Chapter 2 - THE THREAT AGAINST ROOM 318
Thomas Whitmore had negotiated with ruthless businessmen for twenty years.
He had faced lawsuits, hostile takeovers, and threats against his fortune.
But nothing had prepared him for a photograph of an innocent elderly woman accompanied by a threat against her life.
His first instinct was anger.
His second was fear.
Not for himself.
For Annie.
"What's wrong?" she whispered.
Thomas looked toward the chapel door.
"Annie, I need you to stay here for a moment."
Her face changed.
"Is it Grandma?"
He didn't lie.
"Someone sent me a threatening message involving your grandmother."
Annie stumbled backward.
"What?"
Thomas immediately steadied her.
"She's not necessarily in danger right now. But we're going to take this seriously."
Annie's eyes filled with tears.
"Please, Mr. Whitmore. She's all I have."
"I know."
Thomas called hospital security and asked them to send an officer to Room 318.
He also contacted the police.
Then he accompanied Annie upstairs.
The hallway smelled of antiseptic and coffee.
At the nurses' station, a young nurse named Emily recognized Annie.
"Annie! Your grandmother was asking for you."
Annie rushed toward Room 318.
Evelyn Carter lay beneath a pale blue blanket.
Her silver hair rested against the pillow.
When she saw Annie, she smiled.
"There you are, sweetheart."
Annie nearly collapsed with relief.
She hurried to the bedside.
"Grandma."
Evelyn noticed her tears.
"What's happened?"
"Nothing. I just missed you."
Evelyn studied her face.
"That's the same lie you told me when you said you'd eaten dinner."
Annie laughed weakly.
Thomas stood near the doorway.
He watched Evelyn take Annie's cold hands between her own.
Then Evelyn noticed him.
"And who is this handsome gentleman?"
Annie blushed.
"Grandma, this is Mr. Whitmore. My employer."
Evelyn's smile faded slightly.
"Thomas Whitmore?"
Thomas stepped forward.
"Yes, ma'am."
The older woman stared at him.
Then she said something unexpected.
"You have your mother's eyes."
Thomas froze.
"You knew my mother?"
Evelyn looked away.
"A long time ago."
Thomas's mother, Margaret Whitmore, had died twenty-four years earlier.
Very few people outside the family still remembered her.
"How did you know her?" he asked.
Evelyn's fingers tightened around Annie's hand.
"She was kind to me once."
Before Thomas could ask another question, Nurse Emily returned.
"The hospital security officer is here."
Thomas stepped into the hallway to explain the threatening message.
When he returned, Evelyn was watching him carefully.
"Your mother was a wonderful woman," she said.
Thomas nodded.
"She was."
Evelyn hesitated.
"She would be ashamed of what's happening in your house."
The room went silent.
Annie stared.
"Grandma?"
Evelyn closed her eyes.
"I promised myself I'd never speak about that family again."
Thomas stepped closer.
"What are you talking about?"
Evelyn looked directly at him.
"Your household manager, Eleanor Bennett."
Thomas's expression sharpened.
"What about her?"
Evelyn's voice trembled.
"She worked for your mother."
Thomas frowned.
"That's impossible. Eleanor told me she joined our household fifteen years ago."
Evelyn shook her head.
"No, Thomas."
May you like
A tear rolled down her cheek.
"She was there the night your mother died."
Related Stories
