A Southern Noir: Deception by Any Other Name

Three Years Later

Annalee Perry-Stover guided her car down the long driveway of her spacious home. She was a student at Rose Hill, a small Bible college about forty miles from Birmingham. Annalee hoped to surprise her mother with her unexpected visit.

After parking her car, she walked inside the house without waiting on the butler to open the door for her. He rounded the corner when he heard the door open. "Miss Perry-Stover, how nice to see you. What brings you home?"

"Hey, Thomas. I need to get a copy of my birth certificate for my internship coming up next month. Is my mother home?"

"I'm afraid not, ma'am. Mrs. Abigail left early this morning to join the ladies group at the church. She won't be back until this afternoon."

"I knew I should have called ahead. Oh well, I think I know where she keeps it."

"Ah, yes, the wall safe. I believe that she has the key with her."

"No worries. I know where she hides the spare key. I'll get it and wait for Mom to get home."

Annalee went upstairs to her mother's bedroom. She opened her mother's closet and found her father's old coat. Taking it off the rack, Annalee embraced it, trying to catch the scent of her father. His passing a few years ago was fresh on her mind as she clutched one of the few things left that could remind her of him. Reaching into his left-hand pocket, she found the key her mother kept hidden.

After hanging the coat back in its place, she moved the large family picture to reveal the wall safe. The door swung open, and Annalee began to pull out the contents of the safe. There were several jewelry boxes and five thousand dollars in cash. She began to flip through the papers at the bottom of the safe. Unable to see them well, Annalee decided to pull them out, but several papers and an old manila envelope fell to the floor when she did. "Rats," she said.

Annalee began sorting through the papers and stacking them to return to the safe. She placed the documents inside and then turned her attention to the envelope. Opening it, she saw what looked like a birth certificate inside. "There you are," she said as she pulled it out. Taking out her camera, she snapped a picture of it. Annalee slid the certificate back into place when something inside caught her eye. Out of curiosity, she pulled out the contents of the envelope. When she did, Annalee found a curious document inside.

"What is this?" she asked. Looking over the document, she gasped. She continued browsing the file, feeling a sense of fear beginning to overcome her. Quickly, she started photographing the documents inside the envelope one by one. When she finished, she stuffed them back in the envelope and flung it back inside the safe. She put everything back as much the way she found it that she could.

Annalee slammed the safe shut and closed the painting back on top of it. She began to leave the bedroom before remembering that she'd not put the key back in the coat pocket. Once the key was back where it belonged, she rushed down the stairs feeling as if her legs would give out before she reached the floor. She ran out the front door, not knowing if it closed behind her.

With her hands trembling and her heart beating intensely, she raced down the long driveway. Annalee hoped her mother wouldn't arrive before she was on her way back to Rose Hill. Tears began streaming down her cheeks as she realized, even if she could not fully comprehend, that her life had changed forever.

End of Part 1

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