Chapter 5 - The Other Heir
Her name was Evelyn Vale.
Daniel had met her before.
So had I.
She was the quiet woman who ran a small architectural restoration firm two towns away.
She had attended Richard Mercer’s funeral.
I remembered her standing near the back of the church in a dark coat.
Daniel had told me her father had once been Richard’s closest friend.
Now Judith was telling us Evelyn was Daniel’s half-sister.
“Does she know?” Daniel asked.
“No.”
“How old is she?”
“Forty-two.”
Daniel calculated silently.
Thomas had fathered Evelyn before the affair with Judith.
“Where is her mother?”
“Dead.”
“And Thomas?”
Judith’s expression closed again.
“I told you.”
“He disappeared.”
Daniel stepped closer.
“You keep saying that like it answers everything.”
Judith turned away.
I noticed her hands trembling.
That was when I saw the photograph on the shelf.
Richard, Judith, and baby Daniel.
Behind them stood Thomas Vale.
He had one hand resting on Richard’s shoulder.
Thomas had Daniel’s eyes.
Not vaguely.
Not maybe.
Exactly.
Daniel followed my gaze.
He picked up the frame.
“Oh my God.”
Judith reached for it.
“Put that down.”
Daniel pulled it away.
“Did Dad know when this picture was taken?”
“No.”
“Did Thomas?”
Judith said nothing.
“Mom.”
“Yes.”
Daniel looked sick.
Thomas had stood beside his own infant son while Richard believed the baby belonged to him.
I should have felt sorry for Judith.
Instead, I remembered Maisie sitting in the dirt.
“You punished a five-year-old for the same secret you kept for forty years.”
Judith snapped toward me.
“You don’t understand what was at stake.”
“Then explain it.”
She walked to the cabinet and poured herself water.
“Richard’s father hated Thomas.”
“Why?”
“Because Thomas owned the original patents.”
Daniel frowned.
“I thought they developed them together.”
“That’s what the company history says.”
The answer chilled me.
Judith continued.
“Thomas created the first process that made Mercer-Vale profitable.”
“So?”
“Richard’s father wanted control.”
Daniel stared at her.
“What does this have to do with Thomas disappearing?”
Judith’s fingers tightened around the glass.
“There was an argument.”
“What kind of argument?”
“At the old mill.”
“When?”
She looked at him.
“The night Thomas vanished.”
Silence filled the room.
Daniel spoke slowly.
“You were there.”
Judith looked toward the floor.
“Yes.”
My pulse quickened.
“Who else was there?”
“Richard.”
Daniel’s face changed.
“And?”
Judith whispered.
“Richard’s father.”
The man had been dead for twenty-seven years.
There would be no asking him.
“What happened?” Daniel demanded.
Judith shook her head.
“I left before it ended.”
“Why?”
“Because Thomas told them he was taking his patents and leaving the company.”
Daniel swallowed.
“And he told them about me?”
Judith nodded.
“He said he was taking you too.”
The glass slipped from her hand.
It shattered on the floor.
Nobody moved.
May you like
Then Judith whispered the sentence that changed the story again.
“Three hours later, Thomas was gone.”
