Chapter 11 The Recording in the Dark
For several seconds, nobody moved.
The last words from James Parker's recording seemed to remain in the room even after the tape had stopped.
The person you must never trust is the person standing closest to you.
Audrey looked at Ethan.
He looked back at her.
Neither spoke.
Rachel broke the silence.
“That doesn't necessarily mean Ethan.”
Audrey appreciated the attempt, but she could not ignore the uneasiness tightening inside her chest.
Ethan took one step toward her.
“Audrey.”
She raised a hand.
“Don't.”
He stopped.
“I don't know what your grandfather meant.”
“I believe you.”
His expression shifted.
“But?”
“But I also don't know what you remember.”
Ethan looked away.
The accusation hurt because there was truth behind it.
“I remember pieces,” he admitted.
“What pieces?”
“A room. Your grandfather. My father.”
“And Caleb?”
“Yes.”
Audrey waited.
Ethan rubbed his forehead.
“I remember your mother.”
The room went silent.
“You saw my mother that night?”
“Yes.”
“What was she doing?”
“She was arguing with my father.”
“About what?”
“I don't know.”
Audrey stepped closer.
“You've remembered this before.”
“No.”
“Ethan.”
“I swear.”
His voice was firm.
“I've had fragments, but I thought they were dreams.”
Audrey studied him.
“Why didn't you tell me?”
“Because I didn't know whether they were real.”
“That didn't stop you from keeping secrets.”
He absorbed the words without defending himself.
“I know.”
Rachel walked toward the desk.
“Maybe the recording contains more.”
She examined the machine.
“There are two tapes.”
Audrey turned.
“Two?”
Rachel pointed toward the shelf.
“One is already inside. The other is labeled.”
Audrey picked it up.
James's handwriting appeared on the label.
For Audrey — When She Is Ready.
Her fingers tightened around it.
“I don't think I'm ready.”
Ethan looked at her.
“You don't have to listen.”
Audrey looked at the tape.
“Yes, I do.”
She inserted it.
The machine clicked.
Static filled the room.
Then James's voice returned.
“If you're listening to this recording, you have already discovered the room.”
Audrey's eyes filled with tears.
Her grandfather sounded older than she remembered.
Tired.
Afraid.
“But finding the room is only the beginning.”
A pause.
“There are people who will tell you that everything I did was for money. Others will tell you it was for power. Both are wrong.”
Audrey looked at Ethan.
James continued.
“I built a private network to protect people who had nowhere else to go. I made enemies. I trusted the wrong people. And I made one mistake that nearly destroyed my family.”
The recording crackled.
“I trusted Evelyn.”
Audrey closed her eyes.
Her grandmother's name carried a different weight now.
“Evelyn was not the villain,” James said. “She was trying to save me.”
Audrey opened her eyes.
Rachel looked confused.
“Then who was?”
James continued.
“Someone inside the family betrayed us.”
The tape stopped.
Rachel stared at the machine.
“That can't be all.”
Ethan checked it.
The tape had reached the end.
Audrey looked at the second box on the desk.
There was a small key beside it.
She picked it up.
“What does this open?”
Ethan examined the key.
“Maybe one of these boxes.”
There were six.
Audrey tried the first.
Nothing.
Second.
Nothing.
Third.
The lock opened.
Inside was a stack of letters.
Most were addressed to James.
One was addressed to Audrey's mother.
Audrey picked it up.
The envelope had never been opened.
She stared at the name.
Claire Parker.
“What if she never received it?”
“Then maybe we can finally find out what your grandfather wanted her to know.”
Audrey opened the envelope.
The letter was short.
Claire,
If you are reading this, then I have failed to keep you out of the fight.
Do not trust Richard.
Audrey froze.
Ethan read over her shoulder.
His face hardened.
The letter continued.
He will tell you he is trying to protect Ethan. He will say he has no choice. Do not believe him.
Richard knows who betrayed us.
He has known for years.
Audrey looked at Ethan.
“Your father knew.”
Ethan's jaw tightened.
“My father knew something.”
“Why didn't he tell you?”
“I don't know.”
Audrey read the final lines.
If anything happens to me, take Audrey away from the Calloways.
The letter ended with one final sentence.
She must never marry Ethan.
Silence.
Audrey lowered the page.
Rachel looked between them.
“Oh.”
Ethan's face was pale.
Audrey felt something inside her break.
Not because the letter changed how she felt about Ethan.
Because it proved that people had been arranging their lives long before they understood what was happening.
Their marriage had been watched.
Discussed.
Protected.
Manipulated.
Maybe even anticipated.
Ethan stepped toward her.
“Audrey, listen to me.”
She looked up.
“I didn't know.”
“I believe you.”
“But you don't trust me.”
“I trust you more than I trust anyone in this room.”
“That isn't enough.”
He looked wounded.
“What do you need?”
“The truth.”
“I've given you everything I remember.”
“Then help me find what you don't remember.”
Ethan nodded.
“I will.”
A sound came from outside.
Footsteps.
Everyone turned.
Rachel moved toward the door.
“Someone is coming.”
Ethan extinguished the lamp.
The room fell dark.
They listened.
One step.
Then another.
The footsteps stopped outside the greenhouse.
Audrey held her breath.
A shadow passed beneath the door.
Then a voice whispered:
“Audrey.”
She recognized it.
Her grandmother.
Evelyn Parker.
But Evelyn had been dead for two years.
Audrey's blood ran cold.
Rachel grabbed her arm.
“That isn't possible.”
The voice came again.
“Open the door.”
Ethan stepped toward Audrey.
“Stay here.”
“No.”
The voice outside became louder.
“Audrey, I know you're inside.”
Audrey stared at the door.
“Who are you?”
Silence.
Then:
“Someone who knew your mother.”
Audrey's heart pounded.
“What do you want?”
“I want to give you the truth.”
Ethan shook his head.
“It's a trap.”
Audrey looked at him.
“How do you know?”
“I don't.”
“Then we can't ignore it.”
She walked toward the door.
Ethan caught her hand.
“Audrey.”
She looked at him.
“I can't keep running from every answer.”
His fingers loosened.
She opened the door.
Nobody stood outside.
Only an old wooden box rested on the ground.
Audrey crouched.
Her name was carved into the lid.
AUDREY.
She looked at Ethan.
Then opened it.
Inside was the silver necklace.
The one she thought had been lost.
Beneath it was a photograph.
Audrey picked it up.
It showed her mother holding Audrey as a child.
Behind them stood Richard.
But Richard wasn't looking at Claire.
He was looking directly at the camera.
And beside him stood a woman Audrey had never seen before.
On the back of the photograph were five words.
Ask her about the hospital.
Audrey stared.
“Who is she?”
Ethan looked at the photograph.
“I don't know.”
Victoria suddenly appeared at the doorway.
Her face changed when she saw it.
“You found her.”
Audrey turned.
“Who?”
Victoria took the photograph from her.
For the first time since Audrey had met her, genuine fear crossed Vivian's face.
“Her name was Elise Mercer.”
Ethan frowned.
“Mercer?”
Vivian nodded.
“Caleb's wife.”
Audrey's heart began pounding.
“She knew my mother?”
“Yes.”
“How?”
Vivian looked at the photograph again.
“She was the last person to see Claire alive.”
Audrey stared.
“Where?”
Vivian hesitated.
“At the hospital.”
“When?”
“The night your mother died.”
Audrey's voice shook.
“What happened there?”
Vivian looked at her.
“Your mother wasn't alone.”
“Who was with her?”
Vivian's eyes moved toward Ethan.
“Richard.”
Ethan's face tightened.
“And Caleb.”
Audrey felt the room tilt.
“Then why was my mother listed as dying alone?”
Vivian didn't answer.
Audrey stepped closer.
“Tell me.”
Vivian swallowed.
“Because the hospital records were changed.”
“By whom?”
“Your grandmother.”
Audrey's eyes widened.
“Why?”
Vivian looked at the photograph.
“Because Claire wasn't the only person who died that night.”
The room became completely silent.
Rachel whispered,
“Who else?”
Vivian looked at Audrey.
“Your grandfather's son.”
Audrey frowned.
“My grandfather had only one child.”
Vivian shook her head.
“No.”
She looked toward Ethan.
“James had another son.”
Ethan stared at her.
“Who?”
Vivian's expression hardened.
“Caleb Mercer.”
Ethan's eyes widened.
Audrey looked from Vivian to the photograph.
The pieces refused to fit.
Caleb had been James's son.
He had been working with Richard.
He had been present when Claire died.
And he had been hunting Audrey for years.
Before Audrey could speak, her phone vibrated.
A message appeared.
No number.
Only a photograph.
Audrey opened it.
It showed Caleb standing beside a hospital bed.
A younger Claire lay unconscious beneath the sheets.
And beside her stood Audrey's grandmother.
The timestamp was visible.
2:17 a.m.
Then another message appeared.
Ask Ethan what happened at 2:17.
Audrey slowly raised her eyes.
Ethan was staring at her phone.
His expression had changed.
He knew something.
And this time, Audrey could see it clearly.
“You remember,” she whispered.
Ethan said nothing.
“Aren't you?”
His silence was answer enough.