The Woman Who Was Supposed to Be Dead
Chapter 06 - The Woman Who Was Supposed to Be Dead
Evelyn did not open the door immediately.
She looked through the peephole and saw a dark-haired woman in a gray coat, standing alone beneath the harsh hallway light. She was older than in the photograph, thinner, with a pale scar near her jaw.
“I know you can see me,” the woman said. “Daniel told me where you were.”
Evelyn unlocked the chain but kept the door partly closed.
“Show me something.”
The woman raised her left hand. A narrow gold band hung from a chain around her wrist.
“I wore this when I married him.”
Evelyn opened the door.
Mara entered without drama. She did not look around the motel room with judgment. She simply sat in the wooden chair near the window and held her hands together.
“You sent the photograph,” Evelyn said.
“Yes.”
“Why now?”
“Because Daniel is becoming chairman tomorrow. Once that happens, Victoria can move the remaining money and close the last housing trust.”
“You could have gone to the police.”
“I did. Twice. The first investigator retired suddenly. The second told me to leave the state.”
Evelyn studied her. “Daniel said he asked you to disappear.”
Mara’s face changed.
“He did.”
The answer was too clean to be comfortable.
Mara explained that after she discovered Malcolm’s fraud, Daniel begged her not to confront him. Daniel said he needed forty-eight hours to gather proof. Instead, he arranged a car, cash, and a false identity.
“He said it was temporary,” Mara said. “Then my car was found near the coast, and the news called me dead.”
“Did Daniel stage that?”
“No. Malcolm did.”
“Then why didn’t you come back?”
“Because Daniel called and told me not to.”
Evelyn felt anger rise again.
Mara looked toward the window. “He said Malcolm had chosen another woman for the accounts. A college student named Evelyn Hart. He promised he would keep you away from the family.”
“He failed.”
“Yes.”
The honesty stung more than an excuse.
Mara removed a flash drive from her coat.
“This contains the original housing records. But it is encrypted. Daniel has the password.”
“Why would he have it?”
“Because he created it the night he sent me away.”
Evelyn took the drive.
“Do you still love him?” she asked.
Mara considered the question carefully.
“No,” she said. “But I know the part of him you are trying not to lose.”
Before Evelyn could respond, headlights swept across the motel curtains.
May you like
Mara stood quickly.
“That is Victoria’s car.”
