Chapter 6 - A Father's Most Dangerous Promise
"Give me the key, Sloan."
The familiar woman's voice came from the darkness.
Sloan stopped breathing.
Caspian immediately reached for her hand.
"Stay behind me."
Somewhere outside the conference room, a woman screamed again. Footsteps echoed through the hallway, followed by the unmistakable sound of a door slamming shut.
Then the emergency lights flickered on.
A woman stood near the conference-room entrance.
Victoria Reed.
But she wasn't looking at her son.
She was staring at the small brass key clutched in Sloan's trembling hand.
"Mother?" Caspian whispered.
Victoria stepped forward.
"Give it to me before someone gets hurt."
Sloan instinctively covered her pregnant stomach.
"Who are you protecting?"
Victoria's expression changed.
For the first time since Sloan had known her, the elegant woman looked genuinely terrified.
"Someone you should never have discovered."
Caspian moved between his mother and Sloan.
"Not another step."
Victoria stopped.
Her eyes shifted toward the hallway.
"We don't have time for this."
"Then start talking."
"Caspian, please."
He stared at her.
"Six months ago, the woman I loved disappeared because she believed my world was too dangerous for our child. Today, I discovered that you knew she was pregnant before I did."
Victoria looked away.
"You don't understand."
"I understand that you've been collecting information about Sloan. I understand that someone forged her dead mother's signature. And I understand that you just walked into a building where the electricity mysteriously failed and demanded a key that doesn't belong to you."
His voice hardened.
"What I don't understand is why."
Victoria's lips trembled.
Before she could answer, Daniel Mercer appeared in the doorway.
"The building's security system has been disabled."
Caspian turned.
"How?"
"We don't know yet. The emergency generator is running, but the cameras are offline."
Sloan felt another movement inside her stomach.
She pressed her palm against her abdomen.
Not now, sweetheart.
Please.
Margaret approached her.
"Are you feeling all right?"
"I'm fine."
But Sloan wasn't looking at Margaret.
She was watching Victoria.
The older woman kept glancing toward the hallway.
Not like someone planning an escape.
Like someone expecting another person to arrive.
"Victoria," Sloan said quietly.
Everyone turned.
"Who told you I had the key?"
Victoria's face went pale.
Sloan took a step forward.
"Nobody outside this room should know my mother left it to me."
Victoria said nothing.
"Unless someone told you."
Margaret suddenly looked uncomfortable.
Sloan noticed.
"Margaret?"
The older nurse lowered her eyes.
"I'm sorry."
Caspian turned toward her.
"What did you do?"
Margaret swallowed.
"I contacted Victoria this morning."
The room fell silent.
"You WHAT?"
Sloan's voice cracked.
Margaret immediately raised her hands.
"Please let me explain."
Sloan shook her head.
"No. You sat here telling me my mother trusted you. You showed me her letters. You told me you wanted to protect me."
"I do!"
"Then why did you call the woman who has been following me?"
Margaret's eyes filled with tears.
"Because I believed she could help."
Caspian laughed bitterly.
"Help with what?"
Margaret looked at Victoria.
"The original documents."
Victoria closed her eyes.
"Margaret, don't."
But Margaret continued.
"Your mother wasn't the only person involved in what happened to Evelyn."
Sloan stared at her.
"What does that mean?"
Margaret reached into her handbag.
Caspian immediately stepped forward.
"Slowly."
She removed an old photograph.
It showed Evelyn Bennett standing beside Victoria Reed outside a hospital.
Between them stood a man wearing a dark suit.
Sloan recognized him.
Richard Reed.
Caspian's father.
But something about the photograph was wrong.
Richard's arm was wrapped around Evelyn's shoulders.
Victoria stood several feet away.
Her expression was cold.
Sloan looked at Caspian.
"Your father knew my mother?"
He stared at the photograph.
"I've never seen this."
Victoria suddenly spoke.
"Put that away."
Margaret ignored her.
"Evelyn and Richard worked together before Caspian was born."
Sloan's heart began pounding.
"Worked together?"
Margaret hesitated.
Victoria stepped forward.
"Enough."
Caspian turned sharply.
"Mother, if you interrupt her again, I'll have Daniel escort you out."
Victoria looked at her son.
For a moment, something resembling heartbreak crossed her face.
Then she whispered, "You're making the same mistake your father made."
Daniel insisted they move to another room while building security investigated the power failure.
Caspian refused to let Sloan walk anywhere alone.
This time, she didn't argue.
Her body was exhausted.
Her mind was overwhelmed.
And the small brass key in her hand suddenly felt heavier than anything she had ever carried.
They entered Daniel's private office.
Caspian locked the door.
Victoria remained standing beside the window.
Margaret sat opposite Sloan.
Adrian positioned himself near the entrance.
Sloan noticed that Caspian kept watching him.
Whatever trust had once existed between the two men was gone.
"Start from the beginning," Caspian ordered.
Margaret took a breath.
"Twenty-eight years ago, Evelyn Bennett discovered that Richard Reed's financial records had been manipulated."
"We know that," Sloan said.
"Not everything."
Margaret placed the photograph on Daniel's desk.
"Evelyn initially believed Richard was responsible. But after reviewing the original accounts, she realized someone else was transferring money without his authorization."
"Victoria?" Caspian asked.
Margaret shook her head.
"No."
Victoria looked away.
"Richard asked Evelyn to help him identify the person responsible," Margaret continued. "They spent months reviewing financial records."
Sloan stared at the photograph.
"Why didn't my mother tell me?"
"Because their investigation uncovered something much bigger than financial fraud."
Caspian leaned forward.
"What?"
Margaret glanced at Victoria.
The older woman shook her head almost imperceptibly.
Sloan saw it.
"Stop looking at her!"
Margaret flinched.
Sloan's voice trembled.
"My mother is dead. Someone has been using her name. Someone has been following me. And now you're telling me that my baby is connected to a secret that began before I was born."
Tears filled her eyes.
"I deserve the truth."
Margaret nodded slowly.
"You're right."
She turned toward Caspian.
"Richard discovered that someone had secretly altered the Reed family trust."
Caspian frowned.
"Who?"
"His business partner."
"Which partner?"
Margaret hesitated.
"Victor Hale wasn't the original architect. He was hired years later to maintain the altered financial records."
Caspian stared at her.
"Then who hired him?"
Before Margaret could answer, Victoria spoke.
"Richard's closest friend."
Caspian turned.
His expression changed.
"No."
Victoria looked at him.
"Yes."
Caspian slowly sat down.
"Thomas Whitmore?"
Sloan looked between them.
"Who's Thomas Whitmore?"
Caspian didn't answer.
Victoria did.
"The man who raised Caspian after Richard died."
For several seconds, Sloan couldn't speak.
She remembered Thomas Whitmore.
A distinguished man in his early sixties.
Silver hair.
Perfect manners.
An expensive collection of watches.
He had attended several dinners at Caspian's penthouse.
He always treated Sloan kindly.
Once, when Victoria criticized her nursing career, Thomas had defended her.
"Anyone who spends her nights saving lives deserves more respect than the people who spend their days discussing money."
Sloan had liked him immediately.
Now she wondered whether that kindness had been another performance.
"Thomas?" she whispered.
Caspian stared at his mother.
"You're lying."
Victoria's expression hardened.
"I wish I were."
"He helped me rebuild the company."
"Because controlling your decisions was easier than controlling your father's."
Caspian stood.
"That's enough."
Victoria approached him.
"Caspian, listen to me."
"No."
"Your father discovered what Thomas was doing. He planned to remove him from the company."
"Then why didn't he?"
Victoria's eyes filled.
"Because Richard died before he could."
Silence filled the office.
Sloan looked toward Margaret.
"Are you saying Thomas had something to do with Richard's death?"
Margaret shook her head.
"We don't have evidence of that."
Victoria looked at the floor.
"But Richard's death allowed Thomas to consolidate his influence," she whispered.
Caspian ran a hand through his hair.
He looked devastated.
Thomas had been more than a business adviser.
He had been the man who taught Caspian how to negotiate contracts.
The man who attended his graduation.
The man who stood beside him at his father's funeral.
And now his mother was suggesting that Thomas had spent years manipulating the entire family.
"Why didn't you tell me?"
Victoria looked at him.
"Because Thomas threatened to destroy everything Richard left you."
Caspian laughed bitterly.
"So you helped him?"
"I tried to contain him."
"By following Sloan?"
Victoria's expression changed.
"That was a mistake."
"A mistake?"
"I didn't know she was pregnant when I first contacted Victor."
Sloan immediately stood.
"Don't."
Victoria looked at her.
"Please."
"You offered me five hundred thousand dollars to disappear."
"I know."
"You took my pregnancy test."
Victoria's eyes filled.
"Yes."
"You've been collecting information about my baby!"
Victoria looked away.
Sloan stepped closer.
"Why?"
The older woman whispered, "Because Thomas found out."
Caspian moved toward his mother.
"What did he threaten?"
Victoria wiped her eyes.
"He said that if your child was born, the original trust could become enforceable."
Margaret nodded.
"Thomas has been controlling several accounts through fraudulent arrangements. The birth of Caspian's first child could trigger an independent review."
Sloan felt sick.
"So he wants my baby to disappear?"
Victoria immediately shook her head.
"He wants control over the situation."
"That's not an answer!"
Victoria looked directly at her.
"He wants you to sign documents before the baby is born."
"What documents?"
"An agreement waiving certain claims involving the trust."
Sloan stared at her.
"And if I refuse?"
Victoria didn't answer.
That silence frightened Sloan more than any threat.
Caspian took Sloan's hand.
"She won't sign anything."
Victoria looked at him.
"You don't understand what Thomas is capable of."
Caspian's expression hardened.
"Then perhaps it's time someone found out."
He turned toward Daniel.
"I want an independent investigation into every company Thomas controls. Every trust account. Every financial transaction connected to Victor Hale."
Daniel nodded.
"I'll contact the appropriate authorities."
"And I want Sloan's medical records protected."
"Already working on it."
Sloan looked at Caspian.
Something had changed.
He wasn't issuing orders to frighten people.
He was trying to protect them through the law.
For the first time, she began to understand the man he had been trying to become.
But understanding didn't erase six months of fear.
Or the secrets that had brought them here.
An hour later, Sloan sat alone with Caspian in Daniel's office.
Margaret and Victoria had been moved to separate rooms.
Adrian was speaking with building security.
The emergency lights were still on.
Sloan stared at the small brass key.
"We need to find the storage box."
Caspian nodded.
"Yes."
"Tonight."
He looked at her.
"Sloan, you've been through enough today."
She almost laughed.
"My mother left me something that could explain why people have been watching me for years. I'm not waiting until tomorrow."
Caspian studied her.
Then he nodded.
"Okay."
She looked down at her stomach.
Oliver kicked again.
Caspian noticed.
"He's active tonight."
"He's probably tired of listening to everyone argue."
Caspian smiled faintly.
"Smart kid."
Sloan hesitated.
Then she looked at him.
"Did you really buy an engagement ring?"
His expression softened.
"Yes."
"What happened to it?"
"I still have it."
Her heart tightened.
"Why?"
He looked at her for a long moment.
"Because I never stopped hoping I'd find you."
Sloan swallowed.
"Caspian..."
He gently took her hand.
"I'm not asking you to forgive me tonight."
She looked into his eyes.
"I'm not ready."
"I know."
"And I'm not moving back to Boston."
"I understand."
"And nobody gets to decide what happens to Oliver without me."
Caspian nodded.
"Agreed."
She studied him.
"What if your mother is right? What if Thomas is dangerous?"
His expression changed.
"Then I'll do whatever is necessary to keep you both safe."
Sloan immediately stiffened.
"That's exactly what frightened me before."
Caspian understood.
He released her hand.
"You're right."
He took a breath.
"No secrets. No threats. No decisions made behind your back."
He looked toward her stomach.
"I'll work with the investigators. I'll cooperate with Daniel. I'll make sure everything is documented."
His voice softened.
"And I'll be there for every appointment you want me to attend."
Sloan felt tears gathering.
"You can't promise that nothing bad will happen."
"No."
He shook his head.
"But I can promise you won't have to face it alone."
For the first time in six months, Sloan believed he meant it.
Daniel returned carrying a small folder.
"I found the storage facility."
Sloan immediately stood.
"Where?"
"Providence. Your mother rented a private storage box under her maiden name."
Sloan stared at him.
"My mother's maiden name?"
Daniel nodded.
"The same surname you've been using since you left Boston."
Sloan felt cold.
"That's impossible."
Caspian frowned.
"What?"
She looked at him.
"When I changed my name, I chose Bennett because it was my mother's maiden name."
Daniel opened the folder.
"Your mother established the account years ago. The facility confirmed that the box remains active."
Sloan stared at the paperwork.
"Who has been paying for it?"
Daniel hesitated.
"That's the strange part."
He turned the document toward her.
"The account has received annual payments from a private trust."
Caspian leaned closer.
"Which trust?"
Daniel looked at him.
"The original Reed family trust."
The room fell silent.
Sloan stared at the brass key.
Her mother had been connected to the trust long before she met Caspian.
And someone had continued paying for the storage box after Evelyn died.
"Who authorized the payments?"
Daniel shook his head.
"We'll need the original records."
Sloan grabbed her purse.
"Then let's go."
The storage facility was located in an older commercial building near downtown Providence.
A security guard checked their identification before escorting them into a private records room.
Sloan held the brass key tightly.
Caspian walked beside her.
Daniel followed, carrying the authorization documents.
The guard stopped in front of a reinforced metal door.
"Your mother's box is in the private archive."
Sloan nodded.
The guard entered a security code.
The door opened.
Inside were several rows of numbered storage compartments.
Sloan followed him to the far wall.
Box 417.
Her mother's handwriting appeared on the original registration card.
Sloan touched the signature.
For a moment, she felt as though Evelyn were standing beside her.
Caspian gently squeezed her hand.
"Ready?"
She nodded.
The guard inserted his master key.
Sloan inserted the brass key.
Together, they unlocked the compartment.
Inside was a narrow metal container.
The guard placed it on a private viewing table and left them alone.
Sloan stared at the container.
Then she slowly lifted the lid.
Inside were several sealed envelopes, an old photograph, and a small digital recorder.
But one object immediately caught her attention.
A tiny blue knitted baby sweater.
Sloan froze.
Her mother had knitted that sweater years before Sloan became pregnant.
She remembered finding it in Evelyn's bedroom.
When she asked about it, her mother had smiled.
"Something for the future."
Sloan picked it up.
A folded note fell from the fabric.
She opened it.
For my grandson, when the truth finally comes home.
Tears filled her eyes.
Caspian stared at the note.
"She knew?"
Sloan shook her head.
"I don't understand."
Daniel opened the first envelope.
Inside was a copy of the original Reed family trust.
He began reading.
Then stopped.
His expression changed.
"Caspian."
Caspian looked up.
"What?"
Daniel stared at the document.
"There's something here you need to see."
He turned the final page.
A signature appeared beneath Richard Reed's name.
Another signature appeared beside it.
Evelyn Bennett.
But beneath both signatures was a third name.
Sloan leaned closer.
Her heart began pounding.
Before she could read it, Caspian's phone vibrated.
An unknown number.
A video message.
He opened it.
The screen showed the entrance to the storage facility.
A black SUV was parked outside.
Then the camera moved.
A man stepped out.
Silver hair.
Expensive suit.
A familiar smile.
Thomas Whitmore.
Sloan stared at the screen.
The video continued.
Thomas approached the camera.
Then he spoke.
"Hello, Caspian. I believe you've found something that belongs to me."
Caspian's expression hardened.
Thomas smiled.
"And Sloan?"
He paused.
"Ask your mother why she never told you who your real father was."
The video ended.
Sloan slowly turned toward Caspian.
His face had gone completely white.
Then the storage-room door clicked.
The lock turned from the outside.
Someone had sealed them inside.
May you like
And from the other side of the door, Thomas Whitmore's voice spoke.
"Open the box, Caspian. There's one more thing your father left behind."
