Chapter 5 - The Account That Shouldn't Exist
Michael didn't move.
"She's talking about me."
Daniel stared at him.
"Apparently."
"Then ask yourself why Natalie would send you that video."
"Maybe because Claire told her."
"Or because Natalie wants you to stop trusting the only person still helping you."
Evelyn interrupted.
"Enough."
She replayed the video.
"Look at Claire."
Daniel did.
Claire appeared frightened.
But not helpless.
Her right hand rested on the ledger.
Her left hand touched her stomach.
Twice.
Then three times.
Rebecca noticed.
"That's a signal."
Daniel looked at her.
"When we were kids, Claire used tapping patterns when our parents were arguing. Two taps meant no. Three meant yes."
They replayed it.
Natalie said something outside the frame.
Claire touched her stomach twice.
No.
Then looked toward the window and tapped three times.
Yes.
"She's telling us something about the window," Rebecca said.
Daniel froze the frame.
Outside was a recognizable building.
A red clock tower.
Michael knew it.
"Old Carter warehouse. South Side."
They left immediately.
Inside the warehouse, they found evidence that someone had been living there.
Food.
Blankets.
Medical supplies.
Claire's coat.
But Claire was gone.
Daniel picked up the coat.
A folded note slipped from the pocket.
It was addressed to him.
Daniel,
If you're reading this, you followed the clue.
Good.
Now listen for once.
Natalie isn't the only person helping Thomas.
Find account 7719.
Do not access it through your company network.
Daniel showed Evelyn.
She used an old laptop disconnected from Carter systems.
Account 7719 belonged to a trust administrator.
The authorized representative was Michael Reed.
Everyone stared at him.
Michael looked genuinely stunned.
"I've never seen that account."
Daniel had heard those words too many times.
"Sit down."
"Daniel—"
"Sit."
Michael obeyed.
Evelyn examined the records.
The account had received payments for seventeen years.
Small at first.
Then larger.
Millions.
Michael's name was attached to every transaction.
"This isn't possible."
Daniel watched him.
"Prove it."
Michael removed his wallet and handed Daniel an old security token.
"Everything I have. Check it."
Evelyn compared signatures.
Then she noticed something.
Michael's middle initial was J.
The account documents listed Michael T. Reed.
A different man.
"Identity duplication," she said.
Someone had created a legal identity close enough to implicate Michael.
Daniel exhaled.
Then Rebecca found the incorporation document.
Michael T. Reed had a registered address.
Daniel knew it.
His childhood home.
They drove there.
The house had been empty for years.
Inside, dust covered everything.
Except one room.
Fresh footprints crossed the floor.
Daniel followed them to his father's old office.
A hidden compartment stood open.
Inside was a second ledger.
And a photograph.
Richard Carter.
Thomas Vale.
Evelyn Mercer.
Michael Reed.
And a fifth person.
Daniel's mother.
Margaret Carter.
Daniel stared.
His mother had died when he was twelve.
Or so he'd been told.
On the back:
MERIDIAN FOUNDERS, 1996.
Rebecca whispered:
"Your mother was part of this?"
Daniel turned the photograph over again.
A line had been added beneath the names.
Margaret knows where the original trust is.
Then the old house phone rang.
Everyone jumped.
It shouldn't have worked.
Daniel lifted the receiver.
"Hello?"
A woman's voice answered.
Older.
Quiet.
"Daniel?"
He stopped breathing.
Nobody had called him that way since childhood.
"Who is this?"
The woman began crying.
May you like
Then she said:
"It's Mom."
