioned.”
“By whom?”
“A hospital records supervisor.”
Charlotte's pen stopped moving.
“What happened to the correction?”
Samuel closed his eyes.
“It wasn't included in the documents sent to the placement team.”
I stared at him.
“Who removed it?”
“I don't know.”
His attorney spoke quietly, reminding him to distinguish between what he had witnessed and what he had been told.
Samuel nodded.
Then looked at me.
“Mr. DeLuca, I have regretted my part in this for years.”
“Regret doesn't tell me where Renee's brother is.”
“I know.”
He reached into his briefcase and removed a sheet of paper.
“My attorney has advised me to preserve this and provide it through the proper authorities. It's a reference to the secondary case file.”
Charlotte examined it.
There was an identification number.
A placement code.
And a handwritten name.
Lucas Vega.
I stared at the page.
Lucas.
Renee had a brother named Lucas.
Samuel lowered his voice.
“There's one more thing.”
I looked up.
“The boy wasn't placed with a stranger immediately.”
“Who took him?”
May you like
Samuel swallowed.
“Someone from your family's private household staff.”
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