Chapter 9 - THE DOCTOR'S CONFESSION|
Dr. Evelyn Shaw lived in a quiet Connecticut town where every house had a porch and every lawn looked carefully maintained.
She answered the door wearing a gray cardigan and an expression that changed the moment she saw Dominic.
“You shouldn't be here,” she said.
“Neither should my brother be alive, according to your records.”
The doctor closed her eyes.
Emma stepped forward.
“My father was Daniel Hayes. My mother was Margaret. I need to know what happened to them.”
Dr. Shaw looked at her for a long time before opening the door.
Inside, the house was filled with books, framed landscapes, and the faint smell of lavender. The doctor led them to a small study and locked the door.
“Your mother came to me after Daniel died,” she said. “She was frightened and convinced someone was watching her.”
“Was she sick then?” Emma asked.
“Not at first. She was exhausted, but physically healthy. She asked me to help her disappear.”
Emma felt the room tilt.
“Why?”
“Because she had evidence against Arthur Vale. She believed that if he found her, he would use you to control her.”
Dominic leaned forward.
“Did you help her?”
“I arranged medical records under another name. Later, when she became ill, she asked me to keep her location secret.”
“Why tell everyone she was dead?” Emma demanded.
“Because someone had already announced her death, and correcting the story would have exposed her.”
Emma's hands curled into fists.
“She let me believe she was dying without telling me the truth?”
Dr. Shaw's face softened.
“She believed the people pursuing her would stop if they thought she was gone. She also believed that you would be safer living a normal life.”
“That wasn't her decision to make.”
“No,” the doctor said quietly. “It wasn't.”
Dominic placed Anthony's photograph on the desk.
“Was he involved?”
Dr. Shaw nodded.
“Anthony was badly injured the night he disappeared. Your mother brought him to me. He survived, but he had enemies on both sides of his family. We arranged a new identity.”
“Where is he now?”
“I don't know. He left years ago.”
“Who signed his death certificate?”
“I did.”
Dominic's jaw tightened.
“You helped my father hide a murder.”
“I helped a frightened young man survive. Arthur wanted a body, a certificate, and a closed case. I gave him a certificate. I never gave him a body.”
Emma stared at her.
“Did my mother know where Anthony went?”
“Yes. She kept a letter for him, in case he ever returned.”
“Where is it?”
“Your mother asked me to deliver it only if both you and Dominic came together.”
Dr. Shaw rose, unlocked a cabinet, and removed a sealed envelope.
On the front were two names.
EMMA HAYES AND DOMINIC VALE.
Inside was a single sheet of paper in Margaret's familiar handwriting.
If you are reading this together, then the past has finally caught up with you. Do not trust the person who claims to have saved us. The person who signed the papers is not the person who ordered the deaths.
Emma read the sentence aloud.
Dominic went still.
“Who ordered them?” she whispered.
The doctor looked toward the closed door.
“Someone who still has access to your family.”
A car engine started outside.
Then another.
Dr. Shaw rushed to the window.
“They found me.”
Dominic pulled Emma away from the glass.
“Victor, get the car ready.”
The doctor gripped Emma's hand.
“Your mother loved you more than anything. Whatever happens next, don't mistake her silence for a lack of love.”
A crash sounded at the front door.
May you like
Dominic reached for Emma.
“Run.”
