"That's why they've been so desperate to get the locket back," she realized. "It's not just evidence of a murder—it's evidence that could unravel their entire family fortune."
"Exactly. And Annie, there's Something else. Something Joy made me promise to tell you if anything ever happened to her." Uncle Eric's voice dropped to barely above a whisper. "She never trusted banks completely, not after what happened to Eleanor. So she hid things, important family documents, in a place she thought would be safe."
"Where?"
"The old family cemetery, about ten miles north of Fairview. There's a mausoleum there with the Hensley name—Eleanor's maiden name. Joy had a key made to the tomb, andshe hid copies of Everything she could find about Eleanor's disappearance."
Annie stared at her uncle, processing this new information. Another hiding place, another cache of evidence that could support Eleanor's claims. "What kind of documents?"
"Letters Eleanor wrote to Joy before she disappeared. Photographs. Even Some financial records that Joy managed to save when the family estate was divided." Uncle Eric gripped her hand more tightly. "Annie, if Eleanor's letter mentions a safe deposit box, and if Joy's documents support her claims, you might have enough evidence to prove not just murder, but inheritance fraud on a massive scale."
The weight of responsibility felt crushing. It wasn't just about solving a cold case anymore—it was about reclaiming her family's legacy, about ensuring that Eleanor's sacrifice hadn't been in vain.
"Uncle Eric, there's Something I need to tell you too. About what we discovered, about who's been trying to kill us." Annie quickly filled him in on Everything that had happened since the fire—the chase through the mountains, Jack's injury, Agent Chen's investigation, the scope of the criminal organization they'd uncovered.
"So Sarah Mitchell is behind all of this?"
"She's part of it, but it's bigger than just her. The FBI thinks the Mitchell family has been using their inherited wealth to fund criminal activities for decades. Money laundering, hired killers, maybe even connections to organized crime."
Uncle Eric was quiet for a long moment, absorbing the magnitude of what they'd discovered. "Your great-great-grandmother was a brave woman, Annie. She knew she was going to die, but she made sure the truth would survive. Now it's up to us to make sure her courage wasn't wasted."
"Agent Chen is getting a warrant for the safe deposit box this afternoon. We're going to open it under federal supervision and see what Eleanor left behind."
"Good. But Annie, be careful. If what I suspect is true, if that box contains evidence of inheritance fraud worth millions of dollars, then Sarah Mitchell and her associates will do anything to prevent it from becoming public."
A commotion in the hallway outside made them both look toward the door. Raised voices, the sound of running feet, what might have been security alarms in the distance.
"What's that about?" Uncle Eric asked, but before Annie could answer, the door to his room burst open.
Agent Chen stood in the doorway, her weapon drawn and her expression tense. "Ms. Whitaker, we need to move you immediately. We have a security breach in the hospital."
"What kind of breach?" Annie was already on her feet, her heart racing.
"Armed individuals on the hospital premises, and we have reason to believe they're targeting both you and Detective Calloway." Agent Chen gestured urgently toward the door. "We're evacuating you to a secure location until we can neutralize the threat."
Annie looked back at Uncle Eric, torn between staying to protect him and following Agent Chen to safety. "What about my uncle?"
"Hospital security is positioning guards outside his room. He'll be safe here." Agent Chen's voice brooked no argument. "But you need to come with me now."
As they hurried down the hospital corridor, Annie could see federal agents at strategic positions, their weapons ready, their eyes scanning for threats. The weight of Eleanor's locket in her pocket felt heavier than ever—a century-old secret that people were still willing to kill for.
I won't let them win, she thought fiercely.Eleanor trusted the truth to survive, and I'm going to make sure it does.
But as they reached the elevator that would take them to whatever safety Agent Chen had arranged, Annie couldn't shake the feeling that they were walking into another trap.
Some secrets she was learning had roots too deep and tendrils too widespread to be easily exposed.
***
Jack forced himself to remain still as Agent Chen’s colleague guided him back against the pillows and began reconnecting the monitoring leads he had half-pulled free. Every instinct he had screamed at him to get out of this bed, to get into the corridor, to find Annie. The threatening messages still burned behind his eyes, not because he feared what they promised for him, but because of what they implied for her. Losing Annie now—after everything they had survived, after finally finding their way back to one another—was a thought he could not make himself face.
“Detective, I need you focused,” the agent said, his tone firm but controlled as he adjusted the equipment. “Tell me everything about the messages. When did they come in? Have you seen the number before?”
“First one about ten minutes ago. The second a few minutes after that.” Jack handed him the phone. “I don’t recognize the number, but the timing means they’re tracking us in real time.”
The agent studied the screen, then looked back at him. “Any idea how they might have gotten your personal cell?”
Jack closed his eyes briefly, working back through the last forty-eight hours. His number wasn’t public. He guarded it carefully. But chaos created openings. “On the mountain,” he said slowly. “When we were hiding in the caves, I called 911.If they were monitoring emergency frequencies, they could’ve traced it.”
