Chapter 11 - The Letter From the Man Who Raised Me
Anthony Carter had never been my biological father, but he was the man who taught me how to ride a bicycle, bandaged my scraped knees, and carried me to bed when I fell asleep on the couch.
And someone had murdered him for trying to save Rose.
I left Adrian's interview room shaking.
Dominic was waiting in the hallway.
He stood immediately.
"Lily?"
I tried to answer.
Nothing came out.
Then the tears started.
Dominic stepped closer.
"Can I?"
I nodded.
He wrapped his arms around me.
For a moment, I forgot the cameras, the investigators, and the terrifying man behind the closed door.
I simply cried.
"He killed my dad," I whispered.
Dominic's arms tightened gently.
"I'm sorry."
"Anthony spent years looking for Rose. He knew she was alive."
Dominic went still.
"Adrian told you that?"
I nodded.
"Then we need to verify it."
That afternoon, we returned to my childhood home.
The house had been sold years earlier, but my mother's belongings remained in a storage unit Frank had helped me rent.
Rose came with us.
We searched through boxes for hours.
Photographs.
School certificates.
Holiday decorations.
Old birthday cards.
Then Rose found a wooden toolbox.
Inside was a false bottom.
Beneath it lay a sealed envelope.
On the front, Anthony had written:
For my girls.
My hands trembled.
Girls.
Plural.
He'd known.
I opened the letter.
My beautiful Lily and Rose,
If you ever read this, I hope it means you've found each other.
Rose began crying.
I continued.
Your mother loves both of you more than anything. She was told Rose died at birth, but I discovered that wasn't true.
I've been trying to bring her home.
I don't know how long it will take. But I promise I won't stop.
My vision blurred.
The next paragraph nearly broke me.
Lily, if I don't make it, remember that being your father has been the greatest honor of my life.
I covered my mouth.
Rose put her arms around me.
We cried together.
Then Dominic noticed something tucked behind the letter.
A photograph.
Anthony stood outside a warehouse beside another man.
The man's face was partly hidden.
But Dominic recognized him immediately.
"Marcus."
I looked up.
"Your bodyguard?"
Dominic nodded slowly.
In the photograph, Marcus Reed was much younger.
He stood beside Anthony Carter only two weeks before Anthony died.
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And on the back, Anthony had written:
Marcus knows where Rose is.
