Lillian stood frozen with shock. Who was Steele? Was Grandpa Ben hiding something from them? She tried to overhear but the rest of the conversation happened in low whispers. Maybe Grandpa Ben had heard her approaching his room. She opened the door to see him switch off his phone warily.
He turned around to face her, his face pale and nervous. “Who were you talking to, Grandpa?” asked Lillian with a frown.
“No one special. Just a friend,” stammered her grandpa. It made her scowl even more. After overhearing his conversation, she was sure it wasn’t a friend.
“Or an enemy.”
Grandpa sat down and gaped at her with a guilty look on his face. “Why do you say so, Lillian?”
“I know you were talking to some Steele. Who is he, Grandpa? Why would he kidnap Seb?”
Benjamin St. James rubbed his face nervously, knowing it was time to come out clean. After overhearing his conversation, Lillian wouldn’t let this go so easily. It wasn’t easy to fool her.
“He didn’t admit to kidnapping Seb. It was a hunch!”
“Still? Who’s the man? He can’t be your friend!” insisted Lillian, sitting down beside him. She wasn’t going anywhere without hearing his explanation.
“You’re right. He’s not my friend. He’s Desmond Steele, my illegitimate son.” Her grandpa covered his face after the shattering admission while Lillian sat frozen on the spot. She couldn’t believe her ears!
“How?” she at last squeaked. Now she was sure Desmond Steele was the mastermind behind Sebastian’s disappearance.
“Your granny’s death made me depressed. I used to visit a club every day, to cope up with my condition. It was there that I met Marilyn. She worked as a bartender there and we talked every day. She was lonely after her divorce and we connected. After two months, I admitted myself to a rehabilitation center and my condition improved. I started busying myself with the business and your dad. He was just thirteen then and needed me the most.”
“For years, I forgot about Marilyn until twenty-four years later, when I received a phone call from someone called Desmond Steele. He claimed to be my son and started demanding money. He furnished me with proof that he was Marilyn and my son. I gave in when he threatened to harm you all. Ever since I had been paying him every year, but after four years, I stopped. Your parents died, and I was too devastated. I blocked his number for good.”
“I’m sure he caused mom and dad’s accident when you stopped paying him.”
“I thought so too, but there was no evidence. The case was closed and for years I had forgotten about him completely until two years ago. He contacted me again using a different number. This time, the amount he demanded was a lot, and I declined. He kept on disturbing me, but I turned a deaf ear to his pleas.”
“Maybe he resorted to this to get back at you, to force you to pay up,” said Lillian with a sigh.
“That’s what came to my mind and I called him but he clearly declined my accusations.”
“I think you should inform the police about this, Grandpa. Maybe they can gather evidence against Desmond Steele.” Grandpa Ben shook his head in panic. He couldn’t admit to his folly in front of the whole family.
“I can’t do that, Lillian. I wouldn’t be able to face the others. This was a mistake I want to bury deep in my heart.” Lilian looked into her grandpa’s hesitant eyes and nodded. She wouldn’t force him to talk about it.
“But what if Seb is indeed in Desmond’s custody?” She noticed the dilemma in her grandpa’s eyes as he pondered over her question.
“Do you really think Desmond has kidnapped Sebastian for money?”
“There’s a possibility, Grandpa. Why don’t we hire a PI instead? That way we could hunt Desmond down and force him to admit to his crime,” suggested Lillian hopefully.
“I’ll do that tomorrow. I know the guy whom we could appoint. Please don’t utter a word about this to the others, Lillian. If the need arises, I will explain everything to the others.”
“I won’t, but we have to hurry. Sebastian’s life is at stake here, Grandpa.”
Lillian left with a heavy heart, unable to convince her grandpa to seek police help. If the PI failed in his mission, she would have to coax him to agree. She had lost her parents, but not her brother. Lillian was sure Desmond had a hand in both cases. If only she could prove his involvement.
The next morning, she accompanied her grandpa to the private investigator’s office. Adam Carson was a former US Marine who ran his own Security agency in Cleveland. Grandpa gave him 48 hours to seek information about Desmond Steele’s whereabouts. He didn’t have any picture of the man, but he had the two phone numbers he used to call Grandpa Ben.
However, after four days, Adam Carson summoned them to his office to update them about his findings.
“We have traced the phone number to Bedford, a small rural town in South Africa. Desmond Steele owns a small farm and lives there all by himself. I think he has mental health issues.” This new piece of information disturbed Benjamin St. James since it meant bad news for them. With mental health issues, Desmond Steele was the primary suspect now. It wouldn’t be wise to withhold the information from the police any longer.
“How do you know about his mental health issues?” he asked the PI.
“My men have asked around the neighborhood he lives in. They all repeated the same story of how he murdered his own mother for the property. No one in the town associates with him. The man is a notorious criminal involved in petty thefts, and abduction amongst other crimes. He can do anything for money.”
“That’s bad news indeed. I’m sure he’s now our primary suspect. Did your men find Sebastian in his place?” asked Grandpa Ben hopefully.
“No. They have asked around too. No one has seen Sebastian St. James in the vicinity. I think you should involve the cops and get him arrested. I’m sure he’s the mastermind behind this.”
However, they were in for a tremendous shock when they visited the police station next. Grandpa Ben had agreed to involve the police now, and Lilian felt a little relieved by his decision. The officer in charge of the case, Fred Stewart, greeted them with a grave expression on his face.
“We’ve found a battered body on the premises of an under-construction building. It is near the same hospital where Sylvester Wright’s car had been found. The features are unidentifiable, so we would want Ms. Wright to identify the body.” Lillian and her grandpa exchanged looks, knowing Erica’s mental condition. She would be totally devastated!
“Her condition is quite critical, officer. Can I identify the body instead?” asked a worried Grandpa Ben.
“Fine. Can you reach the Cleveland Clinic in Downtown Cleveland Warehouse District right away? We’ll meet you there.” They left the police station and drove over to the hospital. Lillian called Caleb, and he too joined them soon. Officer Stewart joined them after ten minutes and led them to the morgue.
Grandpa Ben removed the cover from the battered body the officer had mentioned. Lillian gasped with horror since it was no doubt Uncle Sylvester’s body! He had been brutally murdered.
“Yes, officer. This is Sylvester Wright!” said Grandpa Ben, feeling deep remorse for the man. Who could have murdered him so brutally? Was it Desmond Steele?
“Then he couldn’t have been involved in the abduction. Maybe he was helping Mr. St. James instead. The murderer got him out of the way!” They agreed to the officer’s reasoning and walked out of the hospital in a dazed state.
“After the forensic reports are out, I’ll update you about the latest findings on the case. We should receive information about the murder weapon and fingerprints of the suspect. Then we could match them with Mr. Steele’s fingerprints.”
They drove home while Caleb looked confused. “Who’s Mr. Steele?” he asked Grandpa Ben.
He looked uncomfortable, unable to meet Caleb’s eyes.
“He’s a relative. He has been harassing Grandpa for money lately. So we have a hunch that he is involved in the case,” explained Lillian. They reached home but couldn’t inform Erica about the latest developments in the case.
She looked at them hopefully as they sat dejectedly. The only fear that ate them up was what if the criminal killed Sebastian next?
“What happened at the police station, Grandpa?” asked Christian, joining them. There was no other option than to tell them the truth.
“Uncle Sylvester is no more. The kidnapper murdered him and left his body at a construction site in Downtown Cleveland Warehouse District. It’s near the Cleveland Clinic where his car was abandoned. We just identified his body at the hospital. I’m sorry for your loss, Erica,” said Lillian. Erica sat frozen on the spot.
“Uncle Sylvester is no more! I can’t believe this. Ever since my parents’ death, he manipulated me, dominated me, and yelled at me. He never left me for a moment and now he has gone forever. He was an extremely protective parent to me, so now I don’t know whether to be relieved or sad!” she said as tears welled up in her eyes.
“And Seb? What about Seb? What if they kill him too? Please let’s seek help from the FBI, Grandpa,” said Christian, angrily. How could they not take this seriously?