"Because I didn't know who I could trust."
Eleanor held Michael's letter tightly.
"Did you know my husband?"
Marcus looked at her.
For the first time, his expression changed.
"Yes."
"Was he alive when you last saw him?"
Marcus closed his eyes.
"I don't know."
Eleanor stepped closer.
"Don't lie to me."
"I saw him twelve years ago."
Her breath caught.
"Where?"
"At the hospital."
"What happened?"
Marcus hesitated.
Then he spoke.
"He came to me with evidence. He wanted help protecting Lily and the other children. I arranged a meeting with someone I believed was trustworthy."
"Who?"
Marcus looked at Daniel.
"Your former captain."
Daniel felt the blood drain from his face.
Captain Robert Hensley.
A man he had respected for nearly fifteen years.
A man who had taught him how to investigate a crime scene, how to question witnesses, and how to distinguish suspicion from evidence.
A man who had recently retired.
"You're saying Captain Hensley was involved?"
Marcus nodded.
"He's the reason Michael disappeared."
Eleanor's knees weakened.
Daniel reached out to steady her.
Then Marcus said something that changed everything.
"There's one more thing you need to know."
He looked at Eleanor.
"Michael didn't leave the hospital alone that night."
Eleanor shook her head.
"What do you mean?"
"He took someone with him."
"Who?"
Marcus swallowed.
"Your sister."
The room became completely silent.
Eleanor stared at him.
"Rebecca?"
Marcus nodded.
"She had discovered the same thing. She was working at the clinic and had been helping Michael identify the children."
Eleanor's mind raced.
Rebecca had been injured in a hit-and-run accident three months after Michael disappeared.
She had lost her memory.
But what if the accident had never been an accident?
"What happened to her?" Eleanor whispered.
Marcus looked at the photograph of the little girl.
"I think your sister remembers more than the doctors have told you."
Eleanor turned toward Daniel.
Daniel looked at Marcus.
"Where is Rebecca now?"
Marcus answered immediately.
"At St. Mary's Medical Center."
Daniel checked his watch.
It was 1:23 a.m.
Then his phone rang.
The caller ID showed an unknown number.
He answered.
A woman's voice came through.
"Detective Reeves?"
"Who is this?"
"You need to listen carefully."
"Identify yourself."
The woman ignored the question.
"Your friend Marcus is telling the truth about one thing."
Daniel looked at Marcus.
"Which thing?"
"The children."
"Who are you?"
A pause.
Then the woman spoke again.
"But he's lying about Michael."
Daniel's expression changed.
"What?"
"Michael Hayes is not dead."
Eleanor stepped closer.
The woman continued.
"And if you want to see him again, stop investigating."
The call ended.
Daniel stared at his phone.
Eleanor's voice was barely audible.
"Who was that?"
He looked at her.
"I don't know."
Then a second message appeared on his screen.
It contained a photograph.
A man was sitting in a dark room.
His face was older, thinner, and covered with several days of beard growth.
But his eyes were unmistakable.
Michael Hayes.
Alive.
And beneath the photograph was a single sentence.
HE HAS BEEN WAITING FOR YOU, ELEANOR.
CHAPTER 8: THE MESSAGE FROM THE DEAD
Eleanor stared at the photograph until her eyes began to burn.
Twelve years.
Twelve years of unanswered questions.
Twelve years of birthdays spent alone.
Twelve years of wondering whether the man she loved had suffered, forgotten her, or simply chosen to disappear.
And now, in the middle of a dark warehouse, she was looking at his face again.
He was older.
His hair was shorter.
There were lines around his eyes that had not been there before.
But he was alive.
"Where is he?" she whispered.
Daniel enlarged the photograph.
There was little visible in the background.
A concrete wall.
A metal chair.
A small window.
And something hanging from the wall.
A clock.
Daniel recognized the design.
It belonged to the old railway maintenance building on the northern side of the city.
"Marcus, do you know this location?"
Marcus studied the photograph.
His expression changed.
"That's the old railway station."
Daniel looked at him.
"Are you sure?"
"I used to patrol that district."
Eleanor grabbed Daniel's sleeve.
"Then we need to go."
"Wait."
"No. We've waited long enough."
Daniel looked at her.
"I understand what you're feeling, but we don't know who sent that photograph or whether it's recent."
"He's alive!"
"I know."
"Then why are you standing here?"
Daniel remained calm.
"Because if someone wants us to walk into a trap, rushing there is exactly what they expect."
Eleanor stepped back.
For a moment, she looked ready to scream.
Then her shoulders dropped.
Daniel continued.
"We'll send officers to secure the area. We'll verify the location, check the building, and make sure no one is waiting for us."
Eleanor wiped her tears.
"How long?"
"Not long."
She nodded reluctantly.
Marcus looked at Daniel.
"There's something else."
Daniel turned.
"What now?"
"The photograph may be old."
"How old?"
Marcus examined the image again.
"Look at the clock."
Daniel zoomed in.
The time was 3:17.
But the clock itself had a distinctive shape.
Marcus recognized it.
"The railway building was demolished six years ago."
Daniel slowly lowered the phone.
"Then where was this taken?"
Marcus shook his head.
"I don't know."