Chapter 7
By the time police reached the mansion, my mother was gone.
I stood outside the front gates while officers searched the property.
Nia held my hand.
Her fingers were cold.
Detective Brooks approached us.
"Malik, we found signs of a struggle in the study."
My stomach dropped.
"Where is she?"
"We're working to locate her."
I felt sick.
"Robert took her."
The detective looked serious.
"That's one possibility."
I shook my head.
"He threatened my father. He threatened me. Now Mom disappears?"
She placed a hand on my shoulder.
"I understand why you're frightened."
I pulled away.
"Then find her!"
My voice cracked.
Nia stepped beside me.
"Malik."
I looked at her.
She was crying.
But her expression was steady.
"Let them do their jobs."
I pressed both hands against my face.
For months, I'd hated my mother's lies.
Now I would have given anything to hear her voice.
Detectives searched the mansion.
They found a broken lamp.
An overturned chair.
And my mother's phone beneath the desk.
There was no sign of forced entry.
Robert had apparently used his own key.
I stared at the house.
It had always seemed enormous.
Beautiful.
Safe.
Now it looked like a place where secrets had been buried.
Detective Brooks asked whether Robert owned other properties.
Arthur provided a list.
An apartment downtown.
A lake house.
Two commercial buildings.
And a small warehouse outside the city.
Police began checking each location.
Meanwhile, the prescription bottle was undergoing laboratory analysis.
I wanted answers immediately.
But everything took time.
And time was exactly what I feared we didn't have.
That evening, Uncle James came to my apartment.
He looked exhausted.
"I should have protected Richard."
I shook my head.
"You didn't know."
He sat down heavily.
"Your father trusted me."
I looked at him.
"He trusted Mom too."
James lowered his eyes.
"That's what makes betrayal so painful."
Nia brought him a glass of water.
He thanked her.
Then he reached into his coat.
"I found something else."
My heart accelerated.
"What?"
"A notebook."
He handed me a small black journal.
I recognized it immediately.
Dad kept it in his briefcase.
He wrote down business ideas, reminders, and sometimes little messages to himself.
I opened it.
The final pages were filled with notes.
Williams trust.
Robert transfers.
Diane access.
Medication.
Then one sentence was underlined twice.
If anything happens to me, Malik must know I tried to fix this.
Tears filled my eyes.
I touched the handwriting.
Dad had known something was wrong.
He'd been trying to protect us.
I turned another page.
There was a list of dates.
One entry caught my attention.
Meeting with Robert — warehouse — Tuesday, 8 PM.
I looked at James.
"Did Dad meet Robert at the warehouse?"
James frowned.
"I don't know."
I checked the date.
It was two days before Dad died.
My heart pounded.
I immediately called Detective Brooks.
She asked me to photograph the entry.
Then she told me officers were already checking the warehouse.
An hour later, my phone rang.
I answered before the first ring finished.
"Did you find Mom?"
Detective Brooks paused.
"We found Robert's vehicle."
My heart stopped.
"Where?"
"At a commercial warehouse."
I looked at Nia.
"And my mother?"
"We're checking the property now."
I gripped the phone.
"Please call me as soon as you know."
"I will."
The next forty minutes felt endless.
I paced.
I prayed.
I called my mother's number even though I knew it wouldn't help.
Every time voicemail answered, I felt another piece of hope disappear.
Then Detective Brooks called again.
"Malik, your mother is alive."
My knees almost gave way.
Nia caught my arm.
"Thank God."
I could barely speak.
"Is she hurt?"
"She's being evaluated by paramedics."
I closed my eyes.
"Can I see her?"
"Not immediately. We need to speak with her first."
I nodded even though she couldn't see me.
"And Robert?"
"He's in custody."
I sank onto the couch.
For the first time all day, I could breathe.
Later, Detective Brooks explained that officers had found my mother inside a locked office at the warehouse.
She had bruises on her wrists.
Robert had taken her there after discovering she was speaking to me.
He had apparently been trying to force her to sign financial documents.
My stomach twisted.
Even after everything, he was still trying to control the money.
The next morning, I visited my mother at the hospital.
She looked smaller than I remembered.
Her glamorous appearance was gone.
No expensive dress.
No perfect makeup.
Just a frightened woman lying beneath a white blanket.
When she saw me, she started crying.
"Malik."
I stood in the doorway.
For a moment, I couldn't move.
I was angry.
I was hurt.
I was relieved.
All at once.
Then I walked toward her.
She reached for me.
I hesitated.
Then I took her hand.
"Are you okay?"
She nodded weakly.
"I'm alive."
I sat beside her.
She began crying harder.
"I'm so sorry."
I looked down.
"Mom, there are things you need to answer for."
"I know."
"You hurt Nia."
She closed her eyes.
"I know."
"You helped hide money that belonged to her family."
Tears rolled down her cheeks.
"Yes."
I swallowed.
"And you lied about Dad."
She began shaking.
"I was afraid of Robert."
I looked at her.
"That explains some things. It doesn't excuse them."
She nodded.
"I understand."
I took a slow breath.
"Did Robert hurt Dad?"
She stared at me.
Then she whispered.
"I don't know what he did."
My chest tightened.
"But I know he was in Richard's office the morning he died."
I went still.
"What?"
She covered her face.
"I saw him leaving."
My heart pounded.
"Why didn't you tell the police?"
She sobbed.
"Because he threatened to expose everything I'd done."
I stood.
I couldn't sit still anymore.
My mother reached for me.
"Malik, please."
I turned toward her.
"You let me bury Dad without knowing the truth."
Her face crumpled.
"I know."
I felt tears streaming down my cheeks.
"I trusted you."
She whispered.
"I'm sorry."
I shook my head.
I wasn't ready to forgive her.
Not yet.
I walked toward the door.
Then stopped.
"Mom, I'm glad you're alive."
She began crying again.
"But I need time."
I left the room before she could answer.
Outside, Nia waited in the hallway.
She opened her arms.
I fell into them.
For the first time since Dad died, I cried without trying to be strong.
And while Nia held me, Detective Brooks approached.
Her expression was serious.
"Malik, we have preliminary findings from the medication bottle."
I pulled away from Nia.
My heart hammered.
"What did they find?"
She looked at me.
"The tablets inside don't match the medication your father was prescribed."
I stopped breathing.
May you like
And suddenly, the question that had haunted me for six months became more terrifying than ever.
Had my father been murdered?
