Chapter 15 - THE NIGHT CHLOE DISAPPEARED|
Richard Hale agreed to meet Sarah through an attorney, but he never arrived.
His car was found in a parking garage outside downtown Chicago. The vehicle was unlocked, his phone was missing, and a briefcase containing several documents had been left on the passenger seat.
Investigators opened a missing-person inquiry.
Charles Bennett denied knowing where Richard was.
Daniel claimed he had not spoken to the man in months.
Chloe, however, remembered receiving a message from Richard the night before he disappeared.
She showed it to Sarah.
If anything happens to me, the second ledger is not where you think it is. Look at the place where the first Bennett company began.
Sarah read the message twice.
"The first company began in a small office on Madison Street," she said.
Chloe nodded.
"That's what Daniel told me. His father started there before moving into property investments."
Evelyn contacted the building's current owner and discovered that the original office space had been renovated several times. The company records, however, listed an old basement storage room that had been excluded from the latest renovation plans.
The building manager agreed to accompany them.
They found a locked metal cabinet behind a partition.
Inside were old lease documents, photographs, and a sealed envelope containing a handwritten inventory.
The inventory listed several boxes transferred to a private archive shortly before Charles's reported death.
One box had never been checked into the archive.
Its number was 17.
Sarah called the investigator handling Richard's disappearance.
Before she could finish explaining the discovery, her phone rang again.
It was Chloe.
Her voice sounded frightened.
"Sarah, I think someone is following me."
"Where are you?"
"Near the parking garage. I was going to meet my attorney."
"Go somewhere public. Call the police."
"I already tried, but the line disconnected."
Sarah told her to enter the nearest staffed business and remain there until help arrived.
Chloe began crying.
"I know I deserve your anger. But I didn't know how dangerous Charles was."
"This isn't about what you deserve right now. It's about getting you somewhere safe."
Sarah stayed on the phone while Chloe walked toward a hotel lobby.
Then the connection broke.
Sarah called back.
No answer.
She immediately contacted Evelyn and the investigator.
Within an hour, officers located Chloe's car near the garage, but Chloe herself was missing.
A security camera showed her entering the hotel lobby.
Another showed a man in a maintenance uniform approaching her several minutes later.
They walked through a side corridor.
Neither appeared again on the available footage.
Daniel arrived at Emily's house after hearing the news.
He looked genuinely shaken.
"I'll find her."
Sarah stared at him.
"Why?"
"Because I don't want anyone else hurt."
She searched his face.
"Then tell the investigators everything you know about Richard Hale."
Daniel hesitated.
"Sarah—"
"Everything."
He finally admitted that Richard had helped Charles establish several holding companies. He had also helped Daniel move money when the company first began experiencing financial difficulties.
Daniel claimed he had not understood the full arrangement.
Sarah was no longer willing to accept explanations without evidence.
"Tell the investigators," she said.
Daniel nodded.
That evening, a message arrived from an unknown number.
It contained a photograph of Chloe sitting in a chair in a dimly lit room.
May you like
Beneath it were eight words.
Bring the second ledger, or she will disappear forever.
