The following morning, Angela brought Ruth's letter to Detective Collins. Mara read every page twice before placing it carefully on her desk. She recognized the significance of the allegations, but refused to promise that the documents proved what happened. Memories could change over decades, and Ruth had apparently written the account long after the events. Still, the names, dates, and addresses provided leads that could be checked against surviving records.
They began with Daniel. His surname before entering the Bennett household was unknown, but Ruth described a silver pendant he always wore and a birth certificate that Evelyn had supposedly hidden. Mara requested archived reports relating to the fire and the children's home. She also arranged to speak formally with Thomas once his doctors considered him well enough.
The storage facility proved easier to locate. It stood behind an industrial park near the edge of Briarwood, surrounded by repair garages and warehouses. Unit 214 had been rented for nineteen years by Thomas Whitaker. When Mara visited him at the hospital, he confirmed that he had entrusted Ruth with a spare key. He consented to investigators examining the contents, although the request clearly unsettled him.
"Some things in those boxes could still hurt people," he warned.
Mara pulled her chair closer.
"Has anyone threatened you recently?"
Thomas looked away. Then he reached beneath his pillow and handed her a folded piece of paper. Someone had sent it three weeks earlier, using an envelope without a return address. The message contained only two sentences.
Daniel is alive. Come back to Briarwood if you want to know what happened to Evelyn.
Angela felt her breath catch.
"Who sent this?"
"I don't know."
"Then why didn't you contact the police?"
Thomas gave a tired smile.
"The last time I tried explaining what happened to Evelyn, they accused me of killing her."
He described how police questioned him after the fire, how his reputation collapsed, and how he eventually left Briarwood. He spent years working as a mechanic, moving between towns while searching for information about Daniel. Marriage and ordinary responsibilities gradually filled his life, but the guilt remained. After his wife died and medical expenses consumed his savings, Thomas lost his apartment. The anonymous letter brought him back despite his failing health.
"Why sleep outside instead of coming straight here?" Angela asked.
Thomas lowered his eyes.
"I was afraid your family would refuse to see me."
His voice cracked.
"Then your little boy gave me his scarf. And when he said Bennett, I knew Evelyn had somehow led me home."